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Five key takeaways from the Timberwolves' jubilant win in Phoenix

The Wolves opened March with an impressive win that they hope is a signal of things to come.

Will Ragatz

Mar 2, 2025; Phoenix, Arizona, USA; Minnesota Timberwolves players celebrate against the Phoenix Suns during the second half at Footprint Center.
Mar 2, 2025; Phoenix, Arizona, USA; Minnesota Timberwolves players celebrate against the Phoenix Suns during the second half at Footprint Center. / Joe Camporeale-Imagn Images
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This Minnesota Timberwolves season has been quite the rollercoaster. The results — and subsequently, the vibes — have constantly fluctuated. In one moment, they'll look like a team capable of making another deep playoff run. A day or two later, they'll look like a team unlikely to get out of the play-in tournament.

After Sunday night's impressive, joy-filled 18-point win in Phoenix, things are once again looking up. Anthony Edwards returned from a one-game suspension and exploded for 44 points (and no technical fouls). Julius Randle and Donte DiVincenzo, respectively playing in their first and third games back from lengthy injury absences, combined for 44 of their own. And while it was just one win over an 11th-place Suns team that's been a mess this season, the Wolves' schedule in March should — at least on paper — present plenty of opportunities to get on a roll and climb up the Western Conference standings.

Let's dive further into five takeaways from Sunday's win by the 33-29 Wolves.

Ant loves playing in Phoenix

You knew Edwards was going to come out motivated in this game. After getting ejected on his 16th technical of the season in LA on Thursday, he missed the end of the Wolves' loss to the Lakers and the entirety of their defeat against the lowly Jazz the next night. Plus, he always rises to the occasion when playing against the Suns and his favorite player of all time, Kevin Durant.

That's exactly what happened. Edwards dropped his sixth 40-ball of the season, all of which have come since the calendar flipped to 2025. He hit 12 of his 22 field-goal attempts, six of 14 threes, and all 14 of his free throws to finish with 44 points, adding seven assists and five rebounds. Edwards exploded for 17 in the third quarter to help the Wolves get some separation, ultimately scoring 29 points with five threes in the second half. After a six-game cold stretch from deep dating back to before the All-Star break, Ant found his shot again in this one.

He also didn't get any techs, which is a win for Minnesota. He reacted a few times after perceived no-calls but was able to show some restraint with the officials. Also, to be fair to Edwards, he really does seem to get a bad whistle for a superstar player. Towards the end of this game, Bradley Beal straight-up pushed him in midair to dangerously break up what could've been an all-time highlight. There somehow wasn't a foul called in the moment, though a flagrant 1 was added upon review.

In his last four games in Phoenix, dating back to last year's first-round sweep, Edwards has averaged 38.3 points, 7.5 rebounds, and 5.8 assists on 54.5 percent shooting.

DiVincenzo makes history

It's not very often that a player does something that has never happened before in the nearly 80-year history of the NBA. In just his third game back from a toe injury that cost him six weeks, DiVincenzo made history as the first player ever with at least seven threes and five steals in a game where they came off the bench. He finished with a season-high eight threes on just 13 attempts, showing off the elite range that helped him finish third in the league in threes made last season with the Knicks.

DiVincenzo is also an excellent, instinctual off-ball defender, which was on full display as he had five of the Wolves' franchise-record-tying 18 steals in this game. Right after entering the game for the first time, there was a 26-second stretch where he got a steal, hit a three, got another steal, and hit another three — completely sparking Minnesota after a slow start.

Now a few games removed from his injury, DiVincenzo will almost certainly re-enter the starting lineup for Mike Conley soon. The backcourt of Donte and Ant has a chance to be an incredibly fun one moving forward. They're elite long-range snipers who get their shots in different ways — Edwards off the dribble, DiVincenzo off the catch — and also bring playmaking and defense to the table. When they're hitting shots like they were on Sunday night, it'll be scary to defend.

Randle was outstanding in his return

Randle has been an extremely polarizing player since coming over with DiVincenzo in the Karl-Anthony Towns trade. But no matter what you think of him and how he compares to Naz Reid, he wasn't a three-time All-Star and two time All-NBA selection by accident. At least to some degree, the Wolves missed Randle's bucket-getting ability while he was hurt.

This game showed basically the ideal version of Randle, who had 20 points, six rebounds, and three assists on 8 of 14 shooting. He hit a couple threes but did most of his work on the inside, and he also kept the ball moving when he wasn't attacking. It was a big performance on a night where Rudy Gobert remained out and Reid was just 3 of 15 from the field (though Reid added ten boards, five assists, and was +26). The more games like that the Wolves can get from Randle, the more dangerous they'll be. It's going to be interesting to see whether he or Reid go to the bench once Gobert is back.

Dillingham loses rotation spot as entire rookie trio plays less

The side effect of DiVincenzo and Randle being back in the lineup is that the Wolves' trio of rookies, who all impressed in their own ways over the last month and change, saw their roles significantly reduced. Rob Dillingham was removed from the rotation entirely and appears to be the odd man out in the backcourt. Jaylen Clark played 11 minutes, which were his fewest since he first entered the rotation in Phoenix on Jan. 29. Terrence Shannon Jr., despite averaging 19.7 points over the last three games, played just seven minutes.

Earlier this season, Chris Finch largely stuck to his eight-man rotation. He now has the depth to go beyond that, but it looks like it'll be difficult to find more than a handful of minutes for guys like Clark and Shannon while everyone is healthy. Still, Finch and the Wolves will need the young players to stay ready, as injuries can always pop up and the rotation could shift based on matchups and other factors.

It's time for the Wolves to go on a run

As mentioned earlier, it's been a season defined by inconsistency for the Wolves. They currently sit in eighth place in the West, though they're in a mix of five teams — from the sixth-seeded Clippers to the tenth-seeded Mavericks — separated by just 0.5 games in the standings. And when you look at Minnesota's upcoming schedule, there's no reason why Finch's team shouldn't wind up as at least the sixth seed by the time the regular season comes to an end.

The Wolves have the third-easiest remaining schedule in the league by opponent winning percentage. Just seven of their final 20 games come against teams with winning records, and four of those are against the good-not-great Pacers, Pistons, and Bucks. They're now 1-0 in a 14-game March slate that features ten games against sub-.500 teams and nine games in Minneapolis. If the Wolves are as good as they looked on Sunday in Phoenix, the expectation should be that they finish the month with at least a 10-4 record.

Minnesota's favorable schedule in the month of March
Minnesota's favorable schedule in the month of March / ESPN

And while the optimism may not be totally warranted, I just can't give up on the idea that this Wolves team could make it back to the Western Conference Finals if they're healthy and are able to peak at the right time. There's just so much talent on the roster, led by Edwards. The best version of this team absolutely has the ability to beat any team in the West — including the Thunder and Lakers — in a seven-game series.

Time to buckle up for what should be a very interesting final quarter of the regular season.

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Will Ragatz
WILL RAGATZ

Will Ragatz is a senior writer for Vikings On SI. He is a credentialed Minnesota Vikings beat reporter, covering the team extensively at practices, games and throughout the NFL draft and free agency period. Ragatz attended Northwestern University, where he studied at the prestigious Medill School of Journalism. During his time as a student, he covered Northwestern Wildcats football and basketball for SB Nation’s Inside NU, eventually serving as co-editor-in-chief in his junior year. In the fall of 2018, Will interned in Sports Illustrated’s newsroom in New York City, where he wrote articles on Major League Baseball, college football, and college basketball for SI.com.

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