Anthony Edwards Drops 36 to Tie Spurs Series, Wembanyama Ejection Reshapes Game 5 Prop Landscape

As ESPN reported, Anthony Edwards poured in 36 points — 16 in the fourth quarter alone — to lift the Minnesota Timberwolves past San Antonio 114-109 in Game 4, evening the second-round series at two games apiece after Victor Wembanyama was ejected for a flagrant foul 2 elbow to Naz Reid's neck early in the second quarter. The series heads back to San Antonio for Game 5 on Tuesday with Wembanyama's availability pending league review.

The most important number from Sunday night isn't Edwards' point total — it's that the Spurs outscored Minnesota in the third quarter 20-14 and forced the Wolves into six turnovers in that stretch, turning a two-point gift into an eight-point deficit entering the fourth. Dylan Harper and De'Aaron Fox each finished with 24 points, Stephon Castle added 20, and the San Antonio backcourt ran a midrange clinic that exposed Minnesota's well-documented tendency to go flat when an opponent loses its anchor. The Wolves didn't win because they dominated — they won because Edwards willed them to.

Rudy Gobert (11 pts, 13 reb) and Reid (15 pts, 9 reb) ultimately provided the interior muscle needed to close, but Julius Randle's role as a facilitator — he drew the entry pass for Gobert's three-point play — is worth noting. The Wolves' closing lineup leaned heavily on paint presence once Wembanyama was gone, which speaks directly to how San Antonio's paint defense collapses without him. Edwards' 27-foot pull-up and a catch-and-shoot wing three gave Minnesota back the lead at 98-97 with 5:12 left; from there, the Spurs never reclaimed control.

The prop-bet calculus for Game 5 hinges entirely on Wembanyama's status. If he's suspended or unavailable, Edwards' scoring ceiling expands dramatically — he's now posted consecutive 30-plus-point games in this series and is averaging north of 30 on the playoff run. His points prop, likely to be set in the 28.5-30.5 range, carries serious over value if Wembanyama is out, because San Antonio's interior defense without him is a shell. But even if Wembanyama plays, Edwards demonstrated he can manufacture 36 against this Spurs guard-heavy scheme. The Timberwolves' team total is also worth monitoring: Minnesota has been volatile offensively — capable of the third-quarter collapses that suppress scoring but also of the Edwards-driven fourth-quarter surges that inflate it. Game totals in this series have consistently gone over the posted number when both teams' guards are healthy and active.

The real sleeper angle is Harper. At 24 points on Sunday, he's shown he can carry significant scoring load regardless of who else is on the floor. If Wembanyama misses Game 5, Harper's points prop — typically priced as a secondary option — becomes dramatically undervalued. Fox posted 24 as well, but Harper's volume and finishing touch in the paint were the more sustainable production line. Back-to-back 20-plus showings from a rookie would reprice him quickly; catch the number before the market adjusts.