Anthony Edwards joins Hall-of-Fame company with another 40-point playoff game

In leading the Minnesota Timberwolves to an upset victory over the reigning champion Denver Nuggets in Game 1 of the second round in the NBA Playoffs, Anthony Edwards put his name in truly rarified air.

Edwards dominated in Saturday's win in Denver, putting up a game-high 43 points with seven rebounds, three assists, two blocks and a steal. But as ESPN's Malika Andrews noted, the young Timberwolves phenom became the only player besides the late Kobe Bryant to register consecutive playoff games of 40 points or more at age 22 or younger.

Edwards' historic outing put Minnesota in a massively advantageous spot to advance to the Western Conference Finals. Stealing the first game of the series on the road immediately flips home-court advantage and, if the Wolves can protect their floor in Games 3 and 4, they could be up 3-1 in the series as it would head back to Denver. Of course, the series is far from over, especially with the likes of Jamal Murray not performing at their best for the Nuggets in Game 1.

That has to be expected from Denver in Game 2 and beyond. In all likelihood, the series will be knotted 1-1 heading back to Minnesota. But will it take more historic outings from Edwards for the Wolves to take full advantage of the Game 1 victory throughout the rest of the series?

Does Anthony Edwards need to continue his historic run for Timberwolves to win the series?

At just 22 years old and in just his fourth NBA season, Edwards is cementing himself as one of the game's best right now. Through five playoff games this year, the young superstar is averaging an absurd 33.4 points, 7.8 rebounds, 5.6 assists, 1.8 steals and 1.0 blocks per night in 40.0 minutes per contest.

That has been the catalyst for the Timberwolves to this point as Minnesota has yet to lose. Having said that, the bigger need for this team isn't more historic nights from Edwards -- though that wouldn't hurt. Instead, Karl-Anthony Towns needs to have a bigger impact on both ends of the floor in tandem with Edwards' contributions.

Denver is the farthest thing from a pushover opponent. The reigning champs led by the MVP-caliber play of Nikola Jokić were warranted as one of the favorites entering the postseason, looking to continue a mini-dynasty with an M.O. similar to that of the 1970s Portland Trail Blazers built around Bill Walton.

All this is to say, without question, Edwards must continue being great for the Timberwolves to both complete the win in this series and even contend for a title. It's vital if Minnesota is going to counteract the beautiful symmetry of the Nuggets offense. But for a 22-year-old putting his name in the conversation with Kobe Bryant already, the safe bet would be that he's more than capable of that.