After just 79 seconds in Game 4, Donte DiVincenzo tore his Achilles, and in the second quarter, disaster struck with Anthony Edwards. The Minnesota Timberwolves lost two players, and the diagnosis for either looks grim. Ant is awaiting his MRI results, but medical experts have given their opinion on whether it is a minor sprain or a severe ACL tear.

With 2:42 remaining in the second frame, Edwards left his feet to challenge a Cam Johnson layup attempt. But he couldn’t stick his landing and appeared to hyperextend his left knee. To show his frustration and pain, he slapped the court a few times. Soon, the trainers helped Anthony Edwards get back up to his feet. The Wolves star even needed assistance as he hobbled off the floor, since he could not put any weight on the injured leg. Prominent physician and sports performance expert, surgeon Deepak Chona’s tweet was not that encouraging.

He stated that if Edwards is lucky, he will be diagnosed with a bone bruise and/or a knee/capsule sprain. In that scenario, Edwards will be good to go and only miss the rest of the series against the Denver Nuggets. But there is a possibility of a torn ACL, which will be the worst-case scenario as the Wolves star will be forced not just to miss the rest of this season, but also the majority of the next one. He even concluded with, “Fingers crossed for good news, although the video doesn’t give major optimism.”

Even another sports medicine expert, Brian Sutterer, had a grim update to offer.”I’ll be shocked if we see Anthony Edwards back this series (best case), and yes, this has the potential to be far worse. Hyperextensions are extremely hard to assess the severity of from video alone compared to other injuries.” This comfortably puts Edwards missing the remainder of this first-round matchup.

Anthony Edwards was the Wolves’ leading scorer with 23.0 points per outing. After the game, Timberwolves coach Chris Finch remained in doubt. “Nothing,” he told reporters when asked about the issue. “Nothing. Nothing definitive.” Though the injuries to Edwards and DiVincenzo were both major blows, the Wolves came away with the 112-96 victory.

This season hasn’t been kind to Anthony Edwards

In his first five seasons in the NBA, Edwards played in 381 of a possible 400 regular-season games. Over that span, he had appeared in at least 72 games each season. That’s immense durability when you consider the Wolves even had postseason runs. But this year, knee and elbow issues limited him to just 61 games played. That prevented him from being eligible for individual awards. And unlike Luka Doncic and Cade Cunningham, Edwards lost an appeal to receive an exemption.

A right knee injury forced him to miss 11 of the Timberwolves’ final 13 regular-season games, and Edwards has been playing through it as the team navigates its postseason run. After Game 1, Edwards himself acknowledged that he was “fatigued.” For Game 2, Edwards entered as a game-time decision, made contact with Denver’s Nikola Jokic and began to visibly hobble. Despite his visible discomfort, he would finish with a game-high 30 points. But the problem here was that 20 points came in the first half and just in the final frame. Again, for Game 3, he was questionable before playing just 24 minutes for 17 points.

Edwards was in foul trouble for most of the night, coach decided not to put him at further risk. While leaving the court, observers noticed a pronounced limp in his gait. In frustration, he kicked a chair on the bench as he headed to the locker room. Unfortunately, tonight he was not able to complete the game, and now his participation in the series and beyond remains in doubt.