Anthony Edwards' clutch shooting numbers so far this season are historic

Edwards is on pace to have one of the greatest clutch shooting seasons since those statistics were first tracked.

Jan 11, 2026; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; Minnesota Timberwolves guard Anthony Edwards (5) looks on against the San Antonio Spurs in the second half at Target Center. | Jesse Johnson-Imagn Images

Halfway through the 2025-26 NBA season, there should be no doubt who the frontrunner for the league's Clutch Player of the Year award is. Timberwolves superstar Anthony Edwards hasn't just been the best clutch shooter in the league so far this season, he's on pace to have the greatest clutch-shooting season since those statistics started being tracked almost 30 years ago.

For those who may be unfamiliar, the NBA defines clutch situations as any game that's within five points in the final five minutes of regulation or overtime. A game can fade in and out of that status if a lead fluctuates between the five-point threshold.

So far this season, Edwards has taken 41 shots in the clutch. He's made an absurd 29 of them, which is 70.7 percent. And while some of those are dunks or layups, a lot of them are jump shots. He's 8 of 14 (57.1 percent) on three-pointers in the clutch. Most recently, Edwards went 3 for 4 on clutch shots in Sunday's comeback win over the Spurs, including the game-winner in the final 20 seconds.

Anthony Edwards just drained a clutch jumper over Stephon Castle, calling him too small, and then drove past Victor Wembanyama for the game winning bucket.

Man, Ant is elite. pic.twitter.com/YhJHe5I63x

— Legion Hoops (@LegionHoops) January 12, 2026

Edwards' nearly 71 percent mark in clutch shooting leads the league by a wide margin among players with at least 20 clutch field goals. The next-best percentage among the 12 players in that group belongs to Nikola Jokic at 55.6 percent. If you drop the threshold to 10 makes, the next-best mark goes to Chet Holmgren at 64.7 percent (11 of 17). That type of efficiency makes more sense for a lower-usage big man like Holmgren than it does for a lead guard and high-volume No. 1 option.

Effective field goal percentage, which gives more weight to three-pointers, tells an even better story of Edwards' efficiency. His current .805 eFG% on clutch shots is the best mark by any player since clutch numbers were first tracked in the 1996-97 season. In second place is Jalen Williams, who was at .768 on 41 attempts in the 2023-24 campaign. Edwards, who isn't playing on Tuesday night in Milwaukee due to injury maintenance, has reached that many clutch attempts in half a season.

Every clutch shot attempt from Anthony Edwards so far this season pic.twitter.com/FQhVKvNf09

— Pitless (@pitlessball) January 2, 2026

What makes this surge even more impressive is that Edwards hasn't been a very good clutch shooter throughout his career, prior to this season. His previous career bests in clutch shooting were 43 percent from the field, 33 percent from deep, and a .517 effective field goal percentage. The fact that he's at 71, 57, and .805 so far this year is nothing short of ridiculous.

Of course, it should be acknowledged that those incredible numbers will be extremely difficult to sustain in the second half of the season. Regression is probably inevitable. But at the same time, this isn't a fluke. Edwards has taken major strides with his mid-range shooting and his overall shot selection and decision-making in clutch situations this year. So even if he isn't going to shoot 70-plus percent in the clutch all season, there's reason to believe he'll continue to be quite the weapon for the Timberwolves as they look to close out games.

"I don't care what happens in the first three quarters," Edwards said after the Spurs game. "In the 4th quarter, three minutes, four minutes left, let me see it."

Anthony Edwards | Jesse Johnson-Imagn Images

Right now, Edwards is somehow only third in Clutch Player of the Year odds, behind Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Cade Cunningham. SGA leads the league in total clutch points at 119, while Cunningham is second at 98. Edwards, who has missed some games, is sixth at 76. But in terms of points per clutch game, Edwards (5.4) is behind only SGA (7.9) and Jokic (6.2).

And efficiency has to matter, too. A big reason why Gilgeous-Alexander leads the league in clutch points is because he's taken 71 shots (30 more than Edwards) in those situations. He's shooting 49 percent overall and 27 percent from three. Cunningham is at 50 percent overall and 8 percent from three (1 of 12).

If Edwards can even come close to keeping up this kind of clutch shotmaking in the second half, he'll be in great position to win the CPOY award. He might just find himself in the MVP conversation, too.

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