Even in the sting of a narrow defeat, Anthony Edwards couldn’t ignore the performance that helped sink his Minnesota Timberwolves. They fell 108-105 to a team missing both Devin Booker and Jalen Green. Despite an incredible offensive night from Edwards, who logged yet another 40-point game on outstanding efficiency, his teammates just couldn’t keep up. After the game, he was the first to give Collin Gillespie the credit he deserved with a convincing nod.

“Number 12, pretty good at basketball,” Edwards commented while reminiscing about what went wrong.

Gillespie stepped up tonight in Booker’s absence, logging 19 points, six rebounds, and four assists. Although his shooting efficiency wasn’t great, he delivered in the clutch. The 26-year-old player took over in the fourth quarter with 11 points, the highest of any player in the game.

This was just the latest outing in a series of heroics for the third-year guard, who broke out mid-November. Since November 16th, when the Suns faced the Atlanta Hawks, Gillespie has averaged 18.4 points, 4.7 assists, and 1.4 steals, all while shooting from beyond the arc at a red-hot rate.

He’s even moved into the starting point guard spot, finally letting Booker play off-ball as he moves back into his natural shooting guard position.

For Edwards to compliment someone like he did, especially considering his own confidence, definitely has to mean something.

Need we forget, this is the same person who said that he could’ve “went to the MLB” or even dominated football and ping-pong: “Whatever you need me to do, it don’t matter, trash-can ball, whatever you want. Cook food, that’s something to do, and I bet I’d be A1 from Day 1.”

Now, for a player who was little more than a bench warmer before this season to earn this kind of praise from a star as big as Anthony Edwards is just the latest in a breakout campaign that keeps getting better.

How did the Suns survive Anthony Edwards’ explosion?

Suns center Mark Williams was the top scorer for the team tonight, finishing with 22 points and seven rebounds, delivering pivotal plays. His two-handed dunk with under four minutes left gave the Suns some separation, and Collin Gillespie, the ‘No. 12’ that Anthony Edwards praised, sealed the game with two clutch free throws with under 6.3 seconds to maintain the crucial margin.

The Timberwolves still nearly stole it, though.

Edwards led a 6-0 run in the final minutes that put the home side within one, splitting a double team to finish a layup. But unfortunately, Jaden McDaniels’ corner three hit the front rim, and Donte DiVincenzo failed to get a shot off before the buzzer.

But the real game-changer was Rudy Gobert’s ejection.

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The Timberwolves center was called for a flagrant 2 for elbowing Williams in the third, and they lost their defensive anchor. It was the Suns’ cue to immediately take advantage, punching paint points over and over again, shifting momentum, and opening the doors for Gillespie’s breakout.

Now, the Suns face the Oklahoma City Thunder on Wednesday in the NBA Cup quarterfinals, while the Timberwolves get a long break, playing the Golden State Warriors on Friday.