A shorthanded New Orleans Pelicans team rolled into Target Center to take on the blazing Minnesota Timberwolves on Wednesday night. The results… well, they were what you would expect. Minnesota set the tone early on and never let up in a convincing 122-101 win over a Western Conference foe.
Karl-Anthony Towns sets the tone
Postgame, Timberwolves head coach Chris Finch shared it was, in fact, his intention to set Karl-Anthony Towns up for early success against the Pelicans. Towns played the entire first quarter, a change for him in the season's early going. Through those first 12 minutes, KAT posted 10 points and drilled a pair of triples.
Towns’ aggression as a scorer early was pivotal as Minnesota jumped out to a 17-6 lead just five minutes into the game. His inside-out scoring ability was on full display from start to finish, and the first quarter was an exemplary signal of how good the Wolves can be when he’s on his A-game.
From that point on, the Timberwolves led the rest of the way. Towns finished the game with 23 points on remarkable 9-of-12 (75.0%) shooting, regaining his typical starring form while also hitting four of his five attempts from behind the 3-point line.
Anthony Edwards goes supernova
Oh my goodness, Anthony Edwards. What a performance on the heels of a thrilling game against Boston. There was zero let-up from the Wolves Wednesday night, all spearheaded by Edwards and his efforts.
Edwards filled the stat sheet in a massive way for Minnesota. In the process of declaring himself one of the league’s brightest stars, Ant dominated again. He finished with a game-high 26 points. The scoring was brilliant as usual. Fans were treated to some fireworks in the third quarter as well with a series of transition dunks, including a jaw-dropping alley-oop jam off a Nickeil Alexander-Walker lob pass off the backboard. The Wolves were showtime and are playing must-watch basketball.
Edwards impressed, again, on the defensive side of the ball. Not only did Ant lead the way in terms of scoring, he also finished with three steals, another game-high, and two blocks, tied with Kyle Anderson and Rudy Gobert for the game-high. With the constant onslaught of offensive highlights, Edwards’ defensive playmaking sets him apart from most offensive stars.
Most importantly, Edwards’ passing vision is reaching new heights. Finishing with yet another game-high of eight assists (tied with Alexander-Walker), Edwards’ decision-making was crisp and his passes were precise. Ant consistently found his teammates on cross-court dimes as he delivered the basketball with ease Wednesday night.
While this game wasn’t Edwards’ highest-scoring performance of the year, you could make a real argument it was his most complete showing. It’s easy to tell that not only is the game slowing down for him, but he’s the best player on the court more often than not.
Perfect culmination of offense and defense
Perhaps the best sign for Minnesota was just how complete their performance was from start to finish and top to bottom.
“We got great contributions from everyone tonight,” Finch said. “I thought we really did a good job of making the early pass to the open shooter.”
Minnesota posted 21 assists in the first half and finished with 30 assists on the game. As a byproduct of their passing, the Wolves had six players finish in double figures, including all five starters. Mike Conley continued his perfect stretch of decision-making with four assists of his own and, again, zero turnovers.
The Wolves finished Wednesday night shooting 54.9% from the floor as a team, including 40.5% from three-point territory on 37 attempts. Rudy Gobert’s rim pressure coupled with Towns’ shooting, Edwards’ transition prowess and solid play from the others make the Wolves a difficult team to defend.
Speaking of Gobert, what a night he had. He concluded the contest with 17 points, a season-high 21 rebounds, two blocks and +24 plus-minus. Unquestionably, Gobert’s rebounding anchors what has been a serious strength for Minnesota this season. The Wolves as a team are currently averaging over 47 rebounds per game, the most in franchise history.
The rebounding aids their defense, but Jaden McDaniels might be unmatched in the NBA as a point of attack defender. Like most nights, McDaniels took on the other team’s best offensive weapon. Wednesday night, that happened to be Brandon Ingram. It took Ingram 25 total shots to muster up 24 points. It’s very early in the season, but if McDaniels continues his defensive campaign, he should be considered a lock to be an All-Defense member this season.
The Wolves ended their four-game home stand with a perfect record of 4-0. In this span, they averaged 117.3 points per game, held their opponent to 98.5 points per game and beat some really good Western Conference teams.
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