The Minnesota Timberwolves faced off with a short-handed, struggling Charlotte Hornets team Saturday afternoon. The Wolves found themselves without star guard Anthony Edwards for the second straight game, but still got the job done. Minnesota hung on to win 123-117 to stay atop the Western Conference.

The Timberwolves collection of big men talent received a ton of criticism early on. Anyone who watches the Wolves, however, knows how important the trio of Rudy Gobert, Karl-Anthony Towns, and Naz Reid are to Minnesota’s early season success. In the win Saturday over Charlotte, Gobert, Towns, and Reid combined for an astounding 77 points. The trio not only scored, but combined for 24 rebounds, 7 assists, and four blocks. Their performances sparked Rudy Gobert’s strong reaction to playing alongside other talented big men like Reid and Towns.

Timberwolves' Rudy Gobert reacts

When asked about playing with KAT and Naz, the Frenchman sang their praises.

“People call them bigs. They’re not bigs. They’re just unicorns.” Gobert went on by saying, “They can shoot better than most guards do. It’s a pretty unique weapon that we have.”

The Wolves’ optionality of bigs gives them a distinct advantage over their opponents so let’s look into how that advantage manifested success against the Charlotte Hornets on Saturday.

The Towns and Gobert connection

Karl-Anthony Towns continued his hot stretch by pouring in 28 points as he shot lights out from behind the three-point line, finishing 4-8 from behind the arc. Towns has been an essential offensive engine for the Wolves during the recent stretch without Anthony Edwards. Minnesota has run their offense through Towns and has found a ton of success doing so. Towns operating as a facilitator in the Towns-Gobert duo is lethal. The Wolves’ big-to-big screen action is virtually unguardable as two seven-footers tower over their defenders creating high passing angles over their opponents.

Towns finished the contest with 5 assists. His passing ability separates him from most traditional bigs and allows him to set up Rudy around the rim. In fact, Gobert’s sheer size as a roller has made him the most prolific lob-finisher in Timberwolves history. Mike Conley — 10 assists Saturday — has been a huge contributor in feeding Rudy, but Minnesota’s success this year has predominantly come through the effectiveness of Gobert and KAT playing together.

The Stifle Tower has been a key play-finisher for Minnesota when they set him up with opportunities close to the hoop on offense. Gobert finished Saturday’s matchup with eight dunks, an unreal number. While a lot of the love for Gobert focuses on the defensive end — deservedly so as he posted three more blocks — Rudy’s play on the offensive end is sometimes just as good. Gobert scored 26 points to go along with 12 rebounds, posting his third-straight double-double.

Naz Reid is a versatile Timberwolves weapon

One of the most interesting stories about the Timberwolves in the last few years has been the development path of Naz Reid. The former undrafted free agent has become an essential piece to the Wolves’ identity. On Saturday, head coach Chris Finch turned to Reid early when KAT got into foul trouble. The former LSU product came in and made an instant impact off the bench.

Reid finished the game with 23 points in just 25 minutes, making the most of his time on the floor. Reid’s versatility rang through as he shot 6-8 on two-pointers and 3-6 from three-point territory. With Naz being able to handle the basketball as a face-up big, shoot on the perimeter, and post up smaller defenders, he fits alongside either KAT or Rudy. Part of what makes Minnesota so dangerous is their lineup flexibility due to the skill sets of their talented “unicorns”.

In fact, Naz Reid fits so well with Gobert and Towns that we saw all three of them share the floor during the fourth quarter of Saturday’s win. With the game on the line, Finch played his three best big men together. In that stretch, Gobert and Towns combined for eight straight Wolves’ points. As Finch and the Wolves explore more lineups, it’s likely we see more of the Reid-Gobert-Towns trio on the court together again in the future.

Upcoming schedule

With Minnesota cruising this season to a 15-4 start, the best in Timberwolves’ history, they hold a firm grip on the number one spot in the Western Conference. The Wolves have a few days off as they don’t play until Wednesday as they host Victor Wembanyama and the San Antonio Spurs. Minnesota took down San Antonio earlier this year, 117-110, but will get another tough challenge as Wembanyama presents more size than the Wolves’ bigs are accustomed to facing. With how the season has gone so far though, it’s fair to say advantage still lies in favor of the roaring Timberwolves.