Player grades from Minnesota Timberwolves loss to Los Angeles Lakers
By Ben Beecken
The Minnesota Timberwolves fell to 2-1 with a dispiriting, blowout loss to an Anthony Davis-less Los Angeles Lakers squad on Sunday night.
20. Final. 91. 86. 127
The Minnesota Timberwolves found out shortly before Sunday’s game that they would be without Karl-Anthony Towns. And that was the start of the downward spiral.
Towns missed the game and is officially week-to-week with a dislocated wrist. But the Lakers were without Anthony Davis and the Wolves were otherwise healthy, minus Jaylen Nowell.
But the Wolves allowed Kyle Kuzma to go nuts in the opening moments of the game and didn’t show much fight at all on the second night of a back-to-back. The defending champions built up a double-digit lead early in the first quarter and never looked back.
The game was marked by a lack of defensive effort and an inability to make open shots, both on the perimeter and at the rim. Anthony Edwards shot just 6-of-21 from the floor and D’Angelo Russell had four points, three assists, and seven turnovers in just 21 minutes as the Wolves struggled to find anything resembling an identity sans Towns.
The Wolves need to bounce back in a big way on Tuesday against the LA Clippers, who were just blown out by 51 points on Sunday against the Mavericks.
Minnesota Timberwolves Player Grades
D’Angelo Russell was horrible, missing his first several shots from the field and never getting into a rhythm. As the game went on and D’Lo began focusing on trying to distribute, he ended up with seven turnovers to only three assists. He finished with only four points on 2-of-7 shooting and did not bring what the Wolves needed on a Towns-less night.. Guard. Minnesota Timberwolves. D'ANGELO RUSSELL. F
Wing. Minnesota Timberwolves. MALIK BEASLEY. C. Malik Beasley was okay, but as is the theme with basically everyone else on the roster, didn’t do enough on either end of the floor to make this a game. He finished with eight points on 3-of-9 shooting but missed all three of his 3-point attempts. Beasley also added five rebounds, two assists, and a steal.
C. Anthony Edwards had a tough time in his third official NBA game, shooting only 6-of-21 from the floor. He totaled 15 points, four rebounds, and two assists in 29 minutes and was culpable in the Wolves’ complete mail-job on the defensive end. Edwards also resorting to chucking in the first half, content to shoot difficult, flat-footed 3-pointers (1-of-9 from deep overall) instead of using his considerable size and athleticism to get into the paint.. Wing. Minnesota Timberwolves. ANTHONY EDWARDS
D. Jarrett Culver wasn’t as lights-out as he was the first two times out this year, to put it lightly. Culver finished with eight points on 4-of-11 shooting, missing all four of his long-range attempts. He chipped in four rebounds, a steal, and a block but committed five turnovers to zero assists.. Guard. Minnesota Timberwolves. JARRETT CULVER
Guard. Minnesota Timberwolves. RICKY RUBIO. B+. Ricky Rubio was probably the best all-around player on the floor for the Wolves in this one, and he only finished with eight points, four rebounds, and four assists. Needless to say, this was a rough one.
Other Minnesota Timberwolves Players
Josh Okogie played only 11 minutes before leaving with what appeared to be a serious injury late in the second quarter. The Timberwolves PR team announced that he was only suffering from cramping, however, keeping an already terrible evening from turning any worse.
Jake Layman and Juancho Hernangomez each played their best individual games of the young season so far, which isn’t saying a whole lot.
Layman received the start once again and finished with 10 points on 4-of-8 shooting with three rebounds in 15 minutes. Hernangomez started the second half and had six points (2-of-5 shooting), five rebounds, and a block.
Naz Reid started in Towns’ place and had a rough night. His line of 11 points, five rebounds, four assists, and two steals in 28 minutes looks okay, but it took him 13 shots to get his points and he again struggled defensively and on the glass.
Jarred Vanderbilt and rookie Jaden McDaniels each saw the floor for the first time this year, with Vanderbilt making himself known defensively and on the boards and McDaniels knocking down a pair of corner threes.
Ed Davis and Jordan McLaughlin also saw the floor for the Wolves, the latter of whom was making his season debut.
Next. Wolves ranked too low in ESPN League Pass rankings. dark
Up Next for the Minnesota Timberwolves
The Wolves have Monday off in Los Angeles ahead of taking on the Clippers on Tuesday night. LA will be looking to bounce-back after they were embarrassed in even worse fashion than the Wolves on Sunday.