Player grades from Minnesota Timberwolves’ win over the New Orleans Pelicans
By Ben Beecken
The Minnesota Timberwolves dominated the New Orleans Pelicans on Thursday night behind huge nights from several young Wolves players.
86. 105. 69. Final. 135
The Minnesota Timberwolves fell behind early but dominated the middle stages of the game. Then, they did something they have rarely done: held onto a lead throughout the fourth quarter.
Remember, this is the team with the league’s worst winning percentage when leading in the final frame. The Wolves also have the league’s worst record, coming into the game with a 7-29 record.
They’re also without their second and third-best players, with Malik Beasley serving the fourth game in his 12-game suspension (but who’s counting?), and D’Angelo Russell still out with a knee injury.
On this night, however, the Wolves competed defensively and received extraordinarily efficient offensive performances from much of their roster.
Minnesota gave up a 16-2 first-quarter run and trailed by a score of 24-8. Then, they began chipping away, turning the Pelicans over a few times and getting themselves relatively easy baskets.
It was still 34-27 at the end of the first quarter, but the Wolves bench dominated the early proceedings of the second. Naz Reid and Jaden McDaniels went to work, and by halftime, they had combined to shoot 10-of-11 from the floor.
When the starters came back in, Anthony Edwards scored a quick 13 points in the second to give him 15 by halftime, and Karl-Anthony Towns came alive as well. After starting the game 0-for-6 from beyond the arc, Towns hit a buzzer-beating 3-pointer from the top of the key, giving the Wolves a 67-60 halftime advantage.
Chris Finch’s crew came out of the locker room with the gas pedal still to the floor, winning the third quarter by a 38-22 margin. Jake Layman was the first Wolves player to get hot in the second half, and then Edwards and Jaylen Nowell each had a turn to go off.
This was the first time all season that the Wolves held a lead of 23 points or more, and it ballooned up to 30 points midway through the fourth quarter.
Put simply, the Timberwolves were firing on all cylinders after the opening few minutes of the game. The Pelicans aren’t exactly world-beaters, but they came into the night only 3.5 games behind the No. 10 spot in the Western Conference.
And for the league’s worst team, a win is a win.
Minnesota Timberwolves Player Grades vs. Phoenix Suns
The Wolves were clearly focused on getting Karl-Anthony Towns involved early and often in this game. He had 14 field goal attempts in the first half, and while he wasn’t exactly efficient, he was making the right reads offensively and was a big part of the Wolves’ successful defense in the middle stages of the game. He didn’t play in the fourth quarter and finished with 16 points on 7-of-19 shooting and just 2-of-10 outside the arc to go along with seven rebounds, two blocks, and an assist.. Center. Minnesota Timberwolves. KARL-ANTHONY TOWNS. B-
Wing. Minnesota Timberwolves. ANTHONY EDWARDS. A. Anthony Edwards had a terrible start, missing his first five shot attempts. But he went off in the second and third quarters, finishing with 27 points (10-22 FG, 2-5 3P, 5-6 FT), four rebounds, three steals, and two assists. Seeing Edwards only attempt five 3-pointers out of 21 shot attempts was somewhat refreshing; his shot selection was much better than we’ve seen during the first half of the season. He was fantastic defensively, competing, scrambling, and jumping passing lanes. This was as complete of a game as Ant has played in some time.
Point Guard. Minnesota Timberwolves. RICKY RUBIO. B-. Ricky Rubio had a quiet night, but given that he was the lone true point guard on the active roster, it was an all-around solid performance. Rubio’s line finished at six points on just 1-of-6 shooting, but he did have eight assists to just two turnovers in 27 minutes. Jaylen Nowell played well enough as the de facto backup point guard that Rubio wasn’t over-used. With a couple of back-to-backs upcoming soon, that’s definitely a benefit.
A-. Jake Layman got the start at the 3, and he finished the first quarter with zeroes across the board in the box score: eight minutes and only a personal foul to his ledger. But his third quarter was fantastic, splashing a pair of threes in short order and even getting to the basket off the bounce. Layman continues to show his value as a cutter and solid all-around role player whose talents should be maximized in an offense with an emphasis on constant movement. He finished with 12 points on 4-of-7 shooting with three made 3-pointers.. Forward. Minnesota Timberwolves. JAKE LAYMAN
B. Jarred Vanderbilt had an extremely quiet night. He struggled with the task of guarding Zion Williamson early in the game but played better after halftime. Vando finished with just two points and six rebounds, but he also added four assists with zero turnovers. He was a +5 in 17 minutes.. Big. Minnesota Timberwolves. JARRED VANDERBILT
JAYLEN NOWELL. A. Jaylen Nowell scored a career-high 28 points, shooting a sizzling 11-of-13 from the floor and 6-of-7 outside the arc. The 44-percent shooter from deep both in college and last year in the G League has had problems converting consistently from beyond the arc at the NBA level, but the law of averages appears to be beginning to correct itself in Nowell’s favor. Given backup point guard duties, Nowell was fantastic in that role as well, save for a couple of turnovers when he had his pocket picked. As the season wears on, it appears to be getting clearer that Gersson Rosas struck gold when he drafted the former PAC-12 Player of the Year in the second round of last year’s draft.. Wing. Minnesota Timberwolves
A. Naz Reid had another great game, dominating in the second quarter as a huge part of the Wolves’ initial push to get back into the game. He ended up with 15 points, four rebounds, two blocks, two steals, and an assist and shot 7-of-9 from the field. Reid shared the floor with Towns for multiple stretches in the game, and with positive results. Here’s hoping we’ll see plenty more of that in the future.. Center. Minnesota Timberwolves. NAZ REID
A. After playing sparingly at times in Chris Finch’s first five games as head coach, McDaniels received plenty of run in this game. The rookie forward saw time at both the 3 and the 4, with the Wolves counting on his length and shot-blocking ability to help disrupt the Pelicans’ offensive penetration. He was fantastic on offense, too, knocking down four 3-pointers and looking more comfortable in catch-and-shoot situations than he has for much of the season. McDaniels finished with 20 points on an ultra-efficient 8-of-9 shooting and 4-of-5 from outside the arc. He also had four rebounds, three blocks, and two steals.. Forward. Minnesota Timberwolves. JADEN MCDANIELS
Other Minnesota Timberwolves Players
Josh Okogie played 23 minutes off the bench and finished with a team-best +25 mark in the plus-minus column, but he was the only Timberwolves player to not make a shot from the field, finishing 0-of-3. Okogie did knock down all four of his free throw attempts and pitch in four rebounds and four assists.
With a light roster and a short bench, there weren’t many places for Finch to turn when it became garbage time. Juancho Hernangomez was the only other player who saw time with Jarrett Culver nursing a toe injury and Ed Davis staying on the bench.
Hernangomez played the last six minutes of the game and scored five points, including splashing a deep 3-pointer in the final minute.
Up next for the Minnesota Timberwolves
The Wolves head back home and will host the Portland Trail Blazers for back-to-back games on Saturday and Sunday. The schedule is about to get rough for Minnesota, with their next five games coming against teams currently among the top-five in the Western Conference.