The Minnesota Timberwolves have a number of firsts in Game 3. For the first time this season, the team is on the road. They have a bit of a break in the schedule as the team has their first game against a wounded Oklahoma City Thunder. But the other first is perhaps the more significant matter, as the Timberwolves have their first back-to-back contests this season.
The Timberwolves start a three-game home stand, opening up against the San Antonio Spurs on Monday, October 24, 2022, at 7:00 pm CT. Because the team will have a quick turnaround, Timberwolves head coach Chris Finch is trying to give his starters as much rest in Game 3 as possible.
Thankfully, thanks to a strong second-half effort by the Timberwolves bench, the team was able to give starters plenty of rest, and even extend their lead in the process.
Finch went small with Reid + Prince + Edwards + Nowell + McLaughlin for a 5.5-minute stretch in the 2nd half against Utah on Friday, and they were a +6.
— Dane Moore (@DaneMooreNBA) October 24, 2022
Finch went back to that lineup to start the 4th tonight, and they were a +12 in 6 minutes.
With back-to-backs, look for Timberwolves to go small ball often.
The Timberwolves bench finally bounced back
The bench effort cannot be overlooked in this one. The Timberwolves played seven players overall and rotated in just five players, all of whom contributed 39 points, 16 rebounds, and 9 assists. As a result, the Timberwolves limited D’Angelo Russell (26 minutes), Rudy Gobert (25 minutes), and Jaylen McDaniels (27 minutes) with their playing time. Even Karl-Anthony Towns (30 minutes) and Anthony Edwards (34 minutes) were able to get a bit more rest in this one.
The Timberwolves showed improvement in rebounds and three-point shooting at times, and that was the difference in this one. Unlike their first two contests, the Timberwolves actually showed quite a bit of fight in the second half of this one, pulling out to a lead of 22 points in the fourth quarter.
Anthony Edwards led all scorers with 30 points and 11 rebounds to record a double-double. He was joined by Rudy Gobert, whose 15 points and 15 rebounds also resulted in a double-double. The Timberwolves bench came to life, as Jaylen Nowell (14 points, 6 rebounds), Taurean Prince (11 points, 3 rebounds, 3 assists), and Naz Reid (14 points, 3 rebounds, 1 block) all had huge scoring nights.
Naz Reid’s effort was particularly noteworthy, as he did that in just 13 minutes.
The Minnesota Timberwolves are now 2-1 for the season, but both wins came at the expense of the Oklahoma City Thunder.