How can the Timberwolves ground the Hawks?

The Minnesota Timberwolves (1-1) have their third game of the 2023-24 NBA season, a road game against the Atlanta Hawks (1-2). While the Hawks are just 1-2, they are coming off an upset victory against the Milwaukee Bucks last night, which means that they will face the Timberwolves in the second game of a back-to-back.

The Atlanta Hawks were a .500 team last season, finishing with a 41-41 record. They hoped to improve on that record this season, and their roster supports speculation that they are a team bound for the 2024 NBA Playoffs.  Led by a backcourt of PG Trae Young and SG Dejounte Murray, the Hawks believe that they have the secret sauce to reach the post-season.

But it was the deep Atlanta Hawks bench that powered the team to their first victory, as Bogdon Bogdanovic (17 points), Onyeka Okongwu (14 points), and Saddiq Bey (13 points) all contributed double-digits as the Hawks benched pitched in with 51 points to lead the team to a win.

Timberwolves bench will have tougher going

The Minnesota Timberwolves bench, led by Naz Reid’s 28 points in Game 2, will have tougher going in Game 3 against the Hawks. The Timberwolves rely on Reid, plus Kyle Anderson and Shake Milton, to ignite the team off the bench.

The Timberwolves get a mixed bag today in terms of their injured players. Even as starting small forward Jaden McDaniels was a full participant in pre-game workouts, he is questionable to play against the Atlanta Hawks. The Timberwolves also added guard Shake Milton to the injury list with foot soreness as well.  While the Wolves would love to welcome back McDaniels to the starting lineup, the potential loss of Miltion is an early setback to the Timbew

The Wolves would love to get this win and can do so if they can work the boards, keep active ball movement, and win at the perimeter on both ends of the basketball court. While that seems like a tough set of tasks, the Timberwolves can pull it off.

The Timberwolves would love to get to 2-1 before November 2023 arrives. With a bit of discipline, and a lot of focus, they are capable of claiming a victory.

Why not check out some more Minnesota Timberwolves articles that you may find entertaining:

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• NBA In-Season tournament nears for suddenly struggling Wolves
• Wolves won’t win until they fix these glaring weaknesses
• Wolves Mike Conley “(Naz Reid)’s one of my favorite guys…to play with”