Terrence Shannon Jr.'s performance was impressive for one big reason

The Minnesota Timberwolves came away from Crypto.com Arena on Thursday with a 111-102 loss to the Los Angeles Lakers, and it was far from a normal game. We saw several strange things go down in 48 minutes, including an Anthony Edwards ejection, a season-worst shooting performance for Naz Reid, a lot of missed free throws and frankly, just a game that seemed wonky with a lot of bizarre possessions.

As things came down to the final few minutes, the Wolves would have realistically been in a much greater position to complete a 23-point comeback if Edwards had still been on the floor. They cut the Lakers' lead to three at one point, but could not seal the deal. We must acknowledge, however, that it was the play of Terrence Shannon Jr. that helped put Minnesota in this favorable position down the stretch.

If it seems like we just can't stop talking about this guy recently, that is because his contributions are more than worthy of mentioning. Shannon has burst onto the scene in the month of February after returning from injury, and on Thursday he put up the best scoring night of his young career thus far.

Shannon's performance was highly sustainable

Against LA, Shannon finished with a career-high 25 points on 9-for-15 shooting and five rebounds. He slashed his way to the cup and got easy buckets in transition, using his athleticism and strength to his advantage. But the best part about Terrence's outing versus the Lakers? It was a highly sustainable kind of game.

This was not a performance where Shannon caught fire from three or something of the like, as Timberwolves play-by-play announcer Michael Grady pointed out on the broadcast. Such a game would be less of an encouragement for the simple fact that shooting performances vary, even among the greatest players. But what Shannon did in terms of using his physicality to score consistently should be a major encouragement to Wolves fans, given how this type of game can and will be replicated.

"He's gotten a bunch of easy buckets in transition," Finch said after the game. "He's been able to help us cash in our defense a bit, rebounding, getting out." The more playing time Terrence Shannon gets, the more he seems to be proving to the Minnesota faithful that he is more than ready to be a meaningful contributor on the path ahead.