I think every Minnesota Timberwolves fan was on pins and needles thinking about what Julius Randle's impact would be in the playoffs. He is a highly erratic player, and a matchup with Aaron Gordon is a clear challenge for Randle. The Timberwolves fell short 116-105 to the Denver Nuggets in Game 1. Of course, the blame can't be all on Randle's shoulders, but he certainly didn't help the Wolves much either.
If Game 1 is any indication of what this series holds for Randle, it could be a rough watch for Timberwolves fans. Randle scored 16 points on 6-for-17 shooting from the field. At the surface, this doesn't sound all that bad. However, he entered the fourth quarter shooting 3-of-11 from the field and often settled for ill-advised shots around the perimeter.
Simply put, the Wolves' chances of winning are limited if Randle plays like this. Unfortunately, this could be a sign of things to come.
The Nuggets are a tough matchup for Julius Randle
Gordon's physical defense made it impossible for Randle to lean into his typical bully-ball play style. The trend of Randle settling for bad jumpers if he doesn't have a clear size advantage has been a problem all year for Minnesota. Frankly, this problem has plagued Randle throughout his career.Â
While the Nuggets don't have a strong defense overall, they have plenty of size, which makes it challenging for Randle to play his preferred style.
Randle also struggled to guard Nikola Jokic when he was occasionally tasked with this responsibility. The Wolves will need Randle as an extra Jokic defender, especially when Rudy Gobert is off the floor, but it's unclear if Randle is disciplined enough to guard him.
For the Timberwolves to pull off a first-round upset, they'll need Randle to be on his A-game, and unfortunately, he wasn't on Saturday. To make matters worse, this trend may continue due to the noted matchup difficulties.
The Wolves need a better version of Randle to pull off a first-round upset
Randle has always been a vital part of the Wolves' success, given his secondary creation and playmaking next to Ant. Nevertheless, the Wolves arguably need Randle more than ever due to Edwards' knee injury. Denver did everything it could to limit Ant, and it worked as he was 7-for-19 from the field.
Without consistent scoring from Randle, the Wolves' offense didn't have the needed firepower to pull off the win. There were also times when the Nuggets completely sagged off of Randle when he was open on the perimeter.
It's fair to expect this trend to continue throughout the series. As such, Randle will have to make Denver pay for this and give the Wolves' offense a boost. Whether he can do this consistently throughout the series remains a clear question mark, though.
Randle's supplemental defense against Jokic further adds to how essential he is in the series, but again, it's unclear if he will be up to the task.
Let's hope Randle can turn things around on both ends of the floor -- otherwise, the Timberwolves path to pulling off a first-round upset is slim.
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