Wolves 109, Lakers 80: The Game You Were Waiting For

The Wolves handled business in a bad Anthony Edwards game, and showed the signs of life that everyone has been waiting on

If you listened closely to Target Center on Monday night, you could hear a collective exhale by every single person in the building.

In a marquee game between the Minnesota Timberwolves and Los Angeles Lakers tabbed as “AE1” night to celebrate the release of a new colorway of his wildly successful shoe, the evening that was supposed to be all about number 5 ended up being about all 13 on the bench, literally (we had Luka Garza minutes).

In fact, it would be fair to say that it was the furthest thing from being about Anthony Edwards on the floor.

In an incredibly rocky first quarter for both sides (LA shot 35 percent from the field while the Wolves shot 28 percent from three), Edwards was pressing the issue early and often to zero success. He turned the ball over three times on his own in the opening period, and shot 2-6 from the field. It set the tone for an off night on his end, but others stepped up on his behalf to carry the team into their offense early.

It was much needed. LeBron James was struggling mightily, Anthony Davis was shockingly able to be contained (4-14 from the field), and the Lakers were without Austin Reaves and coming off of a back to back in Utah with a timezone change.

It was an opportunity for the Wolves to show its growth and not curl back into the shell of its middling, uninspiring ways.

The jumpstart to this game on the end of Minnesota came from none other than its namesake in Mike Conley. Conley started off hot from beyond the arc and hit three of his first four three pointers. It was a much needed boost from a starting lineup and team that has fallen short in knocking down jumpshots, a massive bugaboo early on and reason for a lot of offensive struggles.

Conley’s quick start trickled down to the bench and helped see the game through.

For much of the second and into the third quarter, the Wolves held a 12 point lead. Comfortable, but enough to have the thoughts of games’ past in the back of your mind that continued to persist and feel like the Lakers were hanging around. Another game like the Kings, Raptors, or take your pick, really.

A game that should not be lost but had the potential to be stolen if the door wasn’t slammed shut.

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But what was started by Conley and the first unit was seen to completion by a second unit that had so many players that needed to get back on track and did.

It was simply, and objectively, outstanding basketball to watch.

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Photo by David Berding/Getty Images

A Little Help from the Bench

Chris Finch put it simply after the game.

“The whole bench played really well.”

A group that struggled to get on the same page and was thought to be the strength of this team heading into the season and hadn’t lived up to the hype started to flash, and eventually carried the team home.

To put it in perspective, here are a few plus/minus numbers from the group:

• Donte DiVincenzo: +21
• Naz Reid: +22
• Nickeil Alexander-Walker: +14
• Josh Minott: +11 (8 minutes, saw some notable game action)

DiVincenzo was notably excellent in particular. Struggling to play point guard earlier in the season with turnovers and the inability to get on the same wavelength with the other four on the floor, he was particularly good in the two man game with Reid and a mix-and-match lineup with Mike Conley and Rudy Gobert.

“He did a really good job of igniting our break,” Finch said. “His decision making was really good tonight. Getting off of it quick and finding the open guy.”

I’m not ready to make a declaration that DiVincenzo is indeed the point guard of the bench unit moving forward.

There needs to be more consistent performances from him in this lane in order for that to happen, and Rob Dillingham must find minutes in this rotation, simply being too good to continue giving DNPs to. It was far too ugly from DiVincenzo for several games on end in order for that to get erased by one performance, but is certainly a step in the right direction and especially important that it came on a night in which Dillingham was unavailable.

This is the formula for the Wolves to win moving forward. A good, not great starting unit and a bench group that can outpace nearly every single team in the league.

“That was the key [in Utah’s success],” Rudy Gobert explained in the locker room. “We have the luxury of having a lot of guys that would start but are not starting.”

There are spoils in being able to last every single round with good players on the floor. Just ask the Denver Nuggets when Nikola Jokic checks out.

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Photo by David Sherman/NBAE via Getty Images

Emptying the Notebook

• I think the “vibe checks” can sometimes be a bit overrated due to how often they can swing on a game to game basis during an 82 game season. My sense in the locker room after the game was much better than in previous wins in terms of overall team chemistry. People were smiling. Guys were happy. That all comes with time, especially with new players. “Guys are in a good place mentally – a lot of things have been said in the locker room with great purpose and meaning,” Finch affirmed. Time and winning cures all. Only one of those is inevitable.
• D’Angelo Russell had a really nice game back at his old stomping grounds. Watching him for years, it’s pretty rare he has one of these hyper-efficient games and his team loses, but tonight was one of them. He finished with 20 points on 8-12 shooting (4-5 from three).
• Rudy Gobert was really, really good. Like, everything was working for him. He finished with 17 points and 12 rebounds, and it felt like the first “Rudy” game where he outright dominated both ends. A spin move in the post to a dunk felt like a fever dream, but it did happen.
• Terrence Shannon Jr. continues to intrigue me the most out of anyone on the roster. He reminds me a LOT of Shaedon Sharpe with a little lower of a ceiling but more polish to his game. He took another victim tonight in the paint late in the fourth.

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Up Next

The Wolves head out to California for a west coast roadtrip. They’ll kick things off in Los Angeles on Wednesday against the Clippers before seeing the Golden State Warriors twice over the weekend.

The Clippers had a disastrous last minute against the Wolves last Friday night that ended up costing them a game they likely could have won with correct clock management. They’ll have a chance at revenge pretty soon.

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Highlights