The last time the Minnesota Timberwolves won six straight games was April 8, 2004.
Thursday evening at the BMO Harris Bradley Center, the Wolves faced the Milwaukee Bucks with five consecutive wins under their belt. In a season full of opportunities this game presented yet another chance to step out of the franchise’s dismal past and into a new era.
That past includes 721 losses and 38 streaks of six consecutive losses since the last time Minnesota strung together six-straight wins.
In what finished as a 102-96 loss, that loss total increases to 722.
Winning would have been no small feat after arriving in Milwaukee at 1 a.m. the night prior, on the second night of a home-road back-to-back.
Despite natural fatigue, surprisingly, the Wolves came out attacking. They were energized as the ball zipped around on offense to begin the game (six first-quarter threes made). And the defense was formidable; limiting the Bucks to 16 points in the quarter.
That energy lasted two and a half quarters. Minnesota built their lead up to 20 points (74-54) midway through the third quarter, but then it all fell apart.
“We’re all human,” Jimmy Butler said after the loss. “You can get tired but my thing is you can’t have that many mental lapses. We have to continually be better at building up our leads instead of giving them up.”
The lead was completely gone by the 2:27 mark of the 4th quarter. Milwaukee had erased the entire deficit and took the league with a crucial fastbreak 3 in the corner by Eric Bledsoe, who scored a game-high 26 points.
After that three, Minnesota’s back broke. The Wolves would only score once more in the game; a meaningless 3-pointer at the buzzer.
Blowing leads were commonplace for teams of the pre-Butler era, but, prior tonight, this team has maintained leads. Entering the game, Minnesota was 13-3 in games they accumulated even a 10-point lead.
“Once we got up 20, they got a little spark and the crowd got into it,” said Taj Gibson, who was one of only three Wolves players to score in the 4th quarter as the lead fell apart. “This is a good learning experience for the young guys.”
In ways, the unraveling was explainable, explained Tom Thibodeau after the game.
“There were a lot of moving parts at the end of the third,” he said. “Once we had the lead up to 20, [Andrew Wiggins] sprained his ankle, so that hurt us some. We had the stretch where Tyus [Jones] dislocated his finger, and so we didn’t play well down the stretch.”
Particularly after losing starting point guard, Jeff Teague, the night before each additional injury had a compounding effect.
In the locker room after the game, the injuries were not an excuse.
“We have a team full of NBA players,” said Butler.
Gibson echoed that sentiment.
“You just gotta be able to step on people’s necks to get the W.”
Point Guard Play Without Teague
This was the messiest part of the game. Tyus Jones played well but the lead ball handler plan beyond that was muddled. Butler handled some of the duties admirably, but without Butler and Jones on the floor Aaron Brooks and Jamal Crawford could not figure it out.
Brooks subbed out after three minutes and never saw the floor again.
Crawford, who is not a point guard by trade, massively struggled with the pressure of the Bucks trapping defense when he was forced to lead the offense.
In the immediate future, one of Brooks or Crawford needs to step into backup minutes. Butler and Jones cannot play the whole game. Perhaps a longer leash is necessary for the 9-year vet, Brooks.
The Roles of Georges-Hunt and Bjelica
Nemanja Bjelica was fully cleared from his injury on Christmas but has not seen his minute load return. In the three games this week, Bjelica has played 23 total minutes.
Georges-Hunt has one of the most peculiar roles of any player in the NBA. Thibodeau is using him akin to the way a lefty-specialist is used out of the bullpen in baseball; one batter and done. The Wolves rookie has played two one-minute shifts in each of the games this week.
With more injuries, more back-to-backs, and the fact that the Wolves roster is filled with “humans” who “get tired” as Butler put it; someone has to play. Playing only seven players a night for ten-plus minutes is simply not sustainable.
Thursday night, the lack of depth played a crucial role for a team that was clearly lacking energy down the stretch. The void of six-game winning streaks continues.
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