Timberwolves

1/12 PREGAME: The New York Knicks Bring a Unicorn Battle and the Return of Michael Beasley

When the New York Knicks take the floor tonight at Target Center, many fans will be looking at the matchup between the league’s two premier, big, tall, weird looking, funky basketball playing Unicorns — Karl-Anthony Towns and Kristaps Porzingis.

Or perhaps fans will be looking to get a first-hand view of the Wolves, now, (maybe) elite defense — as detailed by Tim Faklis — that hasn’t given up over 100 points since December. Or maybe they just want to see the Wolves win. (They’ve been doing a lot of that lately.)

But not me. That’s not what I’ll be watching. My eyes will be fixed on Michael Beasley from the bench —

— to the bucket.

Beasley, who turned 29 on Tuesday, hasn’t played for the Minnesota Timberwolves since he was 23. He is still a blast to watch.

If you squint – or close – your eyes when the Knicks play defense you can convince yourself that Beasley is still really stinkin’ good.

That is because in isolation he often just decides to score. Which is just a pretty awesome skill. He twirls and whirls all over the lane — just as he once did in Minnesota — to find an angle in which he can fire his left-handed jumper/floater.

It’s great.

In an interview with the New York Post — shortly after depositing 32 points against the Boston Celtics league-best defense — Beasley called himself “W.B.,” standing for “Walking Bucket.”

Walking Bucket really is the perfect description as, on defense, he walks and then, on offense, he gets buckets. Great news for Wolves fans; he’s fun, but doesn’t actually hurt your team.

I think I speak on behalf of everyone who enjoyed watching Beasley play in Minnesota earlier this decade and those who want to see the Wolves win when I say: Welcome back B-Easy.

Porzingis vs. Towns: Unicorn Battle

Earlier this season, Porzingis was dominating as he asserted himself as the league’s premier 7-foot unicorn. In the first ten games of the season, the Knicks shockingly won six games.

After trading Carmelo Anthony, simply put: the Knicks were supposed to be bad. They weren’t. Which probably speaks to Anthony’s effectiveness at this stage of his career.

But nonetheless, Porzingis took over. KP was averaging 30 points per game with a 55.6 effective field-goal percentage as he totaled a sky-high 35.7 usage percentage.

But that usage fatigued Porzingis. On Jan. 3, he said, “I’m tired, I’m tired, I’m so tired right now.”

It shows. In Porzingis’ last eleven games, he is averaging 20 points per game with 40.4 effective field-goal percentage as he is usage percentage has dropped to 29.5.

Conversely, Towns has caught his stride almost in direct parallel to Porzingis’s folly. Since Christmas, Towns is averaging 20 points per game with a 65.1 effective field-goal percentage.

As good as those numbers are, that is par for the course with him. Towns’s true strides (of late) have come on the defensive end. The Wolves have the second-best defensive rating in the NBA since the New Year and Towns (shockingly) has been a catalyst.

Minnesota, finally, appears to have a rim-protector. After allowing opponents to convert 62.7 percent of their shots at the rim at the beginning of the season, opponents are now shooting below league-average at the rim when defended by Towns.

Largely, the energy Towns has – that Porzingis doesn’t – is to thank for this boon. In the last ten games, the Wolves have not relied on Towns on the offensive end as he has posted a league-average 20.1 usage percentage. This has forced Towns’ hand in energy conservation. He always plays hard, now, he’s playing hard and effectively.

In the most recent returns of #UnicornVote — a far more accurate assessment of success than #NBAVote — Towns is the league’s premier two-way unicorn.

Towns and the Wolves dominance should continue this evening. The Knicks have lost eight of their past 10 and their weaknesses meet the Wolves strengths.

In those eight losses, big men have been eating against their defensively inferior frontcourt. In six of those eight losses, an opposing big has scored 20-or-more points, including Lauri Markkanen who dropped 33 – including 8 3s – against them on Wednesday.

Look for not only Towns but Taj Gibson and Gorgui Dieng to feast.

Things are rolling in Minnesota. Unless The Walking Bucket blazes the Wolves, Towns, Jimmy Butler, and crew should pick up their fourth-straight win. That would be Minnesota’s 11th win in their last 14 outings. That hasn’t happened since well before Beasley was wearing a Minnesota jersey.


Listen to Dane on Wolves Wired!

Timberwolves
Jordan McLaughlin’s Adaptability Remains Invaluable For the Wolves
By Jonah Maves - Mar 28, 2024
Timberwolves
Draymond Green’s Antics Are Beneath the Wolves
By Andrew Dukowitz - Mar 27, 2024
Timberwolves

The Wolves Unlocked Something By Starting Naz Reid

Naz Reid. Those two words were the only thing you could see or hear inside Target Center on Friday after in-arena host Jon Berry instructed the sold-out […]

Continue Reading