Timberwolves

Minnesota's New-Look Offense Melted Under the Bright Lights Of LA

Photo Credit: Jason Parkhurst-Imagn Images

Naz Reid liked that the Minnesota Timberwolves started their season in Los Angeles. The lights are always brighter in Tinseltown, but there was a large media contingent in town because they expected LeBron James to become the first player to play with his son.

“Only four teams playing today, so everybody will be watching,” said Reid. “I like to say we’ve become hunting, not hunted.”

Many of the same people who covered the Timberwolves in the playoffs were present to see how their new-look team would fare against the Los Angeles Lakers. However, the Wolves may have wished fewer would have tuned in. By the time Bronny James signed in with his father, the Lakers were leading 51-35 with four minutes to go in the second quarter.

“We came out relaxed like people respect us,” Anthony Edwards said after Minnesota’s 110-103 loss. “We got to bring more.”

The Wolves committed 15 turnovers and gave up 15 offensive rebounds.

“We made some lazy plays, lazy passes,” said Edwards. “We wasn’t ready to play today.”

Everyone now lives in an upside-down world where the 17-time champion Lakers are hunting the Wolves. However, that’s the case. Even with LeBron James and Anthony Davis, LA finished seventh in the West and lost to the Denver Nuggets in the first round. Conversely, the Timberwolves finished third in the West and reached the Western Conference Finals.

Still, their first game this year looked like their first game last year. After the Toronto Raptors beat the Wolves 97-94 in Game 1 last season, Chris Finch lamented Minnesota’s poor ball movement. The Timberwolves had been selfless and moved the ball in the preseason. However, they started playing hero ball in the first regular season game.

The same thing happened in Los Angeles on Tuesday night.

“My biggest fear from an offensive point of view is exactly what we did last year,” said Finch. “We came out game one, the ball got super sticky, we got disconnected quickly, and everyone went one-on-one.”

Last year, the Wolves corrected their mistakes and had a successful season. They’ll have to do the same this season. However, Edwards didn’t see that as the chief issue with Minnesota’s offense.

“We got great looks. We made those shots, we win,” Edwards concluded. “It’s just that simple to me. Basketball is that simple. If I make the open shots that I miss, we win the game.”

Edwards played fine. He led Minnesota with 27 points on 10 of 25 shooting (5 of 13 from three). However, the Wolves didn’t shoot well. They shot 35 of 85 (41.2%) from the field, 13 of 41 (31.7%), and missed seven free throws.

They missed many open looks. The kind of shots that Karl-Anthony Towns used to knock down.

“That’s not the first time I’ve played without him,” said Edwards when asked about playing without Towns. “I’ve been playing preseason games without him. I was watching his game today. That’s my dog.”

The Wolves put the finishing touches on their new-look roster by signing Rudy Gobert to a three-year, $110 million extension minutes before tip-off. Minnesota took a step back by trading Towns in the offseason. However, they were spending more money than any other team in the league and valued financial flexibility.

Ideally, the Timberwolves could take a small step back from a talent perspective while opening up a winning window. However, Minnesota’s new-look offense didn’t gell in its first game. Whether that’s a symptom of selfish play or roster construction will greatly affect their fate this season.

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Photo Credit: Jason Parkhurst-Imagn Images

When the New York Knicks made Donte DiVincenzo available for trade alongside Julius Randle in exchange for Karl-Anthony Towns, the Minnesota Timberwolves couldn’t pass it up. DiVincenzo […]

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