Another night, another fourth quarter lead. I’m sorry, it’s just become a habit at this point. The Minnesota Timberwolves not only entered the fourth quarter with a lead, but they held on to beat the Toronto Raptors!
After the outing to the frozen tundra of Tampa, the Timberwolves got away with a much-needed victory. As the teams took to the field, we saw a new starting lineup of the Timberwolves. Jarred Vanderbilt replaced Josh Okogie in the starting lineup, and the change made a difference.
I still believe in Okogie as a positive contributor to the rotation, but adding Vanderbilt was absolutely the right decision. Saunders hate it, that’s right, he’s capable of making the right decision. Vanderbilt’s combination of size, athleticism, height and energy helped the Timberwolves get off to a good start.
Early in the first season, Vanderbilt had an excellent series that showed his energy completely. It started with Vanderbilt moving on to a missing lineup. The Raptors quickly pushed the ball, and Vanderbilt bounced back to contest a lineup and force a miss. Instead of taking offense, Vanderbilt rushed into the transition and earned a foul. For a team that flattens so often, this type of energy is contagious.
As the game progressed, the Timberwolves saw significant contributions across the board, as all five forwards passed in double figures and four players from the bench scored at least five points. The offense moved the ball well, and the effort on the boards was significantly better than what we saw in Charlotte.
Malik Beasley fired from three, especially in the corners, and Ricky Rubio had a hot night from outside the arc when he shot 4-8 out of three. From the bench, Jaden McDaniels continued his impressive game with six points, two rebounds, two assistants, one block and a second team-plus-minus of +11.
In the fourth quarter, the Raptors struggled to conquer the Timberwolves’ lead significantly. The Raptors tried all the referee manipulation they could muster. Stop me if you’ve heard it before, but Kyle Lowry and Nick Nurse were adamant that they would never do anything so heinous as commit an offense. Nurse went so far as to storm the court and remorse the officials for an entire trading holiday. Somehow he escapes with nothing but the experience of a one-sided conversation.
The seconds ticked off, and the Timberwolves entered an all-too-familiar reality of turning the ball around in the final seconds with a slim lead. The ensuing incoming play by the Raptors led to Pascal Siakam McDaniels rushing to the edge. Siakam moved McDaniels effortlessly, but the rookie used his Go-Go Gadget Arms to challenge the shot enough to make it turn off the edge.
Rubio secured the setback and called a timeout, setting up an incoming setup for Jordan McLaughlin, who calmly sank both free kicks. Then the birds of prey, looking for a quick two and a bit of stat padding, went to a dunk with less than a second left. Vanderbilt, however, was happy to record his stats, and immediately sent the shot to the other side.
Tips like tonight are exactly what this fan base has been waiting for. It was a complete team effort from start to finish. They played hard throughout and eventually started showing signs of what this team meant.
The victory tonight should be celebrated and should not be shaken off, but I have a slight cause for concern. The way this team uses Karl-Anthony Towns is staggering. Overall, I like the distributed production on the offense. I love that the 20-point statline on 8-11 shots with 11 rebounds, three assists, one steal, and three blocks is considered a downward night for the star of this team. Read the stat line again before proceeding. Wow.
My concern is about the 11 shots. This is far too little for the most attacking gifted center in the history of this league. I know there were bad problems, and Towns had way too much turnover (seven), but Towns should get more shots in the future. I do not sound alarms, but on nights where Rubio does not hit four tries (which will be the most), Towns should be more involved in the offense.
Ok, neurotic over-worrying relaxation is out of the way. It was an excellent win for the Timberwolves. Enjoy it. Let’s hope this energy and execution is carried over to Tuesday.
Editor’s note: I love Anthony Edwards.