Minnesota Timberwolves basketball is back in downtown Minneapolis.
For the first time since the Western Conference Finals back in May, Timberwolves fans were welcomed into Target Center to cheer on their favorite team for the team’s preseason home opener Tuesday night against the Indiana Pacers.
The Wolves had their full starting rotation available to them aside from Jaden McDaniels, who was out due to personal reasons. In McDaniels’ place in the starting lineup was Naz Reid, pairing him with the two
other bigs on the Wolves roster, Julius Randle and Rudy Gobert.
The first half played out almost exactly like the two regular-season games against Indiana last year, as Minnesota struggled to contain the Pacers’ ball movement and fast pace. The Pacers connected on 21 of their first 33 shots, giving them 57 points midway through the second quarter.
The Timberwolves’ defense finally started getting some stops when Jaylen Clark checked into the game. Clark provided more of the frenetic defense we saw from him all of last season as he continues to show he deserves minutes in the Wolves’ rotation. Unfortunately, Clark was out for the second half with neck spasms after a collision with Delon Wright.
Anthony Edwards made his preseason debut, picking up right where he left off last season, scoring 20 points on 7-16 shooting, including a pair of makes from beyond the arc and a pretty reverse layup.
Julius Randle also played in his first game of the season, putting up 14 points on 11 shots to go along with four rebounds and an assist.
Terrence Shannon Jr. continued his strong play in preparation for his sophomore season, which will likely see him in the rotation from the start of the season. Shannon with nine points and five assists, three steals, and a pair of 3-pointers.
With the starters sitting out the second half, the Pacers went up by as many as 24 points with Johnny Furphy outscoring Minnesota 9-0 to start the third quarter. After a 14-0 Indiana run, the bench lineup, which included Johnny Juzang and Bones Hyland, brought the Wolves all the way back to within just one point late in the fourth quarter.
Juzang, who is fighting to secure the Wolves’ 15th and final roster spot, scored 20 points, including 6-8 from deep. Bones Hyland continues to look like a quality bench guard behind Mike Conley, scoring 11 points, including three 3-pointers of his own.
The Pacers did push their lead back to seven points before the Wolves tied the game with a fastbreak layup from Zyon Pullin with 32 seconds left, sending the game to overtime. With the training camp roster out on the floor, the Timberwolves fell by a final score of 135-134, bringing their preseason record to 1-1.
Up Next
The Wolves head out east for their third of six preseason games with a matchup against old friend Karl-Anthony Towns and the New York Knicks on Thursday, October 9. The game begins at 6:30 PM CT, airing on NBA TV.
