Alright Wolves fans, that was a nice all-star break.
But back to business. The Minnesota Timberwolves take on the New Orleans Pelicans at Smoothie King Center Thursday night to kick off 2021’s second half. The last time the T-Wolves matched up against the Pelicans, they routed them to a 120-110 victory that had Wolves fans all across Twitter calling for Ricky Rubio to become the starter indefinitely.
Summary of Wolves Win
The Wolves took advantage of 21 Pelican turnovers and hustled on the offensive glass. Jarred Vanderbilt had a career night as he dropped 16 points and 11 rebounds, five of which were offensive. Vando hustled all over the court, making timely cuts on great feeds from Rubio.
Jarrett Culver came to play as well. He finished with 16 points on 67% from the field and 50% from beyond the arc. In addition to his scoring, Culver harassed the ball handler full-court. Though those stats won’t appear in the box score, it frustrated opposing ball handlers. Naz Reid also contributed 20 points on an efficient 50% shooting from the field and three and a perfect 8/8 from the charity stripe.
It was a well-balanced effort that saw Rubio controlling the game as a floor general. All game it was evident Rubio was facilitating the offense by directing traffic and hitting timely cutters. This paid off, as every player who touched the court scored and eight of ten players left with at least nine points.
Eric Bledsoe had it going all game, as he finished with 28 points. In addition, Brandon Ingram got to his spots and dropped 30. That tandem kept the Pelicans in the game, but a huge corner three by Malik Beasley at the 2:14 mark and then another corner three from Josh Okogie with 1:27 to go sealed the deal for Minnesota’s victory.
It is important to remember the Pelicans were on the last leg of a six-game road trip. They also had lost seven of their last eight games coming into the Jan. 23 matchup. The Pelicans did not look like themselves, as they allowed themselves to get out-worked and out-hustled all game.
On to the Next Pelicans Matchup
Following that monumental victory, the Wolves proceeded to lose three-straight games to the Warriors (twice) and the Sixers by an average margin of 19 points.
In typical Wolves fashion.
The positive from this is that things did go right in the last matchup versus the Pelicans, even without KAT.
The Pelicans will know what to expect this game because of the previous matchup. It is expected Vando will not get as many free runs for put-backs and Rubio will not have as much space to facilitate. Now that the Wolves have Towns back, that should keep Stan Van Gundy and his team on their toes. KAT should be at the center of everything, which will pull Steven Adams away from the paint. If Minny can keep the defense honest with their three-point shooting, that should open up the paint for cutters.
The Wolves are currently on a nine-game skid, the longest losing streak of the season. The Pelicans are entering the second half of the season going 4-6 over their last 10 games. They currently sit at 15-21 and are looking to make a push for the playoffs. This matchup should give a hint at what Coach Finch worked on with his Wolves over the break.
Wolves need to find a direction
This team needs to find some sort of momentum and a direction in the second half of the season, otherwise the future will continue to look bleak. There is so much young talent on this team, they just need to be coached correctly which is what Finch was brought here to do. With trade rumors bombarding Wolves Twitter about Aaron Gordon, John Collins, Larry Nance Jr. and P.J. Tucker, the Wolves need to play with some pride to show that they are capable of winning games. If not, a trade is on the horizon.
Although at times it is hard to watch the Minnesota Timberwolves, they can only (continue to) go up from here. Hopefully the break recharged the team’s batteries, because they will be thrown right back into the fire tomorrow against a hungry Pelicans team.
Cheers to the second half of the season!
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