Following the Minnesota Timberwolves’ 137-114 home loss to the Golden State Warriors on Sunday, Austin Rivers was asked why his team continues to struggle against playoff contenders.
“If we play [big], we have to dominate in the paint,” Rivers said after the loss. “If we’re going to play big, we have to be big. Their big man today was Draymond.”
According to some NBA betting sites, the Timberwolves have the 17th-best odds to win the championship in 2023. A few oddsmakers are showing better luck for the New Orleans Pelicans and Dallas Mavericks.
Austin Rivers: “If we’re going to play big, we’ve got to be big. Their big guy today was Draymond. If we’re going to keep playing like that, we’ve got to find ways to get better. On him:
you can?
AR: “We can do it… if we bounce back (defensively) we’ll be good.”— Jon Krawczynski (@JonKrawczynski) November 28, 2022
“If we’re going to keep playing like this, we’ve got to find a way to get better,” the Timberwolves guard continued. “It’s early, but at the same time, it’s not. It’s getting to the point where more games are coming, so we’ll keep improving.
In the Warriors’ loss to Minnesota, the Timberwolves were outscored 47-31. Rudy Gobert led his rookie team with 10 boards. Not to mention, Golden State beat them 50-44 in the paint.
When the Wolves went on a 19-4 run in the fourth quarter, it wasn’t enough to hang with the Warriors.
Of course, Rivers made his Minnesota debut on Sunday, replacing Jaden McDaniel. McDaniel went down due to illness. It was the first game he missed of the season.
The Timberwolves guard Austin Rivers to finish strong
Revers finished with five points, two rebounds and one assist in 29 minutes of action. He shot 2-of-7 overall. Through 10 games this season, the 11-year veteran is averaging 2.4 points, 0.9 boards and 0.5 assists per game.
With Karl-Anthony Towns and Rudy Gobert, fans expected Minnesota to have one of the best defenses in the league this season, especially at key. But statistics prove otherwise.
Despite having two of the best big man defenses in the league, the Timberwolves are allowing 114.7 points per game, which ranks 22nd in the NBA.
The funny thing is, the Timberwolves didn’t even need a major roster change to improve as a team.
Last year’s pitching woes seem to be a sign of youth/inexperience. I feel they would be in a better place than they are now if they had already returned it.
— Alex (@AIexHoops) November 27, 2022
Additionally, the Timberwolves ranked 19th in total tackles, averaging 8.2 per game. Their defensive efficiency rating is also 1.082, 14th-best overall.
On a positive note, the team’s steals-plus-blocks average is 13.6 per game, which ranks fifth in the league.
Remember, Minnesota traded Malik Beasley, Patrick Beverley, Leandro Bolmaro, Walker Kessler, Jared Vanderbilt and five first-round draft picks to the Utah Jazz for Gobert.
Timberwolves GM Tim Connelly entrusted the team’s future to the three-time Defensive Player of the Year. Now, 20 games into the 2022-23 season, Minnesota is 10-10 and 10th overall in the Western Conference.
The Colts are on a five game losing streak. Monday night at 7 pm ET, they will play the Washington Wizards at Capital One Arena. Sportsbooks show Washington as a 1.5-point favorite. According to ESPN’s Basketball Power Index, the Wizards have a 54.8% chance of beating Minnesota.
