Grizzlies fall to Timberwolves 119-97

The Minnesota Timberwolves defeated the Memphis Grizzlies tonight 119-97. Memphis falls to 3-13, without a win on their own floor. 

Minnesota led by hefty double digit margins for the majority, with flashes of fight and shotmaking marred by constant defensive miscommunication, open misses, and frustrating turnovers. 

The Wolves balanced their scoring throughout the game. Anthony Edwards had 24, while Karl-Anthony Towns and Mike Conley each had 18. Gobert, who sat for stretches with foul trouble, had 13 points and four rebounds. Minnesota made 15/34 threes (44%), and won the rebounding battle by seven. 

Desmond Bane struggled to score throughout the game. Noticeably limping in between plays and during timeouts, Bane scored 13 on poor efficiency. Clearly, other teams have zoned in on Bane as the engine of a sputtering offense, and an important tap to shut off. Defensive attention his way succeeded in mucking up the offense.

That philosophy carried over to Jaren Jackson Jr. as well, who had 18 points and four rebounds. Jackson Jr. has been struggling to create his own offense without playmakers that can assist him with the ball in the right spots, and it’s coalesced into a brutal stretch of six games. That lack of playmaking impacted shooters as well, as players who already lack shooting talent received inaccurate passes. Continuing this season-long theme, Memphis went 10/37 from three. 

Jaylen Nowell’s addition proved a surprising bright spot, as the new wing on a recent 10-day deal had two assists and four points in his thirteen minutes. He demonstrated solid decision making and, particularly, a willingness to attack in transition. Of course, it’s a drop in the bucket, and the depth of absences and roster construction lead to few pathways to victory without team-wide perfect basketball.

The Grizzlies will play again Tuesday, November 28th, when they receive the Utah Jazz for the third of four times. Catch Memphis back in action then, at 7pm.