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Two players in NBA history have made at least 15,000 field goals in their career. (No, it’s not Ricky Davis twice.) LeBron James joined Kareem Abdul-Jabbar in that club last night.
What the Howl?
What’s going on in Minnesota?
Remember the fun Timberwolves squad that, after being down 3-2, shocked the world by beating the defending champion Nuggets on the road in Game 7 of last season’s conference semifinals? Well, that’s not so much the Wolves’ vibe this season. They’ve lost four of their last five, and their most recent loss to the Sacramento Kings led Anthony Edwards to be very honest about this team. Via Jon Krawczynski:
“We soft as hell as a team, internally. Not to the other team, but internally, we soft. We can’t talk to each other. Just a bunch of little kids. Just like we playing with a bunch of little kids. Everybody, the whole team. We just can’t talk to each other. And we’ve got to figure it out, because we can’t go down this road.
“I’m trying to get better in that aspect, figure out what the hell to say to get everybody on the same agenda because everybody right now is on different agendas.”
Minnesota did end that four-game losing streak with a clutch victory over the Clippers this past weekend, but the Wolves look very different than what we saw last season:
- Defense: Top defensive rating last season (108.4) | 10th-best defensive rating this season (111.4)
- Offense: 17th-best offensive rating last season (114.6) | 17th-best offensive rating this season (112.3)
- Net rating: Third-best last season (plus-6.3) | 13th-best this season (plus-0.9)
- Wins: 56-26 last season (third in West) | 9-10 this season (tied for 10th in West), projected 39-43
- Clutch games: 21-15 last season | 6-7 this season
At this time last season, the Wolves were 15-4, tied with the Celtics for the best record in the entire NBA. Their offense was still just 18th in the NBA (113.2), but their defense (106.7) was comfortably the best. Only three teams had a better net rating. Minnesota was also 7-1 in clutch games with the third-best net rating (plus-23.1).
The big difference between these Wolves and last season’s is the Karl-Anthony Towns for Julius Randle and Donte DiVincenzo trade. It was a financial move disguised as a basketball move, and the basketball is suffering. The Wolves’ defense has regressed, and Randle isn’t exactly replacing 1997 Dennis Rodman on that end of the floor. Randle’s individual numbers look fine, but his impact on the team has been more negative than it should be.
It doesn’t help that DiVincenzo went from shooting like Klay Thompson last season with the Knicks to shooting like Antoine Walker. The Wolves were expecting a boost on both ends of the floor with the 27-year-old DiVincenzo, and that just hasn’t happened. To be fair, this move happened right before training camp broke, and it was a surprise to most, including Minnesota’s players and staff. The Wolves still need time to build the chemistry the previous core had.
My three fixes for the Wolves would be:
- Listen to the coach: Ant says the players have been doing their own thing. But Chris Finch and his staff’s game plans are pretty successful.
- Be patient with Donte. He’s a great shooter, and this should pass without anyone needing to panic.
- Bring Randle off the bench. This is tougher with regard to managing Randle’s ego, but starting Naz Reid would bring better balance to the floor and rotation. However, it only works if Randle buys in, and he might not do that in a potential contract year.
The Last 24
We just want a healthy LaMelo season again!
🩼 LaMelo Ball is hurt. He’s out at least two weeks with a calf strain. At least it’s not the ankles again?
🏀 Cavs get their revenge! Donovan Mitchell went off in the fourth quarter to beat the defending champion Celtics yesterday.
🏀 Read Sam Amick on the seemingly endless possibilities with Victor Wembanyama and the San Antonio Spurs.
💸 Top 2025 free agents. Is Myles Turner going to be the top get next summer? Danny Leroux breaks it down.
⭐ Clippers guard making All-Star case. But maybe not the Clippers guard you think! HOFer David Aldridge talks Norm Powell.
📺 Don’t miss this game tonight. Heat (9-9) at Celtics (16-4), 7:30 p.m. ET on League Pass. Can the Heat still pester the Celtics like they used to?
📺 A great nightcap. Lakers (12-8) at Timberwolves (9-10), 8 p.m. ET on NBA TV or Fubo. Both teams actually need a big win here.
NBA Stock Report
Grizzlies and Hawks 📈, Warriors 📉
📈 Grizzlies (14-7): They just won their sixth straight yesterday with a 136-121 victory over the Pacers. Memphis went 4-0 this week and is third in the West, just a half-game behind Houston for second. The Grizzlies are 8-3 with Morant this season and 6-4 without him, but their franchise player isn’t their only big name who’s missed time. Desmond Bane has missed seven games, Marcus Smart has sat out 10, Vince Williams Jr. has been absent for 18 games and GG Jackson has missed the entire season.
📉 Warriors (12-7): Golden State is on a four-game losing streak after starting the season battling for the best record in the West. They’ve lost to the Spurs, Nets, Thunder and Suns over their last four contests. I know what you’re wondering: Did Steph Curry play in those? He played in three of them! He missed the loss to the Thunder. The Warriors just aren’t making shots.
📈 Mavericks (13-8) have won eight of their last nine games, including four straight. During this stretch, the Mavs have a top-five offense, a top-five defense and the best net rating in the league. Luka Dončić missed six of these nine games, so Kyrie Irving, Naji Marshall and P.J. Washington have carried the offensive responsibility. Dallas dropped to 5-7 because of a four-game losing streak before this stretch, but the Mavericks have been able to right the ship considerably.
📉Kings (9-12) are heading in the wrong direction, having lost six of their last seven games. Sacramento has really struggled to score during this stretch. DeMar DeRozan and Malik Monk both missed three games, and Domantas Sabonis missed one. This just isn’t the Kings team we’re used to seeing. The good news is Sacramento’s defense has been decent, but this team is missing its identity on the floor right now.
📈Hawks (10-11): Don’t look now, but the Hawks could get back to .500 tonight when they face the lowly, injured Pelicans. Atlanta has won three straight games, including two over the Cavaliers (18-3). The Hawks aren’t just relying on Trae Young to be great. De’Andre Hunter and Jalen Johnson have been their top scorers during this mini-streak, combining to make nearly 60 percent of their shots. No. 1 pick Zachharie Risacher has also been fitting in pretty well.
📉Hornets (6-14): Not only is Charlotte on a five-game losing streak, but as mentioned, LaMelo Ball is out with another injury. Four of those losses were also within six points. Ball was on a four-game heater before the injury, averaging 40.3 points on 32.5 shots. He missed 106 games over the previous two seasons.
🤯 Stat
Drop this mind-blowing stat in your group chat
The Bucks are finally playing good basketball, and their superstar centerpiece is a huge reason why. Two-time MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo is leading the NBA in scoring (32.9 points), averaging more points than Zach LaVine, James Harden, Ja Morant or Trae Young this season. You’re probably thinking: “Well duh, Zach, he’s the league’s leading scorer.” And you’d be correct! However, I’m not talking about overall scoring. This is the stat that is currently blowing my mind:
Antetokounmpo is averaging 22.1 points per game just in the paint! His points-in-the-paint-average would rank 33rd in the league this season in overall scoring. Anthony Davis and Nikola Jokić are second in the league at 16.9 points in the paint. This led me to wonder about the last time a player averaged this many points in the paint …
So, I logged on to NBA.com/stats and started scrolling. And scrolling. AND SCROLLING!
Antetokounmpo did average 20.3 PITP last season, but that’s not a fun trivia answer, and it’s not 22.1! Zion Williamson had 20.3 PITP per game in 2020-21, but that’s not matching Antetokounmpo this season. Shaquille O’Neal averaged 19.6 PITP per game in 2002-03, but we’re still not there. He posted 20.1 in 2001-02.
And we finally found it! In the 1999-2000 season, Shaq averaged 22.5 points in the paint per game. So, Antetokounmpo is literally challenging MVP Shaq for points in the paint dominance. That’s silly.
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(Top photo: David Sherman / Getty Images )
