Pistons 109, Timberwolves 87: Becoming Friends With The Rim

With under a minute left in the third quarter, Terrence Shannon Jr. gathered the ball on the Wolves end of the floor and began a three-on-one fastbreak down 12 points.

With Julius Randle or the rim as his options, he dropped it off behind him to Bones Hyland, who had zero Detroit Pistons players within 15 feet of him on the right wing. Slowing down, he took a dribble, and hoisted an important three that would cut the lead to single digits.

Bonk.

Front rim.

For a Timberwolves team 30% from the field and 23% from three at the end of the third quarter, it was a perfect encapsulation of a game that went wayward offensively from the start.

For much of the game, the Wolves were actually getting pretty good looks from behind the arc. Wide open threes from the wing for Naz Reid, Bones Hyland, Donte DiVincenzo, and even Julius Randle. The problem is, they fell at such a measly rate that Detroit was able to turn them into points at a high rate.

The Pistons outscored the Wolves on 21-10 on the fastbreak, the main source of being able to build their lead in second half. The Wolves would also go on to shoot their worst field goal percentage of the season at 31%, just below their previous worst against Orlando (34%).

Despite the Wolves having just a five point halftime deficit, the unraveling came in the aforementioned latter half for Minnesota. The Pistons were able to dismantle the Wolves offense slowly by taking Julius Randle away as their playmaking hub. With a similar approach to Naz Reid as well, Detroit doubled the primary passers in the Wolves offense late with their back to the basket, and forced them to make quick decisions. Reid and Randle would combine for seven turnovers, and combine for 5-28 from the field.

No clearer realization than Saturday as to how bad the Wolves need their three rotation players injured back in the fold.

The good news? They might be getting them back shortly.

Cut off at the Top

Julius Randle couldn’t sit in his usual cadence of 4-8 dribbles with his back to the basket before making his finishing move to ultimately score.

By the time he was thinking about what he was going to do next and starting to feel comfortable a couple dribbles in, the Pistons would bring a hard double and rotate to his primary passing option. It ultimately would end up with Randle committing four turnovers, and decentralizing the Wolves primary playmaking hub that they needed to play through heading into the game.

“We didn’t play with very much pace [on offense],” coach Chris Finch said afterward. “Our offense fed their transition game more than anything else.”

It wasn’t just Randle that was getting sped up but the scrambling and crisp rotating that the Pistons were doing. Even without Cade Cunningham, they stayed true to their physical identity and and made the Wolves think faster than they wanted to.

Naz Reid was another example. Not only going 0-7 from three, he also committed three uncharacteristic turnovers, mostly coming from possessions with his back to the basket.

It feels often with Reid that the first few shots he takes often dictate what the rest of his game is going to be. Though he can come alive and go on a signature blowtorch scoring run, it often helps if he is able to find his place in the game early.

As Finch pointed out, Saturday was one where it went sour from the jump.

“He missed two wide open ones when he first got in the game, and the next couple shots were a little forced in the post…trying to plow through physicality,” he said. “He was praying for something to go his way.”

Praying for something to go your way could apply for many of the people who took the floor not named Rudy Gobert and Donte DiVincenzo.

But as I said above…trying to force the playmaking from a couple areas on the floor against an incredible defensive team like Detroit (second in the league in defensive rating (108.7)), it often won’t go your way. It just might help to get some of your reinforcements back.

Emptying the Notebook

1). Out of necessity, Terrence Shannon Jr. made the second start of his NBA career on Saturday. He tallied eight points, and was one of the bright transition spots for the Wolves. He also did a nice job causing chaos on the glass, not necessarily with high rebounding numbers, but jarring balls loose for other Wolves players to secure a second chance. He won’t be in the rotation when his team was at full strength, but I thought it was an encouraging stint for him after a discouraging beginning to the season.

2). The Julius Randle double team stuff is real. He loved to play at his own pace. When a double team speeds him up and forces him to make a quick decision, he needs someone else around him to move and make themselves open. He shoots 40% when he’s being guarded tightly, and there’s a reason the second most passes he makes to a person is Donte DiVincenzo; it’s because he moves a TON. It’ll be interesting to see how teams play randle moving forward. Anthony Edwards makes it so that they can’t really double him. When he’s off the floor? It seems as though it’s the right strategy.

Up Next

The Wolves will have a travel day on Sunday and head down for a Monday evening clash with Cooper Flagg and the Dallas Mavericks. Over his last eight games, Flagg has averaged 23.8 points, 6.8 assists and 6 rebounds, making a late push for Rookie of the Year.

With the slew of injuries the Wolves have taken on, it would be fair to assume at least one of Ayo Dosunmu or Anthony Edwards will be back in the fold.

Tipoff is at 7:30 PM CST.

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