6 Timberwolves Whose Stocks Are Up, Down After Blowout vs. Heat

With four minutes left in the Timberwolves’ season opener in Miami, LaMelo Ball plumped next to Anthony Edwards on Minnesota’s bench. The two new teammates looked at each other with smiles. Their jobs were done early. Their team was headed toward a blowout victory.

Minnesota beat the Heat 131-106 in a game in which the Wolves dominated multiple facets. They shot 47% from the floor and rained in 21 threes while holding Miami to eight made threes. Minnesota also finished with a 52-34 advantage on the glass and limited the Heat to four offensive rebounds.

The Wolves ushered in their new era in near picture-perfect fashion. Here is who trended up with their performances in South Beach, and who trended down.

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Anthony Edwards

This was one of Anthony Edwards’ most impressive games of his career. He scored a historic 45 points in 33 minutes, setting a new franchise record for the most points scored by a player in a season opener. Edwards previously set that record in last year’s season opener with 41 points.

Edwards shot 55% from the floor and 9 of 17 (53%) from deep. His shot fell at a superstar rate, which isn’t anything out of the ordinary. But what made this performance especially memorable was how committed Edwards was to being an overall leader on both sides of the ball.

When Edwards was younger, he graded individual performance by how many points he scored. But now, he grades himself on his plus-minus and how well he played defensively. Against Miami, Edwards’ plus-minus was +25. He was bought in on defense and also corralled ten rebounds.

His commitment to the small things—the things he has lost focus on far too often in the past—for an entire game tonight is what makes this performance uniquely impressive for a guy who is always capable of scoring in bunches.

Jaden McDaniels

Like any player, Jaden McDaniels would like to be an All-Star. He said so during this year’s training camp. Behind both Ball and Edwards, that will be a tough goal for the new $40 million man to realize this season. 

Against Miami, McDaniels didn’t necessarily have an All-Star-caliber performance, but he was exactly the kind of player that the Wolves needed tonight and will continue to need going forward.

McDaniels scored 17 points on 8 of 11 from the floor and 1 of 3 from deep in 29 minutes. He looked comfortable operating in Minnesota’s new-look offense, as he did in the preseason. McDaniels also snagged eight rebounds and recorded three steals.

Defensively, he made timely stops, especially in the first half, which stemmed from smart decision-making. McDaniels collapsed the paint in appropriate situations. He made ball handlers uncomfortable. It felt as though he was everywhere at once.

Those are all the things McDaniels has done well for years. But now, he is combining highly efficient offense with his rugged defense. He wants to be an All-Star, but the Wolves don’t necessarily need him to be that player to reach their ceiling. Instead, they need him to be exactly what he was against Miami—a comfortable, consistent operator within the offense who is his usual self on defense and a reliable force on the glass.

LaMelo Ball

LaMelo Ball’s official Timberwolves debut began with a bang early in the first quarter that ended up being a precursor for the rest of the game. Ball laced in a logo three on the game’s second possession for his first points of the regular season in a Wolves uniform.

Ball finished Wednesday’s game with 21 points. He shot 7 of 17 (41%) from the floor and 5 of 13 (38%) from deep. Those splits don’t jump off the page, but they don’t adequately depict how impactful Ball's shot-making was, especially early on. He was 4 of 8 on threes in the first half, which is when the game was still competitive, and Minnesota had zero options to keep Giannis Antetokounmpo away from the rim.

Ultimately, Ball’s shot-making was secondary to his playmaking. He dished out six assists, consistently setting up quality offense for the Wolves while only committing one turnover. He quarterbacked Minnesota’s offense while balancing the flashiness of his game with a consistent level of maturity that the Wolves will need from him all year.

“I think he’s the best point guard in the league,” Edwards said postgame.

Jonathan Kuminga

Kuminga was the background hum of this picture-perfect win. The hum that, if turned off, everyone in the room would have realized. But the hum stayed on all game, and could easily go unnoticed.

“Jonathan was phenomenal,” Chris Finch said postgame. “In my mind, there was a lot of really good performances, but his sticks out. Just his ability to take the Giannis matchup and fight him all the time. Offensively, I thought he was a really quick and clever decision maker for us.”

Kuminga scored 12 points on 5 of 10 shooting and 2 of 4 from deep in 30 minutes. He only had one rebound, but recorded four steals. Defensively, Kuminga competed hard. He came up with a clutch stop on Antetokounmpo early in the fourth quarter as the Wolves were looking to put the hammer down. On offense, Kuminga made timely buckets in the second half and made smart reads throughout the game.

The Wolves don’t need Kuminga to be a jolt of noise for this marriage to work out. They much more need him to be a hum that brings consistent determination on defense and unproblematic offense. He did against Miami and will need to do so continuously throughout this season.

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Joan Beringer

Beringer looked every bit of the 19-year-old big man. He struggled to guard Bam Adebayo and looked out of sync and out of control overall. Miami shot 68% from the floor with Beringer on the court and scored 22 paint points. Beringer did record six rebounds (four of which were offensive), but he went scoreless in 14 minutes and went 0 of 2 from the floor.

This type of performance is not surprising. Beringer is still raw, and Miami boasts probably the NBA’s biggest, most athletic front court. Beringer did have a positive moment in the first half, where he swatted an offensive rebound away from two Heat players.

Overall, however, Beringer struggled and will need to take lessons from this matchup. While the Wolves won’t face Bam and Giannis every night, large front courts are looming in the West.

Beringer is still a work in progress, so performances like Wednesday’s are expected and not inherently concerning, but both himself and the Wolves must work to find ways to work through the lumps he faces this season.

Trey Lyles

Lyles is 6’10” and has the experience that Beringer doesn’t. But against Miami, Lyles struggled just as much as, if not more than, Beringer. Lyles finished with 1 point, 1 rebound, 3 fouls, and no other measurable box score stat in 12 minutes. He was constantly a step behind on defense.

The small-ball Wolves will simply need Lyles to be better than he was against Miami when they match up against big teams. They will need him to be a better rim protector and rebounder. But it is increasingly looking like the Wolves are not going to get that type of player out of Lyles this season.

He wasn’t that player in the preseason, and that held true against Miami. Combining that with Beringer’s youth, the Wolves’ season opener increased their need to add another player with size to this roster. They have one standard contract open. Dwight Powell and Kevin Love are free agents. They could be better options than Lyles for Minnesota to deploy against larger teams.

We will see how big of a problem the Wolves’ lack of size develops into this year. But the fact that this is the biggest qualm from their season opener is a good thing. Beyond their lack of size at the rim off the bench, Minnesota ushered in its new era in a very encouraging fashion in Miami.

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