The Minnesota Timberwolves are coming off a great team win against the LA Clippers the other night. They played against the LA Lakers this time, but it must be something about that Cali atmosphere because the Timberwolves have played well there this season. The Lakers played this game without LeBron James who’s nursing a foot injury and the Timberwolves still don’t have Karl Anthony-Towns back from the calf strain.

This game was about who would be the best big man in the paint tonight it was that simple. It was Rudy Gobert vs Anthony Davis and both of these guys didn’t disappoint one bit. Rudy Gobert started the game off with some inside moves to establish himself and he was cleaning up the boards all night long. It didn’t matter who was in the paint tonight for the Lakers Gibert had that dog in him tonight. Rudy set the tone and he was able to let his defense help create the offense. Rudy was able to put up 22 points, 14 rebounds, and 3 assists tonight. The great thing about Rudy’s night was that he took the challenge in the pick-n-roll and on the perimeter when it came to guarding Anthony Davis. When Gobert cleans up the boards like he did tonight there’s not much that opposing teams can do because he takes away their second-chance points. When the Timberwolves limit their opponent’s opportunities it gives them more of an advantage with Gobert. So that was definitely a sight to see if you’re a Timberwolves fan as Rudy has been on a mission as of late and he’s been dominant in the paint for Minnesota. Anthony Davis was able to get his tonight as he finished with 38 points but you can tell the Timberwolves were okay with that as long as no one else was beating them. The Timberwolves were able to throw multiple bodies at Davis like Reid/McDaniels to throw him off his game when it came to just matching up with Rudy. If the Timberwolves can continue to defend at a high-level anything’s possible with this unit.

Anthony Edwards didn’t have that crazy stat line game but he would tell you himself he’s just happy they got the win. Edwards finished the game with 19 points, 5 rebounds, and 2 assists on the night. You can tell tonight wasn’t his all-star-caliber night but it happens. The best part about this whole thing is that we got a chance to see the other teammates step up and have his back. Tonight was the night the Timberwolves fans got to see why Minnesota traded for Mike Conley Jr as he was able to do it all. Conley Jr was able to score tonight and get the ball in his teammate’s hands with ease. If Conley can provide this type of leadership heading into the playoffs this would be a scary team to run into in April. Conley Jr had 14 points, 6 rebounds, and 3 assists but he made the right basketball play numerous times. It seemed as though Conley Jr was just making right play after another all night. Down the stretch, Conley Jr was able to hit some big shots and that really got the Timberwolves the lead mixed with Rudy.  Naz Reid and Taurean Prince were able to combine for 28 points off the bench to help seal the deal. The Timberwolves took advantage of some of the Lakers mistakes and made the most out of them. The Timberwolves will be facing the Kings who just beat the Clippers as the Kings will have a scorching hot Fox on their hands. Fox has scored 30 or more in 8 consecutive games so someone will need to take that challenge and make the best of the situation.

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