The Minnesota Timberwolves took down the Golden State Warriors 127-117 at Chase Center on Friday in a battle between two teams who came into the contest on three-game losing streaks. The Timberwolves always looked set to be the ones to come out on top, as the Warriors were without Stephen Curry, Jimmy Butler, and Draymond Green, but the hosts put up quite a fight.
The Timberwolves led by as many as 25 points at one stage, but the Warriors roared back in style. They cut that lead down to 109-102 with 8:37 left in the fourth quarter and were threatening to pull off a sensational comeback win. The Warriors then went cold, though, and the Timberwolves dropped them to 32-34 on the season.
Here is a look at how the Warriors players fared on the night.
Kristaps Porzingis: A-
Game Stats: 20 PTS, 4 REB, 2 AST, 2 STL, 1 BLK, 1 TOV, 7-16 FG, 2-5 3PT, 4-4 FT, 22 MIN
Kristaps Porzingis was on a minutes restriction and still managed to record his first 20-point game with the Warriors. Porzingis was inefficient from the field, but this was a strong offensive showing. He is a good fit with this team on that end of the floor. As for the other end, Porzingis wasn’t quite as good defensively, but did get three stocks (steals + blocks).
Gui Santos: A-
Game Stats: 17 PTS, 3 REB, 8 AST, 1 STL, 1 TOV, 6-15 FG, 3-10 3PT, 2-2 FT, 35 MIN
Gui Santos was struggling with his shot for much of the night, but came alive in the fourth quarter. Santos had 13 points in the period, going 5-7 from the field and 3-5 from beyond the arc. The Brazilian was the one spearheading that comeback attempt.
Santos also set a new career-high with eight assists here and only had one turnover. Had he been efficient from the start, the grade would have been an A or even an A+.
Brandin Podziemski: A-
Game Stats: 25 PTS, 10 REB, 2 AST, 8-18 FG, 5-10 3PT, 4-5 FT, 36 MIN
Brandin Podziemski gets a lot of flak from Warriors fans, but this was another good showing from him. Most notably, Podziemski scored 10 points in a row for the hosts in the third quarter to kickstart their comeback attempt.
Podziemski was also very active on the glass, and this was his third double-double of the season. All of them have come in his last 10 games.
Gary Payton II: B+
Game Stats: 12 PTS, 3 REB, 2 AST, 2 STL, 4-8 FG, 0-1 3PT, 4-4 FT, 19 MIN
Gary Payton II has defended Timberwolves superstar Anthony Edwards well in the past and had some good defensive possessions against him here as well. Payton had it going offensively, too, but Warriors head coach Steve Kerr bizarrely chose to play him for only four minutes in the fourth. He should have been out there longer.
De’Anthony Melton: B-
Game Stats: 12 PTS, 2 REB, 3 AST, 1 STL, 1 TOV, 4-11 FG, 2-5 3PT, 2-2 FT, 24 MIN
Like Porzingis, De’Anthony Melton was on a minutes restriction against the Timberwolves as well after missing their last game against the Chicago Bulls due to left adductor soreness. Melton had back-to-back 20-point games prior to that, but wasn’t at his best offensively here. He had a bad turnover in the fourth quarter and also missed the only shot he took in the period.
Malevy Leons: B-
Game Stats: 6 PTS, 2 REB, 1 AST, 2-6 FG, 0-2 3PT, 2-2 FT, 14 MIN
Malevy Leons’ numbers don’t jump off the screen, but he was doing all the little things well. It was when he and Santos were on the court together that the Warriors started to click, and he finished this game with a team-high plus-minus of +7.
Quinten Post: C+
Game Stats: 7 PTS, 3 REB, 1 AST, 1 TOV, 2-4 FG, 1-2 3PT, 2-2 FT, 11 MIN
Quinten Post had a pretty good start to this game, but then had to exit in the second quarter due to a sprained ankle. He was one of three Warriors players who went down with injury against the Timberwolves.
LJ Cryer: C
Game Stats: 8 PTS, 2 REB, 2-6 FG, 0-4 3PT, 4-4 FT, 17 MIN
LJ Cryer was shooting the ball really well from beyond the arc coming into this game (48.0% from three in his last four games), but went ice cold here. All four of Cryer’s misses from three came down the stretch in the fourth quarter. He, unfortunately, played a big part in that Warriors offense slowing down.
Will Richard: C
Game Stats: 5 REB, 1 STL, 1 TOV, 0-3 FG, 0-3 3PT, 29 MIN
It is not often that a player is on the court for nearly 30 minutes and doesn’t score a point, but that is what Will Richard pulled off here. You’d imagine if Melton weren’t on a minutes restriction, Kerr would have opted to give some of Richard’s minutes to him.
Pat Spencer: C-
Game Stats: 7 PTS, 2 REB, 3 AST, 1 STL, 2 TOV, 3-6 FG, 1-3 3PT, 19 MIN
Plus-minus doesn’t always paint an accurate picture, but it did here when it came to Pat Spencer. Spencer was a game-low -18 on the night. This wasn’t a good showing, and putting him in for Payton in the fourth quarter wasn’t a great call on Kerr’s part. The Warriors seemed to struggle whenever he was on the court.
Seth Curry: C-
Game Stats: 1 REB, 1 AST, 0-2 FG, 7 MIN
Seth Curry was another Warrior who left this game in the second quarter. Curry departed due to adductor soreness, and his injury nightmare continues.
Al Horford: NA
Game Stats: 3 PTS, 1 REB, 1 TOV, 1-3 FG, 1-3 3PT, 5 MIN
Al Horford was the first Warrior to exit the game, doing so in the first quarter itself. Horford is dealing with right calf tightness, and the Warriors just cannot catch a break at the moment.
