The Minnesota Timberwolves blew out the Los Angeles Clippers 121-100 on Monday night for yet another statement win. The Timberwolves were thrilled with the result, and as per Justin Russo, three of their players and members of the traveling party could be heard singing and laughing in the back hallways of Crypto.com Arena as they mocked the Clippers.
“Them [expletives] sorry,” one player could be heard loudly saying. “Them [expletives] old as hell.”
The Clippers are indeed the oldest team in the NBA in the 2023-24 season, so there is some truth to that. All their stars are over the age of 30 too, as Russell Westbrook is 35, James Harden is 34, Paul George is 33, and Kawhi Leonard is 32.
It is unclear which Timberwolves players were involved there, but I can take an educated guess. In the first Clippers-Timberwolves game of the season, Anthony Edwards called Leonard an ‘old n***a.’ Even if it wasn’t for this incident, Edwards would still have been one of the likelier picks here, as that’s just the kind of character that the 22-year-old is.
Edwards had led the Timberwolves to victory with 33 points in that earlier meeting and he came up big here as well. Monday’s contest flipped on its head after halftime, as the Timberwolves overturned a first-half deficit by winning the third quarter 40-19.
Edwards had 12 points in that third quarter and ended the game with 23 points, 7 rebounds, 8 assists, and 1 steal. The Timberwolves are now up 2-0 in the season series and that is huge.
These teams are part of a four-way tussle with the Oklahoma City Thunder and the Denver Nuggets for the top seed in the West. It might just come down to tiebreakers at the end, and the 38-16 Timberwolves will clinch it against the 35-17 Clippers if they win one of their two remaining meetings this season.
Tyronn Lue Kept It Real After The Timberwolves Blew Out The Clippers
After the blowout loss, Clippers head coach Tyronn Lue wasn’t in the mood for any excuses. He kept it real on why LA got outclassed on the night.
“Outcoached, outplayed us, everything.”
Ty Lue on the Timberwolves tonight:
“Outcoached, outplayed us, everything.”
— Joey Linn (@joeylinn_) February 13, 2024
Lue certainly did not do a great job of coaching in that game. The Clippers had to match the Timberwolves’ size, but they instead went small and the approach did not work.
They were mauled inside, with Minnesota having a 64-42 edge in points in the paint. It resulted in the Clippers suffering their heaviest defeat of the season, as they hadn’t lost a game by over 20 points before this in the 2023-24 campaign.
Kawhi Leonard Believes The Clippers Are A Championship-Caliber Team
Despite the nature of that defeat, Leonard is still very confident about the Clippers’ prospects. In his postgame press conference, the six-time All-Star was asked how close he thinks they have gotten to the level needed to be considered a championship-caliber team.
“We’re right there,” Leonard said. “We’ve been winning games, as everybody has seen, and like I said before, there’s ways for us to get better and that’s what’s scary. We started gelling a little late and now is the time to kinda turn it around.”
Asked Kawhi Leonard how close the Clippers are to a championship caliber team.
Kawhi: “We’re right there. We’ve been winning games, as everybody has seen. There’s ways for us to get better. That’s what’s scary… Now is the time to turn it around.” pic.twitter.com/w57ZRPrRnZ
— Joey Linn (@joeylinn_) February 13, 2024
There is little doubt in my mind that the Clippers will be a force to be reckoned with when the playoffs come around, provided they are healthy. They might need to make some additions to their frontcourt, however, for matchups against teams like the Timberwolves and the Nuggets.
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