Game ID: 22300873
LA Clippers @ Minnesota Timberwolves
Sunday, March 3, 2024 at 3:30 PM ET
Target Center, Minneapolis, MN
Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Final
MIN 30 16 22 20 88LAC 18 31 18 22 89
LAC @ MIN ScoutingLAC @ MIN Scouting
Welcome to the scouting desk. The coffee is cold, the film is play-by-play, and somebody has to explain what happened.
Every game has a hinge — a stretch where it was decided, usually while everyone was watching something else. Start where the evidence lives: the Lineups' face-offs say which five actually won their minutes; the Possessions ledger says who ran ahead of the night's own pace; the Shot Chart says where the points really came from, which is rarely where the highlights were. When all three agree, that is the story. When they don't — that is why this desk has a chair.
MIN availability going into 2/24 · back-to-back
full strength
MIN availability going into 2/27 · 2 days' rest
full strength
MIN availability going into 2/28 · back-to-back
full strength
MIN availability going into 3/01 · 1 day's restNEW Morris 13 to 18 min over the last 5
MIN availability going into 3/03 · 1 day's restOUT Anderson missed 2 since 2/28, returns tonight: 14 min (68% of 21)
NEW Morris 13 to 18 min over the last 5
MIN availability going into 3/04 · back-to-backBACK Anderson back 3/03 after 2, 14 min since (68% of 21)
NEW Morris 13 to 18 min over the last 5
MIN availability going into 3/07 · 2 days' restOUT McLaughlin missed 2 since 3/03, out tonight
BACK Anderson back 3/03 after 2, 22 min since (101% of 21)
NEW Morris 13 to 19 min over the last 5
MIN availability going into 3/08 · back-to-backOUT McLaughlin missed 3 since 3/03, returns tonight: 11 min (100% of 11)
BACK Anderson back 3/03 after 2, 24 min since (111% of 21)
MIN availability going into 3/10 · 1 day's restOUT Towns missed 2 since 3/07, out tonight
BACK Anderson back 3/03 after 2, 27 min since (124% of 21)
BACK McLaughlin back 3/08 after 3, 11 min since (100% of 11)
NEW Gobert 34 to 40 min over the last 5
LAC availability going into 2/23 · back-to-backOUT Theis missed 2 since 2/14, out tonight
OUT Tucker missed 38 since 11/29, returns tonight: 14 min (95% of 15)
OUT Hyland missed 8 since 2/02, out tonight
BACK Boston back 2/07 after 2, 5 min since (52% of 10)
LAC availability going into 2/25 · 1 day's restOUT Theis missed 3 since 2/14, returns tonight: 14 min (85% of 17)
OUT Hyland missed 9 since 2/02, out tonight
BACK Tucker back 2/23 after 38, 14 min since (95% of 15)
NEW Coffey 21 to 26 min over the last 5
LAC availability going into 2/28 · 2 days' restOUT Hyland missed 10 since 2/02, out tonight
BACK Theis back 2/25 after 3, 14 min since (85% of 17)
BACK Tucker back 2/23 after 38, 10 min since (65% of 15)
LAC availability going into 3/01 · 1 day's restOUT George missed 2 since 2/25, returns tonight: 30 min (89% of 34)
OUT Hyland missed 11 since 2/02, returns tonight: 16 min (119% of 14)
BACK Theis back 2/25 after 3, 23 min since (134% of 17)
BACK Tucker back 2/23 after 38, 10 min since (68% of 15)
NEW Powell 26 to 32 min over the last 4
NEW Mann 25 to 31 min over the last 5
LAC availability going into 3/03 · 1 day's restOUT Zubac missed 2 since 2/28, returns tonight: 19 min (70% of 27)
BACK George back 3/01 after 2, 30 min since (89% of 34)
BACK Theis back 2/25 after 3, 22 min since (130% of 17)
BACK Tucker back 2/23 after 38, 10 min since (68% of 15)
BACK Hyland back 3/01 after 11, 16 min since (119% of 14)
LAC availability going into 3/04 · back-to-backOUT Tucker missed 2 since 3/01, out tonight
BACK George back 3/01 after 2, 32 min since (95% of 34)
BACK Zubac back 3/03 after 2, 19 min since (70% of 27)
BACK Theis back 2/25 after 3, 24 min since (141% of 17)
BACK Hyland back 3/01 after 11, 15 min since (109% of 14)
LAC availability going into 3/06 · 1 day's restOUT Westbrook missed 2 since 3/03, out tonight
OUT Tucker missed 3 since 3/01, out tonight
OUT Plumlee missed 2 since 3/03, returns tonight: 20 min (140% of 14)
OUT Boston missed 2 since 3/03, out tonight
BACK George back 3/01 after 2, 34 min since (99% of 34)
BACK Zubac back 3/03 after 2, 21 min since (79% of 27)
BACK Theis back 2/25 after 3, 22 min since (131% of 17)
BACK Hyland back 3/01 after 11, 14 min since (99% of 14)
LAC availability going into 3/09 · 2 days' restOUT Westbrook missed 3 since 3/03, out tonight
OUT Tucker missed 4 since 3/01, out tonight
OUT Boston missed 3 since 3/03, out tonight
BACK George back 3/01 after 2, 35 min since (102% of 34)
BACK Zubac back 3/03 after 2, 19 min since (71% of 27)
BACK Plumlee back 3/06 after 2, 20 min since (140% of 14)
BACK Hyland back 3/01 after 11, 13 min since (93% of 14)
LAC availability going into 3/10 · back-to-backOUT Westbrook missed 4 since 3/03, out tonight
OUT Tucker missed 5 since 3/01, returns tonight: 26 min (170% of 15)
OUT Boston missed 4 since 3/03, returns tonight: 18 min (178% of 10)
BACK George back 3/01 after 2, 36 min since (105% of 34)
BACK Zubac back 3/03 after 2, 21 min since (77% of 27)
BACK Plumlee back 3/06 after 2, 20 min since (140% of 14)
BACK Hyland back 3/01 after 11, 13 min since (94% of 14)
I Know — the desk, before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Minnesota comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 110 a night and allowing 106, shooting 46 percent and 38 from three, 21 free throws a game; Edwards at 27 and Towns at 20 a game. Without Anderson (2 straight). One day's rest. The Clippers come in 2-3 over their last five, scoring 113 a night and allowing 116, shooting 49 percent and 34 from three, 18 free throws a game; Leonard at 23 and Harden at 19 a game. Without Zubac (2 straight). One day's rest.
So: Minnesota wins, and the game turns on the defense, Minnesota allowing 106 a night to the Clippers' 116 and the glass, where the Clippers have been plus-3 a night and Minnesota minus-1. Call it Minnesota 114, the Clippers 110, the Clippers keeping it close.
2/24 vs BKN 101-86 — MIN notes
MIN won 101-86. MIN shot 43% (36 of 84) to BKN's 34%, 12 of 38 from three, and went to the line 23 times to BKN's 11 — 17 points from the stripe to their 10. Edwards led with 29 (11 of 23, 1 of 3 from three, 6 of 9 at the line); Towns added 28, Conley 14. The hinge was Q4, 31-20: a lead of 4 became 15. MIN trailed 42-45 at the half and won the second half 59-41. Towns was the night's best plus/minus at +20.
2/27 vs SAS 114-105 — MIN notes
MIN won 114-105. MIN shot 46% (43 of 93) to SAS's 48%, 13 of 31 from three. MIN turned it over 14 times to SAS's 22. Edwards led with 34 (13 of 29, 4 of 10 from three); Reid added 22, Conley 16. The hinge was Q1, 29-21: from level to 8 ahead, and the lead reached 24. Alexander-Walker was the night's best plus/minus at +18.
2/28 vs MEM 110-101 — MIN notes
MIN won 110-101. MIN shot 49% (39 of 79) to MEM's 39%, 14 of 35 from three. The glass went 39-50 against them. Edwards led with 34 (11 of 21, 1 of 6 from three, 11 of 11 at the line); Reid added 19, Towns 13. The hinge was Q3, 38-32: MIN came in trailing by 3 and left it ahead by 3. MIN trailed 50-53 at the half and won the second half 60-48. Reid was the night's best plus/minus at +18.
3/01 vs SAC 120-124 — MIN notes
MIN lost 120-124 in 1 overtime. MIN shot 49% (42 of 85) to SAC's 50%, 12 of 31 from three, and went to the line 32 times to SAC's 24 — 24 points from the stripe to their 13. MIN turned it over 12 times to SAC's 7, and SAC turned those into 8 steals. McDaniels led with 26 (9 of 11, 5 of 7 from three); Towns added 19, Reid 18. Q4 was theirs, 33-24, the deficit cut from 9 to 0, but the other 4 periods went 100-87 against them. Conley's -22 in 36 minutes was the worst on the floor.
3/03 vs LAC 88-89 — MIN notes
MIN lost 88-89. MIN shot 39% (31 of 80) to LAC's 38%, 9 of 33 from three. MIN turned it over 15 times to LAC's 9. The glass went 54-40 for them. Edwards led with 27 (9 of 20, 3 of 10 from three, 6 of 6 at the line); Towns added 18, Gobert 12. Q1 was theirs, 30-18, but the other 3 periods went 71-58 against them. They led by as many as 16. Reid's -18 in 21 minutes was the worst on the floor.
3/04 vs POR — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Minnesota comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 107 a night and allowing 101, shooting 45 percent and 36 from three, 22 free throws a game; Edwards at 27 and Towns at 20 a game. Second night of a back-to-back. Portland comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 103 a night and allowing 104, shooting 43 percent and 29 from three, 19 free throws a game; Ayton at 20 and Simons at 19 a game. It has won the glass by 8 a night. Without Sharpe (22 straight), Ayton (2 straight), Henderson (5 straight). One day's rest.
So: Minnesota wins, and the game turns on the glass, where Portland has been plus-8 a night and Minnesota plus-0 and the arc, Minnesota at 36 percent from three to Portland's 29. Call it Minnesota 110, Portland 104.
3/07 @ IND — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Indiana comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 118 a night and allowing 122, shooting 47 percent and 34 from three, 19 free throws a game; Siakam at 19 and Mathurin at 19 a game. One day's rest. Minnesota comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 110 a night and allowing 107, shooting 47 percent and 37 from three, 25 free throws a game; Edwards at 24 and Towns at 16 a game. 2 days' rest.
So: Indiana wins, and the game turns on the defense, Minnesota allowing 107 a night to Indiana's 122 and the line, where Minnesota takes 25 free throws a game to Indiana's 19. Call it Indiana 116, Minnesota 115, Minnesota keeping it close.
3/08 @ CLE — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Cleveland comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 107 a night and allowing 111, shooting 43 percent and 39 from three, 17 free throws a game; Garland at 20 and Eva. Mobley at 16 a game. It has lost the glass by 9 a night. Without Mitchell (4 straight), Strus (2 straight). One day's rest. Minnesota comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 110 a night and allowing 108, shooting 47 percent and 35 from three, 26 free throws a game; Edwards at 26 and Towns at 16 a game. Second night of a back-to-back.
So: Cleveland wins, and the game turns on the glass, where Minnesota has been plus-2 a night and Cleveland minus-9 and the line, where Minnesota takes 26 free throws a game to Cleveland's 17. Call it Cleveland 111, Minnesota 109, Minnesota keeping it close.
3/10 @ LAL — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
The Lakers come in 3-2 over their last five, scoring 121 a night and allowing 122, shooting 52 percent and 44 from three, 21 free throws a game; James at 27 and Russell at 24 a game. Without Vanderbilt (15 straight), Vincent (37 straight), Wood (9 straight). One day's rest. Minnesota comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 109 a night and allowing 110, shooting 45 percent and 32 from three, 26 free throws a game; Edwards at 23 and Towns at 17 a game. It has won the glass by 4 a night. Without Towns (2 straight). One day's rest.
So: The Lakers win, and the game turns on the arc, the Lakers at 44 percent from three to Minnesota's 32 and the defense, Minnesota allowing 110 a night to the Lakers' 122. Call it the Lakers 115, Minnesota 114, Minnesota keeping it close.
2/23 @ MEM 101-95 — LAC notes
LAC won 101-95. LAC shot 44% (37 of 84) to MEM's 42%, 12 of 32 from three. LAC turned it over 20 times to MEM's 12, and MEM turned those into 12 steals. The glass went 51-41 for them. Leonard led with 24 (10 of 18, 2 of 6 from three); Mann added 23, George 14. The hinge was Q3, 26-16: LAC came in trailing by 6 and left it ahead by 4. LAC trailed 53-59 at the half and won the second half 48-36. Mann was the night's best plus/minus at +14.
2/25 vs SAC 107-123 — LAC notes
LAC lost 107-123. LAC shot 49% (40 of 82) to SAC's 49%, 8 of 27 from three. LAC turned it over 15 times to SAC's 10, and SAC turned those into 10 steals. Powell led with 21 (8 of 17, 5 of 9 from three); Leonard added 20, Harden 20. Q1 was theirs, 28-25, but the other 3 periods went 98-79 against them. Harden's -25 in 35 minutes was the worst on the floor.
2/28 vs LAL 112-116 — LAC notes
LAC lost 112-116. LAC shot 51% (45 of 89) to LAL's 55%, 10 of 37 from three, and went to the line 16 times to LAL's 10 — 12 points from the stripe to their 8. Leonard led with 26 (11 of 19, 3 of 6 from three); Harden added 23, Mann 16. Q2 was theirs, 36-23, but the other 3 periods went 93-76 against them. They led by as many as 21. Powell's -13 in 30 minutes was the worst on the floor.
3/01 vs WAS 140-115 — LAC notes
LAC won 140-115. LAC shot 57% (54 of 94) to WAS's 47%, 13 of 32 from three, and went to the line 25 times to WAS's 15 — 19 points from the stripe to their 11. The glass went 49-39 for them. Harden led with 28 (9 of 13, 6 of 9 from three); Leonard added 27, George 22. The hinge was Q2, 46-34: a lead of 3 became 15, and the lead reached 28. Harden was the night's best plus/minus at +19.
3/03 @ MIN 89-88 — LAC notes
LAC won 89-88. LAC shot 38% (32 of 85) to MIN's 39%, 10 of 34 from three. LAC turned it over 9 times to MIN's 15. The glass went 40-54 against them. Leonard led with 32 (12 of 26, 1 of 4 from three, 7 of 8 at the line); Powell added 24, George 15. The hinge was Q2, 31-16: LAC came in trailing by 12 and left it ahead by 3. Powell was the night's best plus/minus at +19.
3/04 @ MIL — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Milwaukee comes in 5-0 over its last five, scoring 116 a night and allowing 97, shooting 48 percent and 39 from three, 23 free throws a game; Antetokounmpo at 31 and Lillard at 20 a game. That is 5 straight wins. It has won the glass by 4 a night. Without Middleton (10 straight). 2 days' rest. The Clippers come in 3-2 over their last five, scoring 110 a night and allowing 107, shooting 48 percent and 33 from three, 19 free throws a game; Leonard at 26 and George at 17 a game. Without Tucker (2 straight). Second night of a back-to-back.
So: Milwaukee wins, and the game turns on the defense, Milwaukee allowing 97 a night to the Clippers' 107 and the arc, Milwaukee at 39 percent from three to the Clippers' 33. Call it Milwaukee 116, the Clippers 109.
3/06 @ HOU — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Houston comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 108 a night and allowing 111, shooting 41 percent and 30 from three, 22 free throws a game; Ja. Green at 24 and Sengun at 23 a game. Without Tate (3 straight). Second night of a back-to-back. The Clippers come in 2-3 over their last five, scoring 111 a night and allowing 111, shooting 48 percent and 34 from three, 21 free throws a game; Leonard at 24 and George at 22 a game. Without Westbrook (2 straight), Tucker (3 straight). One day's rest.
So: Houston wins, and the game turns on the glass, where Houston has been plus-1 a night and the Clippers minus-3. Call it Houston 113, the Clippers 112, the Clippers keeping it close.
3/09 vs CHI — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
The Clippers come in 3-2 over their last five, scoring 114 a night and allowing 110, shooting 49 percent and 35 from three, 22 free throws a game; Leonard at 26 and George at 22 a game. Without Westbrook (3 straight), Tucker (4 straight). 2 days' rest. Chicago comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 117 a night and allowing 117, shooting 47 percent and 40 from three, 23 free throws a game; DeRozan at 28 and White at 24 a game. That is 3 straight wins. One day's rest.
So: The Clippers win, and the game turns on the defense, the Clippers allowing 110 a night to Chicago's 117 and the arc, Chicago at 40 percent from three to the Clippers' 35. Call it the Clippers 117, Chicago 111.
3/10 vs MIL — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
The Clippers come in 4-1 over their last five, scoring 114 a night and allowing 107, shooting 49 percent and 37 from three, 22 free throws a game; Leonard at 24 and George at 22 a game. Without Westbrook (4 straight), Tucker (5 straight). Second night of a back-to-back. Milwaukee comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 110 a night and allowing 110, shooting 45 percent and 36 from three, 22 free throws a game; Antetokounmpo at 32 and Lillard at 24 a game. Without Middleton (13 straight). One day's rest.
So: The Clippers win, in a game with no one edge to lean on. Call it the Clippers 115, Milwaukee 112, Milwaukee keeping it close.
Who is who
the initials in the Players column
MINAE A. Edwards
JM J. McDaniels
KA K. Anderson
KT K. Towns
MC M. Conley
MM M. Morris
NA N. Alexander-Walker
NR N. Reid
RG R. Gobert
LACAC A. Coffey
BH B. Hyland
DT D. Theis
IZ I. Zubac
JH J. Harden
KL K. Leonard
NP N. Powell
PG P. George
TM T. Mann
MIN/LAC the team itself, not a player
-- the feed named nobody
What
What happened
the codes in the Events column
M2 / M3 made 2 / made 3
X2 / X3 missed 2 / missed 3
FT / X1 free throw made / missed
AST assist
OR / DR offensive / defensive rebound
STL steal
BLK block
TO turnover
FL foul
OF offensive foul — ends the possession
VIOL violation
JUMP jump ball
TM timeout
IR instant replay
HE heave at the buzzer, filed to the team
END the clock ran out, ball in hand
Where
Where a shot came from
the middle field of M3.LW.25
RM at the rim inside 4 ft
RC right corner
RW right wing
SO straight on
LW left wing
LC left corner
M3.LW.25 made 3, left wing, 25 ft
X2.RM.01 missed 2, at the rim, 1 ft
When
When it happened
the Offset column
one number per event, in the Events order:
whole seconds from the start of the
possession to that event
Events FL X3.RC.23 OR M2.RM.01
Offset 0 18 22 24
the foul opens the possession at 0s;
the putback ends it at 24s, which is
the possession's own Dur
Kawhi Leonard scores 32 points, Clippers edge Timberwolves 89-88 in physical, defensive game
MINNEAPOLIS -- — Kawhi Leonard had 32 points and the Los Angeles Clippers beat the Minnesota Timberwolves 89-88 on Sunday in a physical and defensive game between two of the top four teams in the Western Conference.
Norman Powell matched a season high with 24 points, and Paul George added 15 points but shot just 5 of 16 from the field and was 3 of 11 from 3-point range.
“This was an old-school, 1985 game,” Los Angeles coach Tyronn Lue said. “But I loved the way we kept competing and kept guarding, defending.”
The Clippers played without Russell Westbrook after he fractured his left hand in a home victory over Washington on Friday night. Ivica Zubac returned after missing two games with an illness.
Anthony Edwards scored 27 points for Minnesota, which dropped a half-game behind Oklahoma City for the West lead when the Thunder won at Phoenix later Sunday. The Timberwolves lost back-to-back games for just the third time this season.
“It was a very physical game,” said Minnesota's Rudy Gobert , who had 12 points and 16 rebounds. “I thought there was a lot of touching, grabbing, just like a playoff game. I thought we started the game the right way. I think, over time, it was hard for us to get what we wanted.”
Leonard broke an 84-all tie with a layup with 2:01 remaining and added a free throw after being fouled by Karl-Anthony Towns .
Towns’ dunk with 1:40 left brought Minnesota within one, but Anthony Edwards missed a 3 and Towns was off the mark on a jumper before Leonard closed out the game with a pair of free throws.
Minnesota had one more possession but couldn't find an open 3 and Edwards ended up driving for a layup. But the Wolves couldn't foul on the inbound pass as time ran out.
“It was a tough game, neither team shoots over 40% from the field, but that’s on me,” Minnesota coach Chris Finch said. “I got to take a timeout, get us organized on that second-to-last possession we had there. It’s a hard-fought game. Just didn’t make enough shots.”
The Timberwolves had won four games in a row in the matchup with Los Angeles, including the first two games this season.
“We just had to stay in it, stay with it," George said. "Shots weren’t falling for both sides. I thought we just stayed in and played a full 48 minutes. We weren’t making shots. Only other thing we could have done is made it tough for them to make shots.”
Towns had 18 points, nine rebounds and eight assists.
Minnesota shot 38.8% and had 15 turnovers, leading to 20 points for the Clippers. Los Angeles shot 37.6% but had just nine turnovers, including six over the final three quarters. Partially as a result, the Clippers held a 19-0 advantage in fast-break points.
James Harden had 10 assists for Los Angeles but was 0-for-10 shooting.