Game ID: 22301098
Houston Rockets @ Minnesota Timberwolves
Tuesday, April 2, 2024 at 8:00 PM ET
Target Center, Minneapolis, MN
Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Final
MIN 16 38 27 32 113HOU 23 22 27 34 106
HOU @ MIN ScoutingHOU @ 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 3/24 · 1 day's restOUT Towns missed 8 since 3/07, out tonight
BACK Gobert back 3/22 after 3, 37 min since (109% of 34)
BACK Morris back 3/16 after 3, 17 min since (126% of 13)
NEW Anderson 21 to 29 min over the last 5
NEW McLaughlin 11 to 18 min over the last 5
MIN availability going into 3/27 · 2 days' restOUT Towns missed 9 since 3/07, out tonight
BACK Gobert back 3/22 after 3, 37 min since (109% of 34)
BACK Morris back 3/16 after 3, 17 min since (127% of 13)
NEW Anderson 21 to 29 min over the last 5
NEW McLaughlin 11 to 17 min over the last 5
MIN availability going into 3/29 · 1 day's restOUT Towns missed 10 since 3/07, out tonight
BACK Gobert back 3/22 after 3, 36 min since (106% of 34)
NEW Anderson 21 to 27 min over the last 5
NEW McLaughlin 11 to 17 min over the last 5
MIN availability going into 3/31 · 1 day's restOUT Towns missed 11 since 3/07, out tonight
BACK Gobert back 3/22 after 3, 36 min since (105% of 34)
NEW Reid 24 to 30 min over the last 4
MIN availability going into 4/02 · 1 day's restOUT Towns missed 12 since 3/07, out tonight
BACK Gobert back 3/22 after 3, 36 min since (106% of 34)
NEW Reid 24 to 30 min over the last 5
MIN availability going into 4/03 · back-to-backOUT Towns missed 13 since 3/07, out tonight
NEW Reid 24 to 31 min over the last 5
MIN availability going into 4/05 · 1 day's restOUT Towns missed 14 since 3/07, out tonight
NEW Reid 24 to 31 min over the last 5
MIN availability going into 4/07 · 1 day's restOUT Towns missed 15 since 3/07, out tonight
NEW Reid 24 to 31 min over the last 5
MIN availability going into 4/09 · 1 day's restOUT Towns missed 16 since 3/07, out tonight
NEW Reid 24 to 32 min over the last 5
HOU availability going into 3/25 · 1 day's restOUT Whitmore missed 6 since 3/12, out tonight
NEW Thompson 22 to 28 min over the last 5
NEW Landale 14 to 22 min over the last 5
HOU availability going into 3/27 · 1 day's restOUT Whitmore missed 7 since 3/12, out tonight
NEW Thompson 22 to 29 min over the last 5
NEW Je. Green 17 to 24 min over the last 5
NEW Landale 14 to 23 min over the last 5
HOU availability going into 3/29 · 1 day's restOUT Whitmore missed 8 since 3/12, out tonight
NEW Ja. Green 32 to 39 min over the last 5
NEW Thompson 22 to 31 min over the last 5
NEW Landale 14 to 23 min over the last 5
HOU availability going into 3/31 · 1 day's restOUT Whitmore missed 9 since 3/12, returns tonight: 22 min (118% of 19)
NEW Ja. Green 32 to 40 min over the last 5
NEW Thompson 22 to 33 min over the last 5
NEW Je. Green 17 to 22 min over the last 5
NEW Landale 14 to 24 min over the last 5
HOU availability going into 4/02 · 1 day's restBACK Whitmore back 3/31 after 9, 22 min since (118% of 19)
NEW Ja. Green 32 to 38 min over the last 5
NEW Thompson 22 to 31 min over the last 5
NEW Landale 14 to 23 min over the last 5
HOU availability going into 4/04 · 1 day's restBACK Whitmore back 3/31 after 9, 23 min since (121% of 19)
NEW Ja. Green 32 to 39 min over the last 5
NEW Thompson 22 to 31 min over the last 5
NEW Landale 14 to 23 min over the last 5
HOU availability going into 4/05 · back-to-backBACK Whitmore back 3/31 after 9, 23 min since (122% of 19)
NEW Ja. Green 32 to 37 min over the last 5
NEW Thompson 22 to 31 min over the last 5
NEW Landale 14 to 20 min over the last 5
HOU availability going into 4/07 · 1 day's restBACK Whitmore back 3/31 after 9, 22 min since (119% of 19)
NEW Thompson 22 to 29 min over the last 4
NEW Landale 14 to 21 min over the last 5
HOU availability going into 4/09 · 1 day's restBACK Whitmore back 3/31 after 9, 22 min since (116% of 19)
NEW Landale 14 to 19 min over the last 5
I Know — the desk, before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Minnesota comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 107 a night and allowing 100, shooting 49 percent and 39 from three, 22 free throws a game; Edwards at 19 and Conley at 17 a game. Without Towns (12 straight). One day's rest. Houston comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 119 a night and allowing 112, shooting 45 percent and 38 from three, 22 free throws a game; Ja. Green at 30 and VanVleet at 19 a game. One day's rest.
So: Minnesota wins, and the game turns on the defense, Minnesota allowing 100 a night to Houston's 112. Call it Minnesota 113, Houston 108.
3/24 vs GSW 114-110 — MIN notes
MIN won 114-110. MIN shot 48% (40 of 84) to GSW's 45%, 21 of 40 from three, and got to the line 18 times to GSW's 26. Edwards led with 23 (7 of 18, 4 of 8 from three, 5 of 8 at the line); Reid added 20, Gobert 17. The hinge was Q4, 36-29: MIN came in trailing by 3 and left it ahead by 4. MIN trailed 46-54 at the half and won the second half 68-56. Alexander-Walker was the night's best plus/minus at +12.
3/27 vs DET 106-91 — MIN notes
MIN won 106-91. MIN shot 51% (42 of 82) to DET's 38%, 11 of 36 from three, and got to the line 16 times to DET's 25. Reid led with 21 (9 of 18, 1 of 8 from three); McDaniels added 20, Anderson 14. The hinge was Q3, 31-21: a lead of 2 became 12, and the lead reached 17. Gobert was the night's best plus/minus at +20.
3/29 @ DEN 111-98 — MIN notes
MIN won 111-98. MIN shot 51% (38 of 74) to DEN's 40%, 9 of 28 from three, and went to the line 37 times to DEN's 27 — 26 points from the stripe to their 20. MIN turned it over 7 times to DEN's 12. Edwards led with 25 (8 of 19, 0 of 8 from three, 9 of 10 at the line); Conley added 23, Gobert 21. The hinge was Q2, 29-17: a lead of 7 became 19, and the lead reached 26. Anderson was the night's best plus/minus at +15.
3/31 vs CHI 101-109 — MIN notes
MIN lost 101-109. MIN shot 47% (38 of 81) to CHI's 52%, 11 of 37 from three, and went to the line 21 times to CHI's 12 — 14 points from the stripe to their 8. Edwards led with 22 (9 of 20, 0 of 5 from three, 4 of 6 at the line); Gobert added 19, Conley 19. Q3 was theirs, 25-20, the deficit cut from 10 to 5, but the other 3 periods went 89-76 against them. Anderson's -12 in 21 minutes was the worst on the floor.
4/02 vs HOU 113-106 — MIN notes
MIN won 113-106. MIN shot 53% (41 of 77) to HOU's 45%, 11 of 26 from three, and went to the line 22 times to HOU's 14 — 20 points from the stripe to their 10. Reid led with 25 (10 of 17, 3 of 5 from three); Edwards added 21, Conley 14. The hinge was Q2, 38-22: MIN came in trailing by 7 and left it ahead by 9, and the lead reached 15. McLaughlin was the night's best plus/minus at +17.
4/03 vs TOR — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Minnesota comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 109 a night and allowing 103, shooting 50 percent and 38 from three, 23 free throws a game; Edwards at 20 and Reid at 17 a game. Without Towns (13 straight). Second night of a back-to-back. Toronto comes in 0-5 over its last five, scoring 106 a night and allowing 123, shooting 47 percent and 29 from three, 18 free throws a game; Trent Jr. at 22 and Dick at 15 a game. That is 5 straight losses. It has lost the glass by 13 a night. Without Agbaji (2 straight). Second night of a back-to-back.
So: Minnesota wins, and the game turns on the defense, Minnesota allowing 103 a night to Toronto's 123 and the glass, where Minnesota has been minus-2 a night and Toronto minus-13. Call it Minnesota 117, Toronto 106, Minnesota by 11.
4/05 @ PHX — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Phoenix comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 111 a night and allowing 108, shooting 48 percent and 41 from three, 16 free throws a game; Booker at 32 and Durant at 27 a game. It has won the glass by 8 a night. Without Okogie (2 straight). One day's rest. Minnesota comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 113 a night and allowing 98, shooting 51 percent and 36 from three, 24 free throws a game; Edwards at 21 and Reid at 18 a game. Without Towns (14 straight). One day's rest.
So: Minnesota wins, on the road, and the game turns on the glass, where Phoenix has been plus-8 a night and Minnesota minus-2 and the defense, Minnesota allowing 98 a night to Phoenix's 108. Call it Minnesota 111, Phoenix 109, Phoenix keeping it close.
4/07 @ LAL — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
The Lakers come in 4-1 over their last five, scoring 115 a night and allowing 108, shooting 51 percent and 35 from three, 19 free throws a game; James at 26 and Davis at 25 a game. That is 4 straight wins. They have won the glass by 6 a night. Without Reddish (3 straight), Vanderbilt (28 straight), Wood (22 straight). Second night of a back-to-back. Minnesota comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 109 a night and allowing 99, shooting 48 percent and 37 from three, 23 free throws a game; Edwards at 23 and Reid at 15 a game. Without Towns (15 straight). One day's rest.
So: Minnesota wins, on the road, and the game turns on the glass, where the Lakers have been plus-6 a night and Minnesota minus-3 and the defense, Minnesota allowing 99 a night to the Lakers' 108. Call it Minnesota 111, the Lakers 110, the Lakers keeping it close.
4/09 vs WAS — 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 112 a night and allowing 103, shooting 48 percent and 39 from three, 19 free throws a game; Edwards at 23 and Reid at 20 a game. Without Towns (16 straight). One day's rest. Washington comes in 1-4 over its last five, scoring 114 a night and allowing 119, shooting 47 percent and 31 from three, 22 free throws a game; Poole at 23 and Avdija at 20 a game. That is 3 straight losses. It has lost the glass by 8 a night. Without Jones (13 straight), Holmes (6 straight). One day's rest.
So: Minnesota wins, and the game turns on the defense, Minnesota allowing 103 a night to Washington's 119 and the arc, Minnesota at 39 percent from three to Washington's 31. Call it Minnesota 118, Washington 108, Minnesota by 10.
3/25 vs POR 110-92 — HOU notes
HOU won 110-92. HOU shot 40% (37 of 93) to POR's 41%, 12 of 39 from three, and went to the line 25 times to POR's 15 — 24 points from the stripe to their 13. HOU turned it over 8 times to POR's 16. Ja. Green led with 27 (9 of 26, 4 of 12 from three, 5 of 6 at the line); Landale added 17, VanVleet 15. The hinge was Q3, 33-20: HOU came in trailing by 4 and left it ahead by 9, and the lead reached 20. HOU trailed 47-51 at the half and won the second half 63-41. Landale was the night's best plus/minus at +29.
3/27 @ OKC 132-126 — HOU notes
HOU won 132-126 in 1 overtime. HOU shot 48% (50 of 104) to OKC's 49%, 15 of 43 from three. Ja. Green led with 37 (14 of 24, 7 of 11 from three); Thompson added 25, Brooks 20. The hinge was Q1, 28-17: from level to 11 ahead. HOU trailed 49-50 at the half and won the second half 83-76. Ja. Green was the night's best plus/minus at +12.
3/29 @ UTA 101-100 — HOU notes
HOU won 101-100. HOU shot 38% (35 of 91) to UTA's 46%, 13 of 42 from three, and went to the line 28 times to UTA's 19 — 18 points from the stripe to their 18. HOU turned it over 10 times to UTA's 20. J. Green led with 34 (11 of 24, 4 of 11 from three, 8 of 14 at the line); VanVleet added 22, Thompson 18. The hinge was Q2, 28-24: the deficit went from 10 to 6. HOU trailed 41-47 at the half and won the second half 60-53.
3/31 vs DAL 107-125 — HOU notes
HOU lost 107-125. HOU shot 42% (39 of 92) to DAL's 52%, 13 of 38 from three, and went to the line 19 times to DAL's 9 — 16 points from the stripe to their 5. Smith Jr. led with 28 (9 of 14, 5 of 7 from three); Holiday added 16, Whitmore 13. Q3 was theirs, 28-25, the deficit cut from 21 to 18, but the other 3 periods went 100-79 against them. VanVleet's -25 in 32 minutes was the worst on the floor.
4/02 @ MIN 106-113 — HOU notes
HOU lost 106-113. HOU took 15 more shots (92 to 77), fed by 12 offensive rebounds, but shot 45% to MIN's 53%, 14 of 48 from three, and got to the line 14 times to MIN's 22. J. Green led with 26 (10 of 22, 2 of 11 from three); VanVleet added 22, Smith Jr. 18. Q1 was theirs, 23-16, but the other 3 periods went 97-83 against them. They led by as many as 11. Thompson's -15 in 25 minutes was the worst on the floor.
4/04 vs GSW — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Houston comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 111 a night and allowing 111, shooting 43 percent and 32 from three, 22 free throws a game; Ja. Green at 27 and Smith Jr. at 19 a game. One day's rest. Golden State comes in 5-0 over its last five, scoring 110 a night and allowing 99, shooting 50 percent and 37 from three, 10 free throws a game; Curry at 21 and Thompson at 18 a game. That is 5 straight wins. It has won the glass by 6 a night. Without Kuminga (4 straight), Šarić (7 straight). One day's rest.
So: Golden State wins, on the road, and the game turns on the line, where Houston takes 22 free throws a game to Golden State's 10 and the glass, where Golden State has been plus-6 a night and Houston minus-2. Call it Golden State 112, Houston 111, Houston keeping it close.
4/05 vs MIA — 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 111 a night and allowing 119, shooting 43 percent and 32 from three, 23 free throws a game; Ja. Green at 24 and Smith Jr. at 20 a game. That is 3 straight losses. It has lost the glass by 5 a night. Second night of a back-to-back. Miami comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 113 a night and allowing 102, shooting 48 percent and 39 from three, 19 free throws a game; Rozier at 24 and Adebayo at 19 a game. Without Herro (20 straight), Richardson (23 straight), Wright (2 straight). Second night of a back-to-back.
So: Miami wins, on the road, and the game turns on the defense, Miami allowing 102 a night to Houston's 119 and the glass, where Miami has been plus-3 a night and Houston minus-5. Call it Miami 113, Houston 110, Houston keeping it close.
4/07 @ DAL — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Dallas comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 110 a night and allowing 103, shooting 46 percent and 41 from three, 18 free throws a game; Dončić at 32 and Irving at 27 a game. Without Green (10 straight), Lively II (3 straight). One day's rest. Houston comes in 1-4 over its last five, scoring 106 a night and allowing 118, shooting 41 percent and 31 from three, 23 free throws a game; Ja. Green at 21 and Smith Jr. at 20 a game. That is 4 straight losses. It has lost the glass by 6 a night. One day's rest.
So: Dallas wins, and the game turns on the defense, Dallas allowing 103 a night to Houston's 118 and the arc, Dallas at 41 percent from three to Houston's 31. Call it Dallas 116, Houston 108.
4/09 vs ORL — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Houston comes in 0-5 over its last five, scoring 113 a night and allowing 127, shooting 43 percent and 33 from three, 25 free throws a game; Smith Jr. at 19 and Ja. Green at 19 a game. That is 5 straight losses. It has lost the glass by 8 a night. One day's rest. Orlando comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 113 a night and allowing 104, shooting 48 percent and 37 from three, 25 free throws a game; Banchero at 23 and F. Wagner at 19 a game. One day's rest.
So: Orlando wins, on the road, and the game turns on the defense, Orlando allowing 104 a night to Houston's 127 and the glass, where Orlando has been plus-1 a night and Houston minus-8. Call it Orlando 115, Houston 111, Houston keeping it close.
Who is who
the initials in the Players column
MINAE A. Edwards
JM J. McDaniels
JM J. McLaughlin
KA K. Anderson
MC M. Conley
MM M. Morris
NA N. Alexander-Walker
NR N. Reid
RG R. Gobert
HOUAH A. Holiday
AT A. Thompson
CW C. Whitmore
DB D. Brooks
FV F. VanVleet
JG J. Green
JL J. Landale
JS J. Smith Jr.
JG Ja. Green
JG Je. Green
MIN/HOU 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
Naz Reid helps Wolves gain ground in West with 113-106 win over Rockets
MINNEAPOLIS -- — Naz Reid strengthened his case for the Sixth Man of the Year Award with 25 points and six rebounds, Anthony Edwards scored 19 points and the Timberwolves kept up their push for the No. 1 seed in the Western Conference with a 113-106 victory over the Houston Rockets on Tuesday night.
The Timberwolves, who have clinched a playoff berth, are tied for second with Oklahoma City at 52-23, a half-game behind Denver, with seven games remaining in the regular season.
“It's a headache, man,” Wolves point guard Mike Conley Jr. said. “You look up and one day, you're first, next day, you're third, second, you never know. At this point, we're just trying to keep our head down, worry about the game that's in front of us and trying to take care of our business.”
Houston had a seven-game road win streak snapped and has dropped two in a row following 11 straight victories that brought it back into the playoff picture. The Rockets (38-37) are now three games out of the Western Conference's final play-in position.
Making his sixth straight start in place of injured Karl-Anthony Towns , Reid breathed life into an initially quiet Target Center crowd on Tuesday. The 6-foot-9 center is averaging 13.1 points and 5.1 rebounds and shooting 40.7% from 3-point range this season, all career highs.
“I was just playing my game, trying to get my rhythm ... from all facets of the floor,” Reid said. “We all have the same mindset, and that's to do whatever we need to win. Whether we're up 10 or down 10, just make it happen.”
His 3 from the right wing with 2:45 left helped stave off a late Rockets rally. Fred VanVleet 's 3 on the previous possession had cut the Wolves' lead to one.
Reid recently said it's a personal goal to win the John Havlicek Sixth Man of the Year Trophy. With Kings reserve Malik Monk out for at least four weeks with a knee injury, Reid is on the short list of candidates to usurp him for the award.
Reid entered Tuesday first in points and 3s made and third in rebounds, blocks and steals among reserve centers.
Jalen Green led the Rockets with 26 points, five rebounds and six assists. VanVleet finished with 22 points.
“It's tough to do that in the NBA, win that many games in a row,” Houston coach Ime Udoka, the Western Conference coach of the month for March, said before the game regarding his team's 11-game win streak. “Players understand they have to increase their role, be more efficient. We've had to make some quick adjustments.”
The Rockets led by as much as 11 before the Wolves closed the first half on a 21-4 run. Reid led the way with 17 first-half points, Conley converted a four-point play on a 3-pointer from the top of the key, and Jordan McLaughlin made a pair of 3s to give Minnesota a 54-45 halftime lead.
The Wolves never trailed again.
Before Tuesday’s game, Wolves coach Chris Finch said he’d like to see his team come out with more of an edge at home. He didn't get his wish. Houston led 23-16 after a quarter and went ahead by 10 on Green's 3 to open the second.
“I think (our mindset is) just to keep going, to keep fighting," Reid said. “It's a 48-minute game; a lot of things can happen.”