Game ID: 22300301
Minnesota Timberwolves @ New Orleans Pelicans
Monday, December 11, 2023 at 8:00 PM ET
Smoothie King Center, New Orleans, LA
Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Final
NOP 29 30 31 31 121MIN 29 23 34 21 107
MIN @ NOP ScoutingMIN @ NOP 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.
NOP availability going into 12/01 · 1 day's restOUT Ryan missed 6 since 11/20, out tonight
BACK McCollum back 11/29 after 12, 28 min since (85% of 33)
BACK Nance Jr. back 11/22 after 4, 13 min since (67% of 20)
NEW Valančiūnas 23 to 29 min over the last 5
NEW Daniels 22 to 27 min over the last 5
NEW Hawkins 17 to 26 min over the last 5
NOP availability going into 12/02 · back-to-backOUT Nance Jr. missed 2 since 11/29, out tonight
OUT Ryan missed 7 since 11/20, out tonight
BACK McCollum back 11/29 after 12, 33 min since (101% of 33)
NEW Valančiūnas 23 to 29 min over the last 5
NEW Hawkins 17 to 25 min over the last 5
NOP availability going into 12/04 · 1 day's restOUT Nance Jr. missed 3 since 11/29, out tonight
OUT Ryan missed 8 since 11/20, out tonight
BACK McCollum back 11/29 after 12, 33 min since (101% of 33)
NEW Valančiūnas 23 to 31 min over the last 5
NEW Hawkins 17 to 26 min over the last 5
NOP availability going into 12/07 · 2 days' restOUT Nance Jr. missed 4 since 11/29, out tonight
OUT Ryan missed 9 since 11/20, out tonight
BACK McCollum back 11/29 after 12, 34 min since (103% of 33)
NEW Valančiūnas 23 to 31 min over the last 5
NEW Hawkins 17 to 22 min over the last 4
NOP availability going into 12/11 · 3 days' restOUT Nance Jr. missed 5 since 11/29, out tonight
OUT Ryan missed 10 since 11/20, out tonight
BACK McCollum back 11/29 after 12, 32 min since (97% of 33)
NEW Valančiūnas 23 to 30 min over the last 5
NOP availability going into 12/13 · 1 day's restOUT Nance Jr. missed 6 since 11/29, out tonight
OUT Ryan missed 11 since 11/20, out tonight
NEW Valančiūnas 23 to 31 min over the last 5
NOP availability going into 12/15 · 1 day's restOUT Nance Jr. missed 7 since 11/29, out tonight
OUT Ryan missed 12 since 11/20, out tonight
NEW Valančiūnas 23 to 31 min over the last 5
NOP availability going into 12/17 · 1 day's restOUT Nance Jr. missed 8 since 11/29, out tonight
OUT Ryan missed 13 since 11/20, out tonight
NEW Valančiūnas 23 to 32 min over the last 5
NOP availability going into 12/19 · 1 day's restOUT Nance Jr. missed 9 since 11/29, out tonight
OUT Ryan missed 14 since 11/20, out tonight
NEW Valančiūnas 23 to 30 min over the last 5
MIN availability going into 11/30 · 1 day's restOUT McDaniels missed 4 since 11/22, out tonight
OUT McLaughlin missed 11 since 11/08, out tonight
NEW Alexander-Walker 24 to 29 min over the last 5
NEW Brown Jr. 11 to 18 min over the last 5
MIN availability going into 12/02 · 1 day's restOUT McDaniels missed 5 since 11/22, out tonight
OUT McLaughlin missed 12 since 11/08, out tonight
NEW Alexander-Walker 24 to 29 min over the last 5
NEW Brown Jr. 11 to 20 min over the last 5
MIN availability going into 12/06 · 3 days' restOUT Edwards missed 2 since 11/30, returns tonight: 37 min (102% of 36)
OUT McDaniels missed 6 since 11/22, out tonight
OUT McLaughlin missed 13 since 11/08, out tonight
NEW Alexander-Walker 24 to 30 min over the last 5
NEW Brown Jr. 11 to 25 min over the last 5
MIN availability going into 12/08 · 1 day's restOUT McDaniels missed 7 since 11/22, out tonight
OUT McLaughlin missed 14 since 11/08, out tonight
BACK Edwards back 12/06 after 2, 37 min since (102% of 36)
NEW Alexander-Walker 24 to 29 min over the last 5
NEW Brown Jr. 11 to 25 min over the last 5
MIN availability going into 12/11 · 2 days' restOUT McDaniels missed 8 since 11/22, returns tonight: 27 min (91% of 30)
OUT McLaughlin missed 15 since 11/08, returns tonight: 8 min (79% of 11)
BACK Edwards back 12/06 after 2, 20 min since (56% of 36)
NEW Alexander-Walker 24 to 29 min over the last 5
NEW Brown Jr. 11 to 27 min over the last 5
MIN availability going into 12/14 · 2 days' restBACK Edwards back 12/06 after 2, 20 min since (56% of 36)
BACK McDaniels back 12/11 after 8, 27 min since (91% of 30)
BACK McLaughlin back 12/11 after 15, 8 min since (79% of 11)
NEW Alexander-Walker 24 to 29 min over the last 5
NEW Milton 13 to 19 min over the last 5
NEW Brown Jr. 11 to 29 min over the last 5
MIN availability going into 12/16 · 1 day's restBACK Edwards back 12/06 after 2, 25 min since (70% of 36)
BACK McDaniels back 12/11 after 8, 26 min since (85% of 30)
BACK McLaughlin back 12/11 after 15, 5 min since (48% of 11)
NEW Brown Jr. 11 to 26 min over the last 5
MIN availability going into 12/18 · 1 day's restBACK Edwards back 12/06 after 2, 27 min since (76% of 36)
BACK McDaniels back 12/11 after 8, 23 min since (76% of 30)
BACK McLaughlin back 12/11 after 15, 5 min since (43% of 11)
NEW Brown Jr. 11 to 23 min over the last 5
MIN availability going into 12/20 · 1 day's restBACK McDaniels back 12/11 after 8, 25 min since (82% of 30)
BACK McLaughlin back 12/11 after 15, 5 min since (43% of 11)
NEW Brown Jr. 11 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.
New Orleans comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 116 a night and allowing 119, shooting 48 percent and 33 from three, 28 free throws a game; Williamson at 19 and Ingram at 18 a game. Without Nance Jr. (5 straight). 3 days' rest. Minnesota comes in 5-0 over its last five, scoring 112 a night and allowing 101, shooting 46 percent and 37 from three, 24 free throws a game; Towns at 22 and Gobert at 18 a game. That is 5 straight wins. It has won the glass by 9 a night. Without McDaniels (8 straight). 2 days' rest.
So: Minnesota wins, on the road, and the game turns on the defense, Minnesota allowing 101 a night to New Orleans's 119 and the glass, where Minnesota has been plus-9 a night and New Orleans minus-0. Call it Minnesota 113, New Orleans 110, New Orleans keeping it close.
12/01 vs SAS 121-106 — NOP notes
NOP won 121-106. NOP shot 49% (42 of 85) to SAS's 46%, 10 of 31 from three, and went to the line 29 times to SAS's 17 — 27 points from the stripe to their 14. NOP turned it over 11 times to SAS's 19. Valančiūnas led with 24 (9 of 12, 6 of 7 at the line); McCollum added 19, Murphy III 18. The hinge was Q4, 32-25: a lead of 8 became 15. McCollum was the night's best plus/minus at +16.
12/02 @ CHI 118-124 — NOP notes
NOP lost 118-124. NOP shot 50% (41 of 82) to CHI's 55%, 8 of 25 from three, and went to the line 35 times to CHI's 15 — 28 points from the stripe to their 11. Williamson led with 27 (10 of 15, 7 of 9 at the line); Ingram added 23, Jones 17. Q2 was theirs, 32-21, turning a 3-point deficit into a 8-point lead, but the other 3 periods went 103-86 against them. They led by as many as 10. Zeller's -17 in 12 minutes was the worst on the floor.
12/04 @ SAC 127-117 — NOP notes
NOP won 127-117. NOP shot 54% (47 of 87) to SAC's 45%, 14 of 31 from three, and got to the line 23 times to SAC's 33. Ingram led with 30 (10 of 20, 3 of 6 from three, 7 of 9 at the line); Jones added 23, Valančiūnas 18. The hinge was Q2, 34-25: NOP came in trailing by 1 and left it ahead by 8, and the lead reached 15. Murphy III was the night's best plus/minus at +24.
12/07 @ LAL 89-133 — NOP notes
NOP lost 89-133. NOP took 9 more shots (95 to 86), fed by 12 offensive rebounds, but shot 36% to LAL's 55%, 7 of 31 from three, and got to the line 20 times to LAL's 29. The glass went 42-59 against them. Murphy III led with 14 (5 of 13, 2 of 7 from three); Williamson added 13, Jones 10. Q1 was theirs, 30-29, but the other 3 periods went 104-59 against them. McCollum's -38 in 25 minutes was the worst on the floor.
12/11 vs MIN 121-107 — NOP notes
NOP won 121-107. NOP shot 49% (40 of 82) to MIN's 44%, 10 of 27 from three, and went to the line 40 times to MIN's 19 — 31 points from the stripe to their 14. Williamson led with 36 (13 of 17, 10 of 12 at the line); McCollum added 23, Ingram 20. The hinge was Q4, 31-21: a lead of 4 became 14, and the lead reached 17. Williamson was the night's best plus/minus at +26.
12/13 @ WAS — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Washington comes in 0-5 over its last five, scoring 114 a night and allowing 134, shooting 48 percent and 34 from three, 25 free throws a game; Kuzma at 21 and Poole at 15 a game. That is 5 straight losses. It has lost the glass by 9 a night. Without Shamet (3 straight). One day's rest. New Orleans comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 115 a night and allowing 117, shooting 47 percent and 34 from three, 29 free throws a game; Williamson at 20 and Ingram at 19 a game. Without Nance Jr. (6 straight). One day's rest.
So: New Orleans wins, on the road, and the game turns on the defense, New Orleans allowing 117 a night to Washington's 134 and the glass, where New Orleans has been minus-2 a night and Washington minus-9. Call it New Orleans 121, Washington 116.
12/15 @ CHA — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Charlotte comes in 1-4 over its last five, scoring 111 a night and allowing 116, shooting 49 percent and 40 from three, 17 free throws a game; Rozier at 26 and Hayward at 21 a game. It has lost the glass by 12 a night. Without Ball (7 straight), Maledon (6 straight). One day's rest. New Orleans comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 119 a night and allowing 121, shooting 48 percent and 37 from three, 30 free throws a game; Ingram at 24 and Williamson at 22 a game. Without Nance Jr. (7 straight). One day's rest.
So: Charlotte wins, and the game turns on the glass, where New Orleans has been minus-0 a night and Charlotte minus-12 and the line, where New Orleans takes 30 free throws a game to Charlotte's 17. Call it Charlotte 117, New Orleans 116, New Orleans keeping it close.
12/17 @ SAS — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
San Antonio comes in 1-4 over its last five, scoring 107 a night and allowing 111, shooting 43 percent and 32 from three, 19 free throws a game; Johnson at 20 and Vassell at 19 a game. It has lost the glass by 5 a night. One day's rest. New Orleans comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 118 a night and allowing 117, shooting 48 percent and 37 from three, 29 free throws a game; Ingram at 21 and Williamson at 20 a game. That is 3 straight wins. Without Nance Jr. (8 straight). One day's rest.
So: New Orleans wins, on the road, and the game turns on the line, where New Orleans takes 29 free throws a game to San Antonio's 19 and the glass, where New Orleans has been plus-2 a night and San Antonio minus-5. Call it New Orleans 115, San Antonio 113, San Antonio keeping it close.
12/19 vs MEM — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
New Orleans comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 122 a night and allowing 116, shooting 48 percent and 40 from three, 29 free throws a game; Williamson at 21 and Ingram at 21 a game. That is 4 straight wins. Without Nance Jr. (9 straight). One day's rest. Memphis comes in 0-5 over its last five, scoring 103 a night and allowing 117, shooting 41 percent and 35 from three, 21 free throws a game; Jackson Jr. at 28 and Bane at 22 a game. That is 5 straight losses. It has lost the glass by 12 a night. Without Morant (25 straight), Smart (14 straight), Kennard (14 straight). Second night of a back-to-back.
So: New Orleans wins, and the game turns on the glass, where New Orleans has been plus-4 a night and Memphis minus-12 and the line, where New Orleans takes 29 free throws a game to Memphis's 21. Call it New Orleans 119, Memphis 107, New Orleans by 12.
11/30 vs UTA 101-90 — MIN notes
MIN won 101-90. MIN shot 44% (39 of 89) to UTA's 38%, 13 of 35 from three. MIN turned it over 11 times to UTA's 19. Towns led with 32 (12 of 22, 4 of 7 from three); Alexander-Walker added 20, Gobert 15. The hinge was Q3, 35-19: a lead of 2 became 18. Brown Jr. was the night's best plus/minus at +20.
12/02 @ CHA 123-117 — MIN notes
MIN won 123-117. MIN shot 51% (43 of 84) to CHA's 48%, 11 of 31 from three, and went to the line 30 times to CHA's 19 — 26 points from the stripe to their 17. Towns led with 28 (12 of 23, 4 of 8 from three); Gobert added 26, Reid 23. The hinge was Q1, 30-23: from level to 7 ahead. Brown Jr. was the night's best plus/minus at +15.
12/06 vs SAS 102-94 — MIN notes
MIN won 102-94. MIN shot 41% (36 of 87) to SAS's 38%, 12 of 40 from three, and went to the line 21 times to SAS's 15 — 18 points from the stripe to their 10. Conley led with 18 (5 of 13, 4 of 10 from three); Edwards added 17, Gobert 16. The hinge was Q4, 31-23: from level to 8 ahead. MIN trailed 46-53 at the half and won the second half 56-41. Gobert was the night's best plus/minus at +31.
12/08 @ MEM 127-103 — MIN notes
MIN won 127-103. MIN shot 50% (44 of 88) to MEM's 43%, 15 of 38 from three, and went to the line 26 times to MEM's 19 — 24 points from the stripe to their 14. The glass went 54-28 for them. Towns led with 24 (7 of 14, 2 of 4 from three, 8 of 9 at the line); Brown Jr. added 20, Conley 19. The hinge was Q3, 38-24: a lead of 5 became 19, and the lead reached 26. Gobert was the night's best plus/minus at +25.
12/11 @ NOP 107-121 — MIN notes
MIN lost 107-121. MIN took 9 more shots (91 to 82), fed by 11 offensive rebounds, but shot 44% to NOP's 49%, 13 of 36 from three, and got to the line 19 times to NOP's 40. Towns led with 17 (5 of 11, 1 of 3 from three, 6 of 7 at the line); Conley added 17, Reid 17. Q3 was theirs, 34-31, the deficit cut from 7 to 4, but the other 3 periods went 90-73 against them. Gobert's -20 in 25 minutes was the worst on the floor.
12/14 @ 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 128 a night and allowing 115, shooting 50 percent and 41 from three, 23 free throws a game; Dončić at 35 and Hardaway Jr. at 23 a game. That is 4 straight wins. Without Irving (2 straight), Green (5 straight), Kleber (15 straight). One day's rest. Minnesota comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 112 a night and allowing 105, shooting 46 percent and 36 from three, 22 free throws a game; Towns at 23 and Gobert at 16 a game. It has won the glass by 6 a night. 2 days' rest.
So: Dallas wins, and the game turns on the glass, where Minnesota has been plus-6 a night and Dallas minus-1 and the defense, Minnesota allowing 105 a night to Dallas's 115. Call it Dallas 116, Minnesota 113, Minnesota keeping it close.
12/16 vs IND — 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 116 a night and allowing 107, shooting 47 percent and 37 from three, 24 free throws a game; Towns at 21 and Reid at 18 a game. It has won the glass by 10 a night. One day's rest. Indiana comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 125 a night and allowing 126, shooting 48 percent and 36 from three, 23 free throws a game; Haliburton at 22 and Turner at 19 a game. Without Nembhard (3 straight), Smith (7 straight). Second night of a back-to-back.
So: Minnesota wins, and the game turns on the defense, Minnesota allowing 107 a night to Indiana's 126 and the glass, where Minnesota has been plus-10 a night and Indiana minus-0. Call it Minnesota 122, Indiana 115.
12/18 @ MIA — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Miami comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 113 a night and allowing 114, shooting 47 percent and 41 from three, 26 free throws a game; Butler III at 20 and Jaquez Jr. at 18 a game. Without Adebayo (7 straight), Herro (18 straight), Jović (5 straight). One day's rest. Minnesota comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 116 a night and allowing 106, shooting 48 percent and 41 from three, 21 free throws a game; Towns at 23 and Reid at 17 a game. It has won the glass by 8 a night. One day's rest.
So: Minnesota wins, on the road, and the game turns on the glass, where Minnesota has been plus-8 a night and Miami plus-1 and the defense, Minnesota allowing 106 a night to Miami's 114. Call it Minnesota 112, Miami 111, Miami keeping it close.
12/20 @ PHI — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Philadelphia comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 128 a night and allowing 99, shooting 50 percent and 40 from three, 25 free throws a game; Embiid at 38 and Maxey at 20 a game. It has won the glass by 8 a night. One day's rest. Minnesota comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 118 a night and allowing 108, shooting 50 percent and 43 from three, 21 free throws a game; Towns at 24 and Edwards at 20 a game. That is 3 straight wins. It has won the glass by 8 a night. One day's rest.
So: Philadelphia wins, and the game turns on the defense, Philadelphia allowing 99 a night to Minnesota's 108. Call it Philadelphia 117, Minnesota 109.
Who is who
the initials in the Players column
NOPBI B. Ingram
CM C. McCollum
DD D. Daniels
HJ H. Jones
JA J. Alvarado
JH J. Hawkins
JV J. Valančiūnas
NM N. Marshall
TM T. Murphy III
VA Valanciunas
ZW Z. Williamson
MINDN D. Nix
JM J. McDaniels
JM J. McLaughlin
JM J. Minott
KA K. Anderson
KT K. Towns
MC M. Conley
NA N. Alexander-Walker
NR N. Reid
RG R. Gobert
SM S. Milton
TB T. Brown Jr.
WM W. Moore Jr.
NOP/MIN 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
Zion Williamson's season-high 36 points power Pelicans past Timberwolves, 121-107
NEW ORLEANS -- — Zion Williamson 's road to redemption for his tepid showing in the NBA In-Season Tournament semifinals began against a team with the league's best record.
He rose to the challenge, to say the least.
Williamson scored a season-high 36 points, CJ McCollum added nine of his 23 points in the fourth quarter on three timely 3-pointers, and the New Orleans Pelicans beat the Minnesota Timberwolves 121-107 on Monday night.
“I can't just take a back seat or kind of be too laid back," Williamson said. "So, my thought process was to be aggressive. My teammates trust me.”
The game was a character test for the Pelicans, coming off their 133-89 drubbing at the hands of the Los Angeles Lakers in Las Vegas on Thursday night.
“That was a bad performance. It doesn’t take rocket science to see that,” Williamson said. “We kind of went into the game too lackadaisical. There was no focus, there was no effort. ... That wasn't a good moment for us."
Williamson, meanwhile, was the object of ridicule by some national NBA analysts after he scored 13 points on eight shots and finished with just three rebounds against the Lakers. Some said he appeared out of shape and others said he failed to raise his intensity level in the face of a LeBron James -led squad that appeared far more motivated.
“If it comes from a great place and a place where they just want to see me do better, thank you,” Williamson said of the criticism. “But if it comes from anywhere else, everybody's entitled to their own opinion. You can't control that.”
“It's been like that since I was 16 years old,” Williamson added. “If I want to be one of the best players in the league, if we don't win in a big moment or something bad happens, that's to be expected. I'm just glad we responded.”
Against the T-Wolves, Williamson repeatedly scored on forceful drives to the basket, often finishing high off the glass to beat the long reach of Minnesota center Rudy Gobert .
“Tough finishes over the best shot-blocking big in the NBA,” McCollum said of Williamson's touch around the basket. “This is the No. 1 defense in the NBA, so does it get harder than that?”
Williamson's highlights included a double-pump floater off the glass from left of the lane as he was fouled by Jaden McDaniels to make it 109-94 with 4:51 left. It was Williamson's third game this season with more than 30 points. He made 13 of 17 shots and 10 of 12 free throws.
“He was sharp, he was aggressive, he was very assertive, he was locked in,” McCollum said. “He’s doing a great job responding well to a lot of criticism around him.”
The Wolves played without leading scorer Anthony Edwards , who left Friday night's win at Memphis with a right hip pointer.
Karl-Anthony Towns led the Timberwolves with 17 points and 12 rebounds, but he fouled out with 2:35 left and his team trailing by 14. Mike Conley and Naz Reid each scored 17 points for Minnesota, which had won nine of its previous 10 games.
Brandon Ingram scored 20 points and Jonas Valanciunas had 14 points and 13 rebounds for New Orleans, which won for the first time in three games against Minnesota this season.
It took Minnesota nearly four minutes to make its first basket of the fourth quarter. It came on Conley's 3, which trimmed New Orleans' lead to 99-89.
Minnesota briefly got as close as 99-91 before Williamson hit a driving layup and Ingram hit a turnaround as he was fouled to make it 104-91. The Wolves didn't threaten after that.
Williamson “was just being a force tonight, playing downhill and getting into the paint,” Timberwolves guard Jordan McLaughlin said.
Williamson, Ingram and McCollum each had at least 10 points in the first half, and Ingram hit a 31-foot bank shot at the halftime horn to give New Orleans a 59-52 lead.
McLaughlin hit a half-court swish at the third-quarter horn.