Game ID: 22300451
Minnesota Timberwolves @ New York Knicks
Monday, January 1, 2024 at 3:00 PM ET
Madison Square Garden, New York, NY
Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Final
NYK 23 38 33 18 112MIN 32 17 29 28 106
MIN @ NYK ScoutingMIN @ NYK 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.
NYK availability going into 12/25 · 1 day's restOUT Robinson missed 7 since 12/11, out tonight
OUT Fournier missed 16 since 11/18, out tonight
OUT Sims missed 2 since 12/20, out tonight
NEW Hartenstein 26 to 32 min over the last 5
NYK availability going into 12/27 · 1 day's restOUT Robinson missed 8 since 12/11, out tonight
OUT Fournier missed 17 since 11/18, out tonight
OUT Sims missed 3 since 12/20, out tonight
NEW Hartenstein 26 to 33 min over the last 5
NYK availability going into 12/29 · 1 day's restOUT Robinson missed 9 since 12/11, out tonight
OUT McBride missed 2 since 12/25, out tonight
OUT Fournier missed 18 since 11/18, out tonight
OUT Sims missed 4 since 12/20, out tonight
NEW Hartenstein 26 to 34 min over the last 5
NYK availability going into 12/30 · back-to-backOUT Robinson missed 10 since 12/11, out tonight
OUT McBride missed 3 since 12/25, returns tonight: 18 min (85% of 21)
OUT Fournier missed 19 since 11/18, returns tonight: 17 min (135% of 13)
OUT Sims missed 5 since 12/20, out tonight
NEW Hartenstein 26 to 32 min over the last 5
NYK availability going into 1/01 · 1 day's restOUT Robinson missed 11 since 12/11, out tonight
OUT Sims missed 6 since 12/20, out tonight
BACK McBride back 12/30 after 3, 18 min since (85% of 21)
BACK Fournier back 12/30 after 19, 17 min since (135% of 13)
NEW Hartenstein 26 to 32 min over the last 5
NYK availability going into 1/03 · 1 day's restOUT Robinson missed 12 since 12/11, out tonight
OUT Sims missed 7 since 12/20, returns tonight: 1 min (9% of 12)
BACK McBride back 12/30 after 3, 12 min since (60% of 21)
BACK Fournier back 12/30 after 19, 17 min since (135% of 13)
NEW Hartenstein 26 to 33 min over the last 5
NYK availability going into 1/05 · 1 day's restOUT Robinson missed 13 since 12/11, out tonight
OUT Fournier missed 2 since 1/01, out tonight
BACK McBride back 12/30 after 3, 12 min since (56% of 21)
BACK Sims back 1/03 after 7, 1 min since (9% of 12)
NEW Hartenstein 26 to 34 min over the last 5
NYK availability going into 1/06 · back-to-backOUT Robinson missed 14 since 12/11, out tonight
OUT Fournier missed 3 since 1/01, out tonight
OUT Gibson missed 2 since 1/03, out tonight
BACK McBride back 12/30 after 3, 12 min since (60% of 21)
BACK Sims back 1/03 after 7, 2 min since (14% of 12)
NEW Hartenstein 26 to 34 min over the last 5
NYK availability going into 1/09 · 2 days' restOUT Robinson missed 15 since 12/11, out tonight
OUT Fournier missed 4 since 1/01, out tonight
OUT Gibson missed 3 since 1/03, out tonight
BACK McBride back 12/30 after 3, 13 min since (61% of 21)
BACK Sims back 1/03 after 7, 2 min since (15% of 12)
NEW Hartenstein 26 to 37 min over the last 5
MIN availability going into 12/23 · 1 day's rest
full strength
MIN availability going into 12/26 · 2 days' rest
full strength
MIN availability going into 12/28 · 1 day's rest
full strength
MIN availability going into 12/30 · 1 day's restNEW McDaniels 30 to 35 min over the last 5
MIN availability going into 1/01 · 1 day's restOUT Milton missed 2 since 12/28, out tonight
OUT McLaughlin missed 2 since 12/28, returns tonight: 12 min (109% of 11)
MIN availability going into 1/03 · 1 day's restOUT Milton missed 3 since 12/28, returns tonight: 3 min (25% of 13)
BACK McLaughlin back 1/01 after 2, 12 min since (109% of 11)
MIN availability going into 1/05 · 1 day's restBACK Milton back 1/03 after 3, 3 min since (25% of 13)
BACK McLaughlin back 1/01 after 2, 14 min since (137% of 11)
MIN availability going into 1/07 · 1 day's restBACK Milton back 1/03 after 3, 3 min since (26% of 13)
BACK McLaughlin back 1/01 after 2, 14 min since (131% of 11)
MIN availability going into 1/09 · 1 day's restBACK Milton back 1/03 after 3, 3 min since (26% of 13)
BACK McLaughlin back 1/01 after 2, 14 min since (129% of 11)
I Know — the desk, before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
New York comes in 1-4 over its last five, scoring 119 a night and allowing 128, shooting 48 percent and 35 from three, 27 free throws a game; Brunson at 29 and Randle at 28 a game. That is 3 straight losses. Without Robinson (11 straight). One day's rest. Minnesota comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 112 a night and allowing 111, shooting 49 percent and 40 from three, 26 free throws a game; Edwards at 32 and Gobert at 16 a game. One day's rest.
So: Minnesota wins, on the road, and the game turns on the defense, Minnesota allowing 111 a night to New York's 128 and the arc, Minnesota at 40 percent from three to New York's 35. Call it Minnesota 116, New York 114, New York keeping it close.
12/25 vs MIL 129-122 — NYK notes
NYK won 129-122. NYK shot 54% (50 of 92) to MIL's 47%, 8 of 26 from three. Brunson led with 38 (15 of 28, 1 of 3 from three, 7 of 9 at the line); Randle added 24, Barrett 21. The hinge was Q1, 36-27: from level to 9 ahead, and the lead reached 16. Quickley was the night's best plus/minus at +14.
12/27 @ OKC 120-129 — NYK notes
NYK lost 120-129. NYK shot 50% (41 of 82) to OKC's 54%, 14 of 34 from three, and went to the line 30 times to OKC's 22 — 24 points from the stripe to their 17. NYK turned it over 18 times to OKC's 4. The glass went 40-27 for them. Randle led with 25 (7 of 15, 1 of 4 from three, 10 of 13 at the line); Brunson added 24, Quickley 22. Q3 was theirs, 29-24, the deficit cut from 9 to 4, but the other 3 periods went 105-91 against them. Gibson's -16 in 10 minutes was the worst on the floor.
12/29 @ ORL 108-117 — NYK notes
NYK lost 108-117. NYK shot 44% (38 of 86) to ORL's 45%, 6 of 30 from three, and got to the line 29 times to ORL's 40. Randle led with 38 (16 of 25, 0 of 4 from three, 6 of 8 at the line); Brunson added 20, Barrett 19. Q1 was theirs, 29-26, but the other 3 periods went 91-79 against them. Barrett's -22 in 37 minutes was the worst on the floor.
12/30 @ IND 126-140 — NYK notes
NYK lost 126-140. NYK took 10 more shots (95 to 85), fed by 15 offensive rebounds, but shot 47% to IND's 59%, 17 of 37 from three, and went to the line 27 times to IND's 21 — 19 points from the stripe to their 17. DiVincenzo led with 38 (15 of 21, 7 of 11 from three); Brunson added 28, Randle 28. Q2 was theirs, 35-32, the deficit cut from 5 to 2, but the other 3 periods went 108-91 against them. Hart's -19 in 38 minutes was the worst on the floor.
1/01 vs MIN 112-106 — NYK notes
NYK won 112-106. NYK shot 44% (39 of 89) to MIN's 47%, 12 of 34 from three. The glass went 49-34 for them. Randle led with 39 (14 of 24, 2 of 6 from three, 9 of 13 at the line); Anunoby added 17, Brunson 16. The hinge was Q2, 38-17: NYK came in trailing by 9 and left it ahead by 12, and the lead reached 22. Anunoby was the night's best plus/minus at +19.
1/03 vs CHI — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
New York comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 119 a night and allowing 123, shooting 48 percent and 35 from three, 28 free throws a game; Randle at 31 and Brunson at 25 a game. It has won the glass by 5 a night. Without Robinson (12 straight). One day's rest. Chicago comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 104 a night and allowing 109, shooting 44 percent and 24 from three, 25 free throws a game; DeRozan at 21 and White at 17 a game. It has won the glass by 4 a night. Without LaVine (16 straight), Vučević (4 straight), Craig (8 straight). Second night of a back-to-back.
So: New York wins, and the game turns on the arc, New York at 35 percent from three to Chicago's 24 and the defense, Chicago allowing 109 a night to New York's 123. Call it New York 116, Chicago 110.
1/05 @ PHI — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Philadelphia comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 112 a night and allowing 108, shooting 46 percent and 34 from three, 24 free throws a game; Maxey at 24 and Harris at 21 a game. It has lost the glass by 10 a night. 2 days' rest. New York comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 116 a night and allowing 118, shooting 47 percent and 37 from three, 25 free throws a game; Randle at 33 and Brunson at 24 a game. It has won the glass by 8 a night. Without Robinson (13 straight). One day's rest.
So: Philadelphia wins, and the game turns on the glass, where New York has been plus-8 a night and Philadelphia minus-10 and the defense, Philadelphia allowing 108 a night to New York's 118. Call it Philadelphia 117, New York 112.
1/06 @ WAS — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Washington comes in 1-4 over its last five, scoring 106 a night and allowing 124, shooting 45 percent and 32 from three, 14 free throws a game; Kuzma at 21 and Avdija at 14 a game. That is 3 straight losses. It has lost the glass by 19 a night. Second night of a back-to-back. New York comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 118 a night and allowing 111, shooting 47 percent and 38 from three, 24 free throws a game; Randle at 30 and Brunson at 25 a game. That is 3 straight wins. It has won the glass by 8 a night. Without Robinson (14 straight). Second night of a back-to-back.
So: New York wins, on the road, and the game turns on the glass, where New York has been plus-8 a night and Washington minus-19 and the defense, New York allowing 111 a night to Washington's 124. Call it New York 120, Washington 112.
1/09 vs POR — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
New York comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 121 a night and allowing 109, shooting 48 percent and 41 from three, 23 free throws a game; Randle at 30 and Brunson at 27 a game. That is 4 straight wins. It has won the glass by 9 a night. Without Robinson (15 straight). 2 days' rest. Portland comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 111 a night and allowing 126, shooting 44 percent and 40 from three, 23 free throws a game; Simons at 20 and Grant at 19 a game. It has lost the glass by 5 a night. Without Ayton (7 straight), Walker (2 straight). One day's rest.
So: New York wins, and the game turns on the glass, where New York has been plus-9 a night and Portland minus-5 and the defense, New York allowing 109 a night to Portland's 126. Call it New York 121, Portland 109, New York by 12.
12/23 @ SAC 110-98 — MIN notes
MIN won 110-98. MIN shot 51% (44 of 87) to SAC's 44%, 10 of 33 from three, and got to the line 14 times to SAC's 21. Edwards led with 34 (13 of 27, 3 of 12 from three); Gobert added 21, McDaniels 20. The hinge was Q1, 28-20: from level to 8 ahead, and the lead reached 22. Conley was the night's best plus/minus at +28.
12/26 @ OKC 106-129 — MIN notes
MIN lost 106-129. MIN shot 47% (34 of 73) to OKC's 60%, 12 of 27 from three, and went to the line 32 times to OKC's 16 — 26 points from the stripe to their 13. MIN turned it over 21 times to OKC's 11, and OKC turned those into 9 steals. Edwards led with 25 (7 of 16, 2 of 5 from three, 9 of 13 at the line); Conley added 17, Towns 16. Q2 was theirs, 25-26, but the other 3 periods went 103-81 against them. Edwards's -16 in 34 minutes was the worst on the floor.
12/28 vs DAL 118-110 — MIN notes
MIN won 118-110. MIN shot 51% (38 of 74) to DAL's 44%, 17 of 33 from three, and went to the line 34 times to DAL's 19 — 25 points from the stripe to their 16. MIN turned it over 22 times to DAL's 16, and DAL turned those into 9 steals. Edwards led with 44 (12 of 23, 6 of 11 from three, 14 of 18 at the line); Gobert added 20, McDaniels 12. The hinge was Q1, 37-26: from level to 11 ahead, and the lead reached 18. Conley was the night's best plus/minus at +15.
12/30 vs LAL 108-106 — MIN notes
MIN won 108-106. MIN shot 50% (38 of 76) to LAL's 42%, 12 of 34 from three, and got to the line 24 times to LAL's 32. MIN turned it over 19 times to LAL's 10, and LAL turned those into 12 steals. Edwards led with 31 (10 of 23, 2 of 8 from three, 9 of 11 at the line); Reid added 21, Conley 15. The hinge was Q2, 32-26: MIN came in trailing by 2 and left it ahead by 4. Gobert was the night's best plus/minus at +19.
1/01 @ NYK 106-112 — MIN notes
MIN lost 106-112. MIN shot 47% (36 of 76) to NYK's 44%, 11 of 28 from three. The glass went 34-49 against them. Edwards led with 35 (11 of 21, 4 of 9 from three, 9 of 10 at the line); Towns added 29, Gobert 10. Q4 was theirs, 28-18, the deficit cut from 16 to 6, but the other 3 periods went 94-78 against them. They led by as many as 11.
1/03 vs NOP — 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 111, shooting 49 percent and 40 from three, 27 free throws a game; Edwards at 34 and Towns at 16 a game. One day's rest. New Orleans comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 114 a night and allowing 104, shooting 48 percent and 38 from three, 24 free throws a game; Williamson at 22 and Ingram at 21 a game. That is 3 straight wins. Without Murphy III (2 straight). Second night of a back-to-back.
So: Minnesota wins, and the game turns on the defense, New Orleans allowing 104 a night to Minnesota's 111 and the turnovers, Minnesota giving it away 17 times a game to New Orleans's 14. Call it Minnesota 112, New Orleans 110, New Orleans keeping it close.
1/05 @ 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 121 a night and allowing 119, shooting 50 percent and 41 from three, 23 free throws a game; Sengun at 28 and VanVleet at 19 a game. Without Brooks (4 straight). One day's rest. Minnesota comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 109 a night and allowing 115, shooting 48 percent and 41 from three, 29 free throws a game; Edwards at 34 and Towns at 17 a game. One day's rest.
So: Houston wins, and the game turns on the turnovers, Minnesota giving it away 17 times a game to Houston's 12 and the line, where Minnesota takes 29 free throws a game to Houston's 23. Call it Houston 115, Minnesota 112, Minnesota keeping it close.
1/07 @ DAL — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Dallas comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 119 a night and allowing 113, shooting 50 percent and 39 from three, 21 free throws a game; Dončić at 33 and Irving at 22 a game. Without Kleber (28 straight), Exum (2 straight). One day's rest. Minnesota comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 112 a night and allowing 108, shooting 49 percent and 40 from three, 27 free throws a game; Edwards at 34 and Towns at 18 a game. One day's rest.
So: Dallas wins, and the game turns on the line, where Minnesota takes 27 free throws a game to Dallas's 21. Call it Dallas 115, Minnesota 112, Minnesota keeping it close.
1/09 @ ORL — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Orlando comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 119 a night and allowing 120, shooting 47 percent and 44 from three, 24 free throws a game; Banchero at 33 and F. Wagner at 19 a game. Without F. Wagner (2 straight), Carter Jr. (2 straight), Gar. Harris (2 straight). One day's rest. Minnesota comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 110 a night and allowing 109, shooting 48 percent and 36 from three, 24 free throws a game; Edwards at 32 and Towns at 21 a game. One day's rest.
So: Orlando wins, and the game turns on the arc, Orlando at 44 percent from three to Minnesota's 36 and the defense, Minnesota allowing 109 a night to Orlando's 120. Call it Orlando 114, Minnesota 112, Minnesota keeping it close.
Who is who
the initials in the Players column
MINAE A. Edwards
JM J. McDaniels
JM J. McLaughlin
KA K. Anderson
KT K. Towns
MC M. Conley
NA N. Alexander-Walker
NR N. Reid
RG R. Gobert
TB T. Brown Jr.
NYKDD D. DiVincenzo
IH I. Hartenstein
JB J. Brunson
JH J. Hart
JR J. Randle
MM M. McBride
OA O. Anunoby
PA P. Achiuwa
QG Q. Grimes
TG T. Gibson
MIN/NYK 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
Randle scores 39, Anunoby has 17 in strong debut as Knicks beat Timberwolves 112-106
NEW YORK -- — OG Anunoby received a nice ovation as he walked to the bench after fouling out of his strong debut with the New York Knicks .
Julius Randle made sure the fans were still cheering at the end.
Randle scored 39 points, Anunoby had 17 in his first game with his new team and the Knicks beat the Minnesota Timberwolves 112-106 on Monday.
Jalen Brunson added 16 points and a career-high 14 assists for the Knicks, who snapped a three-game losing streak after putting Anunoby into the starting lineup for his first game since coming from Toronto in Saturday's trade that sent RJ Barrett and Immanuel Quickley to the Raptors.
Anunoby only arrived Sunday and was still having things explained to him during the game, but went 7 for 12 from the field and helped the Knicks deliver a solid defensive effort against the Western Conference leaders.
“I thought first game, impressive, really just to be ready and to kind of figure it out like on the fly,” Knicks coach Tom Thibodeau said.
The Timberwolves cut a 22-point deficit down to four midway through the fourth quarter, but Randle rescued the Knicks by scoring their next 11 points, including a three-point play that made it 110-102 with 23 seconds remaining.
Anthony Edwards scored 35 points, his third straight game above 30. Karl-Anthony Towns snapped out of a recent scoring slump with 29, but the Wolves had a dismal second quarter after making 10 of their first 15 shots in a good start to the game.
“I thought our energy just kind of dipped,” coach Chris Finch said. “I thought our start to the game was good, we made some shots, we got a few stops, but I didn’t think our energy was super high and it kind of maintained that level. They found another gear and we didn’t respond.”
The Knicks outscored the Wolves 38-17 in the second quarter to take a 61-49 lead, then broke it open with an 8-0 run in the third that gave them a 19-point advantage.
Donte DiVincenzo and Anunoby hit consecutive 3-pointers to give the Knicks their largest lead at 83-61 later in the quarter, and it was 94-78 headed to the fourth.
Shortly before the game, DiVincenzo appeared to be pointing out some things to Anunoby as the Knicks were warming up.
“Even during the game, they were telling me: ‘Go here. Do this,’” Anunoby said of his new teammates. “They were helping me out for sure, a lot of them and I’m thankful for it.”
Minnesota scored the first 10 of the final period to make it a six-point game before Anunoby's 3-pointer from the corner stopped the run. The Wolves kept coming, but Randle wouldn't let them come all the way back.
He acknowledged after the game that it felt different playing without longtime teammates Barrett and Quickley.
“But that’s part of the league,” Randle said, “just change and adjustment.”
Anunoby said he arrived in New York on Sunday and had been trying to learn some of the Knicks' plays and terminologies they use. He can become a free agent after the season, but wasn't ready to think about his future with his present so unsettled.
“I have to find out where to live,” he said before the game. “I don’t know anything. I’m just trying to figure it out.”