Game ID: 22500416
New York Knicks @ Minnesota Timberwolves
Tuesday, December 23, 2025 at 8:00 PM ET
Target Center, Minneapolis, MN
Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Final
MIN 31 27 27 30 115NYK 28 24 27 25 104
MIN vs NYK ScoutingMIN vs 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.
MIN availability going into 12/14 · 1 day's restBACK Hyland back 12/08 after 3, 10 min since (64% of 16)
MIN availability going into 12/17 · 2 days' restOUT Edwards missed 2 since 12/12, out tonight
OUT Conley missed 2 since 12/12, out tonight
BACK Hyland back 12/08 after 3, 19 min since (117% of 16)
MIN availability going into 12/19 · 1 day's restOUT Edwards missed 3 since 12/12, returns tonight: 41 min (118% of 35)
OUT Conley missed 3 since 12/12, out tonight
BACK Hyland back 12/08 after 3, 23 min since (141% of 16)
NEW McDaniels 32 to 37 min over the last 5
MIN availability going into 12/21 · 1 day's restOUT Conley missed 4 since 12/12, returns tonight: 24 min (136% of 18)
BACK Edwards back 12/19 after 3, 41 min since (118% of 35)
BACK Hyland back 12/08 after 3, 21 min since (133% of 16)
NEW McDaniels 32 to 37 min over the last 5
MIN availability going into 12/23 · 1 day's restBACK Edwards back 12/19 after 3, 39 min since (112% of 35)
BACK Conley back 12/21 after 4, 24 min since (136% of 18)
NEW Hyland 16 to 22 min over the last 5
MIN availability going into 12/25 · 1 day's restBACK Edwards back 12/19 after 3, 38 min since (110% of 35)
BACK Conley back 12/21 after 4, 27 min since (152% of 18)
NEW Hyland 16 to 26 min over the last 5
MIN availability going into 12/27 · 1 day's restBACK Edwards back 12/19 after 3, 39 min since (113% of 35)
BACK Conley back 12/21 after 4, 21 min since (120% of 18)
NEW Hyland 16 to 23 min over the last 5
MIN availability going into 12/29 · 1 day's restBACK Edwards back 12/19 after 3, 38 min since (110% of 35)
BACK Conley back 12/21 after 4, 21 min since (120% of 18)
MIN availability going into 12/31 · 1 day's restOUT Shannon Jr. missed 2 since 12/27, out tonight
BACK Conley back 12/21 after 4, 20 min since (115% of 18)
NYK availability going into 12/13
OUT Shamet missed 9 since 11/24, tonight's box is missing
BACK Anunoby back 12/05 after 9, 29 min since (86% of 33)
NEW Clarkson 16 to 24 min over the last 5
NYK availability going into 12/18 · 4 days' restOUT Shamet missed 9 since 11/24, out tonight
BACK Anunoby back 12/05 after 9, 29 min since (86% of 33)
NEW Clarkson 16 to 24 min over the last 4
NYK availability going into 12/19 · back-to-backOUT McBride missed 2 since 12/09, out tonight
OUT Shamet missed 10 since 11/24, out tonight
BACK Anunoby back 12/05 after 9, 30 min since (90% of 33)
NEW Clarkson 16 to 26 min over the last 4
NYK availability going into 12/21 · 1 day's restOUT McBride missed 3 since 12/09, out tonight
OUT Shamet missed 11 since 11/24, out tonight
NEW Clarkson 16 to 22 min over the last 4
NYK availability going into 12/23 · 1 day's restOUT McBride missed 4 since 12/09, out tonight
OUT Shamet missed 12 since 11/24, out tonight
NEW Bridges 33 to 38 min over the last 4
NEW Clarkson 16 to 22 min over the last 4
NEW Kolek 11 to 18 min over the last 4
NYK availability going into 12/25 · 1 day's restOUT McBride missed 5 since 12/09, out tonight
OUT Shamet missed 13 since 11/24, out tonight
NEW Bridges 33 to 38 min over the last 4
NEW Hart 31 to 37 min over the last 3
NEW Robinson 18 to 25 min over the last 3
NEW Clarkson 16 to 23 min over the last 4
NEW Kolek 11 to 24 min over the last 4
NYK availability going into 12/27 · 1 day's restOUT McBride missed 6 since 12/09, out tonight
OUT Shamet missed 14 since 11/24, out tonight
NEW Bridges 33 to 38 min over the last 5
NEW Clarkson 16 to 24 min over the last 5
NEW Kolek 11 to 24 min over the last 5
NYK availability going into 12/29 · 1 day's restOUT McBride missed 7 since 12/09, returns tonight: 18 min (78% of 24)
OUT Shamet missed 15 since 11/24, out tonight
NEW Clarkson 16 to 23 min over the last 5
NEW Kolek 11 to 22 min over the last 5
NYK availability going into 12/31 · 1 day's restOUT Hart missed 2 since 12/27, out tonight
OUT Shamet missed 16 since 11/24, out tonight
BACK McBride back 12/29 after 7, 18 min since (78% of 24)
NEW Clarkson 16 to 22 min over the last 5
NEW Kolek 11 to 22 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 114 a night and allowing 109, shooting 44 percent and 32 from three, 30 free throws a game; Randle at 21 and DiVincenzo at 18 a game. One day's rest. New York comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 115 a night and allowing 111, shooting 48 percent and 39 from three, 23 free throws a game; Brunson at 32 and Bridges at 19 a game. It has won the glass by 4 a night. Without McBride (4 straight), Shamet (12 straight). One day's rest.
So: Minnesota wins, and the game turns on the arc, New York at 39 percent from three to Minnesota's 32 and the line, where Minnesota takes 30 free throws a game to New York's 23. Call it Minnesota 115, New York 113, New York keeping it close.
12/14 vs SAC 117-103 — MIN notes
MIN won 117-103. MIN shot 46% (43 of 94) to SAC's 46%, 12 of 37 from three. The glass went 48-36 for them. Randle led with 24 (9 of 21, 2 of 6 from three, 4 of 6 at the line); McDaniels added 21, Reid 20. The hinge was Q4, 29-19: a lead of 4 became 14. MIN trailed 51-52 at the half and won the second half 66-51. McDaniels was the night's best plus/minus at +18.
12/17 vs MEM 110-116 — MIN notes
MIN lost 110-116. MIN shot 40% (39 of 98) to MEM's 44%, 13 of 44 from three. Randle led with 21 (9 of 21, 1 of 6 from three); DiVincenzo added 19, Gobert 16. Q2 was theirs, 35-32, turning a 2-point deficit into a 1-point lead, but the other 3 periods went 84-75 against them.
12/19 vs OKC 112-107 — MIN notes
MIN won 112-107. MIN shot 38% (33 of 88) to OKC's 37%, 13 of 37 from three, and went to the line 47 times to OKC's 30 — 33 points from the stripe to their 28. Edwards led with 26 (9 of 20, 3 of 6 from three, 5 of 6 at the line); Randle added 19, DiVincenzo 15. The hinge was Q2, 25-18: the deficit went from 10 to 3. MIN trailed 48-51 at the half and won the second half 64-56. DiVincenzo was the night's best plus/minus at +12.
12/21 vs MIL 103-100 — MIN notes
MIN won 103-100. MIN shot 42% (37 of 88) to MIL's 40%, 14 of 46 from three. MIN turned it over 10 times to MIL's 16. Edwards led with 24 (7 of 24, 2 of 11 from three, 8 of 12 at the line); DiVincenzo added 18, Randle 12. The hinge was Q3, 27-15: MIN came in trailing by 12 and left it level. MIN trailed 48-60 at the half and won the second half 55-40. Reid was the night's best plus/minus at +17.
12/23 vs NYK 115-104 — MIN notes
MIN won 115-104. MIN shot 45% (42 of 93) to NYK's 41%, 15 of 46 from three, and went to the line 23 times to NYK's 15 — 16 points from the stripe to their 11. MIN turned it over 11 times to NYK's 19. The glass went 42-55 against them. Edwards led with 38 (15 of 27, 4 of 10 from three, 4 of 6 at the line); Randle added 25, Gobert 11. The hinge was Q4, 30-25: a lead of 6 became 11, and the lead reached 17. Hyland was the night's best plus/minus at +24.
12/25 @ DEN — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Denver comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 124 a night and allowing 120, shooting 51 percent and 44 from three, 21 free throws a game; Murray at 28 and Jokić at 26 a game. It has lost the glass by 4 a night. Without Braun (18 straight), Gordon (14 straight). One day's rest. Minnesota comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 111 a night and allowing 106, shooting 42 percent and 32 from three, 29 free throws a game; Edwards at 29 and Randle at 20 a game. That is 3 straight wins. One day's rest.
So: Denver wins, and the game turns on the arc, Denver at 44 percent from three to Minnesota's 32 and the defense, Minnesota allowing 106 a night to Denver's 120. Call it Denver 117, Minnesota 115, Minnesota keeping it close.
12/27 vs BKN — 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 116 a night and allowing 114, shooting 43 percent and 31 from three, 30 free throws a game; Edwards at 33 and Randle at 22 a game. One day's rest. Brooklyn comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 109 a night and allowing 99, shooting 45 percent and 37 from three, 20 free throws a game; Porter Jr. at 25 and Dëmin at 14 a game. Without Thomas (20 straight), Powell (2 straight), Saraf (5 straight). 3 days' rest.
So: Minnesota wins, and the game turns on the defense, Brooklyn allowing 99 a night to Minnesota's 114 and the line, where Minnesota takes 30 free throws a game to Brooklyn's 20. Call it Minnesota 113, Brooklyn 109, Brooklyn keeping it close.
12/29 @ CHI — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Chicago comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 125 a night and allowing 122, shooting 49 percent and 38 from three, 25 free throws a game; White at 17 and Buzelis at 17 a game. It has won the glass by 6 a night. One day's rest. Minnesota comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 115 a night and allowing 115, shooting 44 percent and 33 from three, 30 free throws a game; Edwards at 32 and Randle at 20 a game. One day's rest.
So: Chicago wins, and the game turns on the glass, where Chicago has been plus-6 a night and Minnesota minus-3 and the arc, Chicago at 38 percent from three to Minnesota's 33. Call it Chicago 119, Minnesota 118, Minnesota keeping it close.
12/31 @ ATL — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Atlanta comes in 0-5 over its last five, scoring 128 a night and allowing 134, shooting 49 percent and 41 from three, 23 free throws a game; Johnson at 26 and Young at 24 a game. That is 5 straight losses. It has lost the glass by 11 a night. Without Porziņģis (10 straight). One day's rest. Minnesota comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 120 a night and allowing 114, shooting 47 percent and 34 from three, 26 free throws a game; Edwards at 31 and Randle at 20 a game. One day's rest.
So: Minnesota wins, on the road, and the game turns on the defense, Minnesota allowing 114 a night to Atlanta's 134 and the glass, where Minnesota has been minus-3 a night and Atlanta minus-11. Call it Minnesota 122, Atlanta 119, Atlanta keeping it close.
12/18 @ IND 114-113 — NYK notes
NYK won 114-113. NYK shot 47% (43 of 92) to IND's 46%, 17 of 43 from three. Brunson led with 25 (10 of 23, 3 of 8 from three); Bridges added 22, Clarkson 18. The hinge was Q2, 34-26: the deficit went from 11 to 3. NYK trailed 59-62 at the half and won the second half 55-51.
12/19 vs PHI 107-116 — NYK notes
NYK lost 107-116. NYK shot 44% (39 of 88) to PHI's 45%, 8 of 32 from three. NYK turned it over 18 times to PHI's 10. The glass went 57-36 for them. Brunson led with 22 (7 of 22, 1 of 7 from three, 7 of 8 at the line); Towns added 22, Bridges 21. Q2 was theirs, 30-28, but the other 3 periods went 88-77 against them. Hart's -12 in 34 minutes was the worst on the floor.
12/21 vs MIA 132-125 — NYK notes
NYK won 132-125. NYK shot 55% (47 of 85) to MIA's 47%, 20 of 38 from three, and got to the line 21 times to MIA's 35. Brunson led with 47 (15 of 26, 6 of 13 from three, 11 of 11 at the line); Bridges added 24, Anunoby 18. The hinge was Q2, 36-25: NYK came in trailing by 7 and left it ahead by 4. Kolek was the night's best plus/minus at +16.
12/23 @ MIN 104-115 — NYK notes
NYK lost 104-115. NYK shot 41% (41 of 99) to MIN's 45%, 11 of 30 from three, and got to the line 15 times to MIN's 23. NYK turned it over 19 times to MIN's 11, and MIN turned those into 12 steals. The glass went 55-42 for them. Towns led with 40 (14 of 24, 3 of 6 from three, 9 of 11 at the line); Kolek added 20, Bridges 15. Q3 was theirs, 27-27, but the other 3 periods went 88-77 against them. Robinson's -15 in 26 minutes was the worst on the floor.
12/25 vs CLE — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
New York comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 115 a night and allowing 114, shooting 48 percent and 40 from three, 22 free throws a game; Brunson at 32 and Towns at 20 a game. It has won the glass by 6 a night. Without McBride (5 straight), Shamet (13 straight). One day's rest. Cleveland comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 125 a night and allowing 126, shooting 49 percent and 39 from three, 19 free throws a game; Mitchell at 26 and Garland at 23 a game. It has lost the glass by 4 a night. Without Mobley (5 straight). One day's rest.
So: New York wins, and the game turns on the glass, where New York has been plus-6 a night and Cleveland minus-4 and the defense, New York allowing 114 a night to Cleveland's 126. Call it New York 121, Cleveland 117, Cleveland keeping it close.
12/27 @ ATL — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Atlanta comes in 0-5 over its last five, scoring 122 a night and allowing 133, shooting 48 percent and 35 from three, 22 free throws a game; Johnson at 29 and Young at 24 a game. That is 5 straight losses. It has lost the glass by 8 a night. Without Porziņģis (8 straight). Second night of a back-to-back. New York comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 117 a night and allowing 119, shooting 47 percent and 41 from three, 20 free throws a game; Brunson at 32 and Bridges at 19 a game. Without McBride (6 straight), Shamet (14 straight). One day's rest.
So: New York wins, on the road, and the game turns on the glass, where New York has been plus-3 a night and Atlanta minus-8 and the defense, New York allowing 119 a night to Atlanta's 133. Call it New York 122, Atlanta 118, Atlanta keeping it close.
12/29 @ NOP — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
New Orleans comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 117 a night and allowing 120, shooting 46 percent and 30 from three, 32 free throws a game; Williamson at 24 and Murphy III at 17 a game. That is 3 straight losses. It has lost the glass by 6 a night. Without Jones (3 straight), Murray (3 straight), Jordan (29 straight). One day's rest. New York comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 119 a night and allowing 121, shooting 46 percent and 40 from three, 23 free throws a game; Brunson at 34 and Towns at 22 a game. It has won the glass by 8 a night. Without McBride (7 straight), Shamet (15 straight). One day's rest.
So: New York wins, on the road, and the game turns on the glass, where New York has been plus-8 a night and New Orleans minus-6 and the arc, New York at 40 percent from three to New Orleans's 30. Call it New York 119, New Orleans 118, New Orleans keeping it close.
12/31 @ SAS — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
San Antonio comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 117 a night and allowing 113, shooting 46 percent and 31 from three, 27 free throws a game; Wembanyama at 21 and Castle at 19 a game. It has won the glass by 6 a night. One day's rest. New York comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 124 a night and allowing 123, shooting 47 percent and 44 from three, 22 free throws a game; Brunson at 36 and Towns at 20 a game. That is 3 straight wins. Without Hart (2 straight), Shamet (16 straight). One day's rest.
So: San Antonio wins, and the game turns on the arc, New York at 44 percent from three to San Antonio's 31 and the defense, San Antonio allowing 113 a night to New York's 123. Call it San Antonio 120, New York 116, New York keeping it close.
Who is who
the initials in the Players column
NYKAH A. Hukporti
JC J. Clarkson
JH J. Hart
KM K. McCullar Jr.
KT K. Towns
MB M. Bridges
MD M. Diawara
MR M. Robinson
PD P. Dadiet
TK T. Kolek
MINAE A. Edwards
BH B. Hyland
DD D. DiVincenzo
JC J. Clark
JR J. Randle
MC M. Conley
NR N. Reid
RG R. Gobert
TS T. Shannon Jr.
NYK/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
Timberwolves beat Towns for first time as Edwards scores 38 points in 115-104 win over Knicks
MINNEAPOLIS -- — Anthony Edwards scored 38 points to help the Minnesota Timberwolves beat former teammate Karl-Anthony Towns for the first time and hold off the New York Knicks 115-104 on Tuesday night.
Julius Randle had 17 of his 25 points in the fourth quarter and Rudy Gobert contributed 11 points, 16 rebounds and his reliably fierce rim protection for the Wolves (20-10), who have won 10 of 12.
Towns scored a season-high 40 points before fouling out in the final minute for the Knicks (20-9) in the absence of fellow All-Star Jalen Brunson , who rested his previously injured ankle. Tyler Kolek started for Brunson and had 20 points, 11 rebounds and eight assists.
Brunson, who had 47 points in a win over Miami on Sunday , joined O.G. Anunoby (ankle), Miles McBride (ankle) and Landry Shamet (shoulder) on the shelf to leave the backcourt thin — and make Towns the go-to scorer in his homecoming game against his original team.
Towns had 32 points and 20 rebounds in his first game back at Target Center a year ago, when the Knicks won 133-107 . He didn’t play in the rematch in New York the next month, a 116-99 win for the Wolves. Earlier this season, Towns had 15 points toward a 137-114 victory over Minnesota at Madison Square Garden.
These matchups are emotional for Randle and Donte DiVincenzo , too, whom the Wolves acquired in the stunning trade before last season that sent their cornerstone East. Randle came alive down the stretch, flexing to the crowd after a couple of tough shots to help the Wolves recover from a 16-point lead they squandered earlier and build their advantage back to 17 late in the fourth quarter.
Up next New York hosts Cleveland on Thursday afternoon to start the NBA's five-game Christmas Day slate , and the nightcap pits Minnesota at Denver.