Timberwolves can’t stop Murray, Jokic in loss without Edwards

The Timberwolves offense managed to hum early offensively in their first full tournament without star guard Anthony Edwards But Minnesota couldn t sustain the pace in a - loss to Denver at Target Center If anything Minnesota missed Edwards defensive capabilities Without Edwards and Jaylen Clark who missed the contest with left calf tightness much of the Timberwolves defensive resistance was diminished That displayed up in a major way over the final two frames Minnesota struggled out of the gates but worked its way back into the contest at the end of the opening frame and utilized a - run in the second quarter to build a -point advantage The Wolves led by eight at the break in a battle in which both offenses were getting any look they longed Denver just happened to miss a meager good looks over the first two quarters It did not in the third Denver scored points in the third quarter to seize control of the contest Jamal Murray had of those points hitting four triples in the frame Minnesota - was unable to continue to go blow for blow with Denver s massive firepower as the Timberwolves shots stopped falling down the stretch Late-game offense was another area in which Edwards was missed The Wolves continued to generate good shots even over the final two quarters they penetrated the paint at will throughout the affair but Jaden McDaniels who finished with a team-high points nor Donte DiVincenzo could get critical shots to fall when they needed them to stay in the fight Julius Randle added points and seven boards Mike Conley who started in place of Edwards had points But it wasn t nearly enough to counteract what Denver - was doing on the other end Murray finished with points on the night Nikola Jokic logged his third triple-double in as a great number of games finishing with points on for shooting to go with rebounds and assists On the night Denver shot from the field and from beyond the arc Yes the Nuggets sport one of the NBA s best offenses but it was another battle in which Minnesota was unable to impose itself defensively It s a growing theme just a scarce games into the season and one the Wolves will need to address if they re to achieve at a high level particularly while Edwards is out of the lineup