New-look Wolves struggle to find rhythm in season-opening loss to Lakers

Los Angeles dominated in the paint, and Minnesota had no answer for Anthony Davis.

Los Angeles Lakers guard Bronny James, left, and forward LeBron James guard Minnesota Timberwolves forward Julius Randle during the second quarter against the Minnesota Timberwolves at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles on Oct. 22, 2024. / Jason Parkhurst-Imagn Images

It's safe to say the kinks haven't been all sorted out yet.

The new-look Timberwolves battled back from a big deficit after a disjointed first half, but ultimately, they came up short in a 110-103 loss to the Los Angeles Lakers Tuesday night at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles.

Early on, frankly, the Timberwolves (0-1) looked like who they were — a team that hasn't played together much. They turned it over six times in the opening quarter — Mike Conley uncharacteristically had three turnovers in the game — and the Lakers (1-0) took control of the contest during a 17-2 second-quarter run in which they dominated the paint.

It was noticeable the Twin Towers were no longer in the Timberwolves lineup. The Lakers crashed the offensive glass, tallying 15 offensive rebounds on the night. When Rudy Gobert was off the floor, Los Angeles was able to dominate in the paint, which was particularly evident during the second-quarter run when they ran through the Wolves' zone defense.

The Wolves went into the half down 55-42, with Anthony Edwards scoring 14 of those 42 points.

Outside of Edwards, who finished with 27 points on 10-for-25 shooting, six rebounds and three assists, the Timberwolves struggled to find much rhythm offensively. Turnovers were a problem throughout the night as the Wolves racked up 15, and that was a problem even Edwards wasn't immune to as he was the biggest offender with four on the night.

The Wolves' new pieces didn't have the debuts they were looking for with their new team. Julius Randle never found much of a rhythm and wasn't much of a factor early on, but finished with 16 points, nine boards and four assists while committing a pair of turnovers. Donte DiVincenzo struggled mightily with his shot, scoring 10 points on just 3-of-11 shooting.

But for all the issues early on, the Wolves did start to get back into a flow and get themselves back into the game. In the second half, they were able to turn the tide on the offensive glass. They reduced their turnovers.

The Wolves cut their deficit to single digits by the end of the third quarter and opened the fourth on an 8-3 run after a Naz Reid 3-pointer to get within 85-81 with plenty of time remaining, forcing new Lakers coach JJ Redick to call a timeout.

A D'Angelo Russell floater and a LeBron James layup pushed the lead right back to eight, and the Lakers quickly pushed their lead back to double digits. The Wolves did cut it back down, but they never truly provided the Lakers another scare.

In the end, the Wolves actually won the rebounding battle 47-46, but the struggles were noticeable in the first half. The Lakers' 15 offensive rebounds were significant, even if Minnesota was able to snag 12 of its own.

Los Angeles crushed the Wolves in the paint, outscoring them 72-40 in close. Forty-one of Minnesota's 85 shots came from 3-point range.

Minnesota had no answer for Anthony Davis as he finished with 36 points, 16 rebounds, four assists, three blocks and a steal.

In a notable moment during the game, Bronny James and LeBron James checked in together in the second quarter, marking the first time in NBA history that a father and son played together on the same court.

It'll certainly be a work in progress for the new-look Wolves. While it wasn't the start they were looking for, it certainly wasn't going to be all figured out by the first game of the season. They'll just need to learn from it and move on.