Wolves start NBA Cup play with a dud in ugly loss to Blazers

Portland controlled Tuesday night's game from start to finish.

Portland Trail Blazers small forward Deni Avdija drives to the basket against Minnesota Timberwolves point guard Mike Conley (10) during the first half at Moda Center in Portland on Nov. 12, 2024. / Soobum Im-Imagn Images

Timberwolves coach Chris Finch said his team "made just about every mistake that you need to make" to blow an eight-point lead late in Sunday's loss to the Miami Heat. Turnovers, disjointed offense and defensive breakdowns were a theme.

Tuesday night's game against the Portland Trail Blazers started in a similar vein. The Wolves turned it over seven times in the first quarter alone and quickly fell behind by double digits. The mistakes continued, the offense didn't find a rhythm and they couldn't string together stops defensively, either, in a 122-108 loss to the Blazers at Moda Center in Portland.

To make matters worse, Tuesday night's game was the Timberwolves' first group-play game in the NBA Cup, the league's annual in-season tournament that began last season. And the Blazers were not at full strength. Starting big man Deandre Ayton was ruled out due to a finger sprain, and guard Anfernee Simons exited in the first quarter and did not return.

That didn't stop Portland from controlling Tuesday night's contest from start to finish.

The Trail Blazers (4-8) came into Tuesday's game fresh off an embarrassing 134-89 loss to the Memphis Grizzlies on Sunday and were motivated out of the gates. Portland is a team that's struggled in first quarters, scoring just about 20 points per game in the opening frame, but they took advantage of Wolves turnovers and led 28-17 after 12 minutes.

Against the Heat, the Wolves (6-5) nearly matched a season high with 19 turnovers as a team. On Tuesday, they set a new season high with 23 giveaways. They shot a strong 51%, but the turnovers resulted in 25 points for the Trail Blazers.

The Wolves were outmuscled on the glass, losing the rebounding battle 39-32. Once again, they struggled giving up offensive rebounds as the Trail Blazers grabbed 11 of their own misses. The defensive intensity just wasn't there.

The whole of the Trail Blazers roster were the beneficiaries. Seven Portland players finished in double figures, led by Jeremi Grant's 21. Robert Williams III had 19 points and nine rebounds off the bench, Shaedon Sharpe and Deni Avidja — who hit a buzzer-beating 3-pointer at the end of the third quarter — finished with 17 points apiece.

Scoot Henderson and Toumani Camara each scored 14. Dalano Banton added another 12 off the bench.

Naz Reid shined off the bench for Minnesota, scoring a game-high 28 points on 10-for-17 shooting. But the rest of the bench, which has been a strength for the Wolves this year, was nowhere to be found. Donte DiVincenzo had more turnovers (4) than points (3). Nickeil Alexander-Walker had eight points and three steals but also had a pair of turnovers.

The Blazers bench outscored the Wolves bench 64-39.

The starting unit wasn't any better. Julius Randle, Jaden McDaniels and Rudy Gobert each had four turnovers. McDaniels did otherwise have a solid all-around game with 17 points, six rebounds, two assists, two steals and two blocks. Anthony Edwards finished with 26 points on 8-for-19 shooting, including 4 for 10 from 3-point range, and only turned it over once.

But ultimately, the Wolves did not come to play Tuesday night. They fell behind from the get-go and the Blazers took advantage of their early mistakes. It's certainly not the start they were looking for in their first NBA Cup game.

They'll quickly have a chance to flush it. The two teams meet again at 9 p.m. Wednesday night in Portland.