MIN 118, DAL 105: Anthony Edwards and Naz Reid Combine for 91 Yahoo FP
Jake Morrison
Computer Science Student ยท Dallas Mavericks fan
Timberwolves Dismantle Mavs, Exposing Dallas' Injury Crisis
Final: Timberwolves 118, Mavericks 105
Alright, I'm gonna be real with you because I watched this as a Mavs fan and it hurt. Minnesota just picked apart Dallas like we weren't ready for the playoffs. The score doesn't even tell the story, because by the end of the third quarter, this game was already decided. The Wolves got exactly what they needed and the Mavs got exposed in the worst way possible.
Here's the damage report:
| Player | ESPN FP | Yahoo FP | Tonight | Season Avg | +/- Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Anthony Edwards | 47.0 | 46.2 | 20/6/6 | 29.4/5.2/3.7 | -9.4 |
| Naz Reid | 49.0 | 45.1 | 23/8/3 | 14.5/6.3/2.5 | +8.5 |
| Julius Randle | 49.0 | 45.0 | 31/5/4 | 22.4/6.9/5.4 | +8.6 |
| P.J. Washington | 31.0 | 35.4 | 21/7/2 | 14.3/7.2/1.9 | +6.7 |
| Donte DiVincenzo | 33.0 | 29.5 | 8/5/1 | 13.3/4.6/4.2 | -5.3 |
| Naji Marshall | 25.0 | 27.7 | 18/6/1 | 14.7/4.9/3.0 | +3.3 |
| Caleb Martin | 25.0 | 26.1 | 4/8/5 | 2.9/2.1/1.5 | +1.1 |
| Brandon Williams | 19.0 | 25.5 | 17/5/3 | 12.5/3.0/3.7 | +4.5 |
| Rudy Gobert | 20.0 | 24.7 | 6/6/1 | 10.8/11.2/1.7 | -4.8 |
| Daniel Gafford | 21.0 | 22.2 | 14/6/0 | 7.8/6.3/0.8 | +6.2 |
Julius Randle Just Reminded Everyone Why He's All-NBA
31 points on 12-21 shooting is not a fluke performance. Julius Randle went nuclear and honestly? This is what he does when he's locked in. He's shooting 57% overall and he's just straight up bullying defenders in the paint. The thing that's wild is he only grabbed 5 rebounds, which means this wasn't one of those 30-15 nights where he's everywhere. This was pure bucket-getting from the block, and it worked perfectly.
For fantasy, Randle just proved he's a must-start in any lineup. He's been carrying teams all year and tonight was validation that he can punish even halfway decent defenses. The Wolves are one of the better defensive teams in the league, and Randle said "doesn't matter, I'm scoring 31." If you have him, you're feeling good. If you're hunting for a trade, his value is as high as it gets right now.
Naz Reid Had His Best Game in Weeks
Naz Reid dropped 23-8-3 in just 27 minutes and that's the kind of stat line that has me wondering if we've been underutilizing him. He's coming off the bench but when he checks in, he's immediate impact. 9-17 from the field, 3 three-pointers, zero turnovers basically. This wasn't noise, this was a dominant bench performance against a defensive Mavs team.
The thing about Reid is he's been hovering around 14.5 PPG on the season and adding 8.5 points to that average is meaningful. He's showing he can scale up when needed, and in a Wolves team that needs depth scoring with all the guards they're running, he's becoming a guy you want in lineups on a consistent basis.
P.J. Washington Finally Remembered How to Play
I'm not trying to be dramatic, but P.J. Washington with 21-7-2 and plus-6.7 vs his season average is the Mavs' only bright spot and honestly it's still not enough. Washington shot 10-20 and was clearly the only guy who came to play with any intensity. He's been streaky all year, but when he's locked in like this, he's a legitimate scorer and rebounder for Dallas.
The problem is one guy going off while the rest of the team disappears doesn't win games at this level. Washington did his job. Everyone else? Not so much.
The Real Story: Where Are Dallas' Stars?
This is where I have to be honest as a Mavs guy. The injury report showed nobody missing, but it sure looked like the Dallas roster was severely depleted. Looking at that box score, D'Angelo Russell and Klay Thompson didn't play a single minute. Cooper Flagg was out. Anthony Davis got zero minutes. Kyrie Irving was a ghost.
That's basically your entire star-powered rotation. And if that's accurate, then the Mavs were playing shorthanded and still got outworked by Minnesota. That's a bigger problem than just "they lost." That's "we need health back or we're in real trouble."
For fantasy purposes, this matters because if these guys are hurt, they're about to become either "do not start" or "watch closely for updates" depending on severity. I'd be hammering the injury report before you lock in any Mavs players for the next few days.
The Bench Guys Who Actually Tried
Brandon Williams with 17-5-3 on 8-12 free throws is the kind of performance you see from guys who get extended minutes because the starters are unavailable. He was in the game because he had to be, and he actually contributed. That doesn't happen every night from a reserve.
Caleb Martin with 4-8-5-2 steals on 32 minutes is interesting because he's barely averaging 2.9 PPG on the season. But he grabbed 8 boards and had 5 assists, which means he was doing the dirty work and the team trusted him. That's the kind of game that sometimes leads to consistent rotation minutes going forward, or it's just a noise game from a guy who's barely in the league. Either way, he was useful.
What We Actually Learned
The Timberwolves' big three actually showed up. Anthony Edwards didn't need his season average 29.4 PPG, he just needed to be functional with 20-6-6 and let his teammates eat. That's the kind of team basketball that wins in the playoffs. They don't need him dropping 30 every night, they need balance, and that's what Minnesota showed.
Dallas? They got exposed as a team that can't hang without full health. The healthy guys like Washington tried, but the gap between having your full roster and playing without it is apparently 13 points in the third quarter.
For your lineups, ride the Wolves trio and monitor the Mavs closely. Don't touch any Dallas guy until the injury situation clarifies. And if you own Washington, he's shown he can carry a load when needed, so hold tight.