Player Ratings: Preseason Game Three | Los Angeles Clippers
Wolves stay undefeated in preseason.
There is no substitute for wins. Even in preseason, when stakes are low and, at times, the effort is even lower, there is just no substitute for wins. Whether it is for a team as well-drilled and well-oiled as the Los Angeles Clippers or a team like Minnesota that aspires to reach that level of consistency, there’s no substitute for wins.
This game didn’t look like a Wolves win early on. Hell, it might not have panned out that way with regular season minute allotments and regular season intensity levels. Nonetheless, there is no substitute for wins, and the good guys found a way to claw back a start that reeked of preseason and Los Angeles nightlife to sneak past the deep and destructive Clippers.
The game ends 119-117. Even with the third-stringers chewing up more minutes than one would expect in a truly competitive outing, this one had more fire and more juice than the first two exhibition games. The Wolves started like a beer-soaked flannel, trailing by 18 points at one stage and limping lifelessly into halftime down nine, but they found their stride and blitzed the Clips in the second half. Karl-Anthony Towns was back (although sans Rudy Gobert), the defense found some screws to turn, and the offense that spluttered out of the gate rained hellfire when the preseason version of the whips started cracking.
Another win. There’s no substitute for those.
*Garbage time minutes/players excluded from Ratings*
D’Angelo Russell: 4/10
Can look lethargic even in the most intense of moments, so the bar for his preseason vehemence is as low as a snail’s dick. Even then, he is only just clearing it so far. His on-ball defense has been an icy-veined turnstile, his shot selection has been mostly horrendous, and he hasn’t quite found his usual rhythm as a savvy playmaker.
He did dunk on Nicolas Batum, though. Just fucking cocked one back on the unsuspecting Frenchman. Put that in the didn’t-expect-to-see-it pile.
Finished with 9 points (45% TS), 4 rebounds, 6 assists and 3 steals in 24 minutes — +3.6 net rating.
Anthony Edwards: 8/10
There is something super satisfying about nights like this one. Not because he was his usual world-destroying force of nature on offense, in fact, his jumper was spotty and he found creating space for them tougher than usual, but because he harnessed every ounce of his superhuman strength and fucking unleashed it in smart and impactful ways.
There weren’t step-backs and rim-rockers, but there was a parade of bull-like drives and fairy dust finishes — choosing precisely when to unsheathe them. There were smart passing reads that exhibited his improvement in that area over the summer. And, most importantly, there was defense. Defense as far as the eye can see. A whole field of fucking defense.
Never did he shirk the challenge of shackling Kawhi Leonard and Paul George. Never did he switch off when lurking off the ball, rotating crisply and sniffing out loose passes before they even came to fruition. Never did he give up on a possession, making two or three closeouts on a single possession on several different defensive plays. It was like a steroid-laden Pat Bev.
Finished with 14 points (46.7% TS), 3 rebounds, 3 assists and 2 steals in 30 minutes — +4.3 net rating.
Jaden McDaniels: 7/10
Floated through this one. Impressively, his floating these days still includes a swooping drive here, a catch-and-shoot triple there, and a demonic defensive possession fucking everywhere. If that’s his baseline, he is going to be so very important.
Finished with 10 points (59.2% TS) in 27 minutes — +10.3 net rating.
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