The Golden State Warriors beat the Detroit Pistons 102-86 at Chase Center on Tuesday, avoiding consecutive losses.

Klay Thompson shot 6-of-13 from the field and 3-of-8 from beyond the arc to score 21 points – his first 20+ point game for the Warriors since returning from injury.

"I had a great time tonight, wish I made a couple more shots, but I just had a great time, it was fun," Thompson said. "I don't care if I miss 100 shots in a row, I'm never going to stop shooting the ball. I love it too much and I work too hard not to."

It wasn't hard to tell that the Warriors were trying to help Thompson find his best form as soon as possible by setting more screens for him and feeding him the ball. Thompson had been averaging 20+ points per game since the 2014-15 season, when the team began their five-year NBA Finals streak. It's important Thompson rediscovers that lethal shooter within himself again if the Warriors want to make a difference this season.

It didn't take long for Tuesday's game to be out of reach for Detroit as the Warriors led 66-38 in the first half. Therefore, the home team gave rookie Jonathan Kuminga more time to adapt to the level of competition and find his role in the system.

Kuminga has been an energetic defender thanks to his incredible athleticism and size. Coach Steve Kerr trusted him with the task of containing Cade Cunningham on Tuesday and kept Kuminga in the game after he committed the fourth personal foul in the third quarter.

His 12-point, 10-rebound double-double didn't reveal his defensive contributions and glossed over some of the problems he had on offense. He shot 0-for-4 in the second quarter, three of which were layups. He showed the promise of dealing with the ball in penetration but was still a sloppy passer with only one assist and three turnovers. Though Kerr has put him in the starting lineup from time to time, Kuminga so far fits better off the bench.

Timberwolves get vengeance on Knicks

The Minnesota Timberwolves defeated the New York Knicks 112-110 at Madison Square on Tuesday for their second straight win and vengeance for the loss at Target Center last year.

Karl-Anthony Towns dropped 20 points, five rebounds and three assists for the Timberwolves. His 2+1 play over Julius Randle at 0:29 put his team back on top until the final whistle. As the team's biggest offensive threat and the most reliable finisher, Towns only attempted three shots in the final quarter and made two of them.

"I told my dad everyone's going to get a chance to have their Madison Square Garden moment and I felt that was for me tonight. That was the biggest moment that I've had in MSG," Towns said. "Great crowd, great atmosphere, great energy and I got to silence everybody, so that makes it even better."

The Timberwolves led 61-51 in the first half but allowed a 40-25 run in Q3. They could have lost the game on the road without the key three-point play and the surprising 11 points by Jaylen Nowell in the fourth quarter. Moreover, the whole team found their defensive aggressiveness in the last quarter by committing three steals and forcing five turnovers by the Knicks.

"I think that was key to turn it around," Timberwolves head coach Chris Finch said. "We got a couple steals right there and that led us to easy buckets."

"It was a hard-fought game and didn't get it done down the stretch," Knicks head coach Tom Thibodeau said. One of the reasons for Tuesday's game to be so close was Kemba Walker, who came back from nine-game absence due to injury and scored 19 points, including draining three triples in a row in two minutes to keep the Knicks leading 107-102.

It turned out to be the last FG shot made by the Knicks in this game. Evan Fournier and R.J. Barrett both committed a turnover in the following three minutes, which led to easy points for the Timberwolves to catch up.

"I definitely wanted to win, but we've got to keep grinding it out," Walker said. "This league is hard. It's hard to win games in this league."

The Knicks are currently No. 11 in the Eastern Conference with a 22-23 record, one game away from qualification to attend the play-in tournaments to compete for a playoff berth.