The Minnesota Timberwolves defeated the Miami Heat 105-101 at Target Center in Minneapolis, Minnesota, on Monday, after overcoming a 15-point deficit.

The Heat's ace Jimmy Butler didn't even come to Minneapolis for Monday's game because he stayed in Miami to recover from a sore right knee. The team also missed Tyler Herro, Victor Oladipo and Gabe Vincent due to injuries as well.

With such an incomplete squad, the Heat couldn't match the Timberwolves in size, power, athleticism or any individual ability. The only things they could count on were experience and discipline. Defensively, coach Erik Spoelstra stuck to a zone defense to test the opponents' ability to move the ball; on offense, the Heat avoided challenging Rudy Gobert from front and worked outside the paint where the French giant couldn't reach.

Moreover, the Heat's players were more energetic in fighting for offensive rebounds despite their disadvantage in size. Bam Adebayo, Caleb Martin and Haywood Highsmith all contributed on this front, helping their team lead in both offensive rebounds (12-6) and second-chance points (13-4). The team also exploited well the unwise offensive calls made by the Timberwolves, turning them into 22 points via fast break.

It's fair to say that the Heat did everything within their abilities in Monday's game. They managed to build a double-digit lead in the first half, but when the Timberwolves began to use their gifts in the right way, the Heat had no backup plan to respond.

The Heat's well-designed zone defense couldn't stop Karl-Anthony Towns from walking over every defender who switched to guard him in a mismatch. Adebayo is able to top him, but he has to stay in the paint for rim protection. Meanwhile, Towns was not only a scoring threat, he was also able to feed open teammates from the high post. His four assists in the third quarter was why the Timberwolves managed to drive a 37-19 run during that period.

Furthermore, the presence of Nikola Jovic became a lethal weakness on the Heat's defensive line. Both Anthony Edwards and Jaden McDaniels targeted Jovic as long as he was on the court. The two combined to shoot 8-for-10 from the field to score 20 points in the third quarter. As a result, coach Spoelstra had to keep Jovic on the bench for the whole fourth quarter.

Despite the comeback win, the Timberwolves should be concerned by the fact that Gobert, who cost the team their future to trade for during the offseason, didn't shoot even one field goal (FG) on Monday night. The last time he went through the same offensive embarrassment was in his second season during the 2014-15 campaign.

As we said repeatedly in previous reports about the Timberwolves and Gobert, the French giant has no individual offensive threat unless he receives the ball next to the hoop. The team knows it. It's too hard for Towns to feed Gobert and Edwards is not wired in this way. It takes a solid orchestrator to do the job, which the Timberwolves expected D'Angelo Russell to shoulder, but he doesn't seem to fit that role.

Other games on Monday (away teams come first):

Atlanta Hawks 102-114 Cleveland Cavaliers

Which two players make the best back-court pair in the Eastern Conference? After Monday's game at Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse in Cleveland, Ohio, Darius Garland and Donovan Mitchell secured the first point in this race after combing to drop 55 points and 18 assists for the Cavaliers. Of course, the team also had Cedi Osman to thank for this victory as he contributed 10 points as an ingenious move in the final quarter.

Dejounte Murray suffered the worst shooting night since he joined the Hawks after missing 13 of his 17 FG attempts. His underperformance encouraged the Cavaliers to invest more effort in containing Trae Young, not to mention that Young was a major defensive weakness for both Mitchell and Garland to use in the first place.

Boston Celtics 107-121 Chicago Bulls

The Bulls put an end to the nine-game winning-streak at United Center in Chicago, Illinois. Nikola Vucevic and Andre Drummond kept the Celtics outside the Bulls' paint and limited their score to 30 points. The Celtics, as a result, shot as many as 50 triples in the game. Though they made 19 of them, many of the 31 shots they missed led to long rebounds and fast break via which the Bulls scored 22 points.

Zach LaVine, who was still trying to find his best form back since returning from injury, did well from downtown by draining five 3-pointers for the Bulls. His touch was shared by DeMar DeRozan, who also shot 3-for-3 at the 3-point line.

Portland Trail Blazers 111-119 Milwaukee Bucks

Jrue Holiday returned to the Bucks' starting lineup to drop 17 points, six assists and three steals at Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. When Holiday could play longer time on the floor, Giannis Antetokounmpo was able to focus on individual attack to score 19 of his 37 points in the third quarter, when the Bucks extended their lead from two to 14 points.

However, there was something that should concern Antetokounmpo. He went 6-for-9 in jumpers on Monday night, but missed seven of his 12 free throws. His free throw rate already dropped to 57.5 percent, a new career low. If such underperformance continues, he knows what awaits him ahead: more fouls on him on purpose as a defensive strategy, like "Hack-a-Shaq."

Orlando Magic 102-123 Indiana Pacers

Golden State Warriors 83-128 New Orleans Pelicans

New York Knicks 129-119 Oklahoma City Thunder

Utah Jazz 114-121 Los Angeles Clippers