NBA highlights on March 12: T-Wolves make Clippers look like a joke

The Minnesota Timberwolves beat the Los Angeles Clippers 118-100 at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles, California, on Tuesday, avoiding their third straight loss.

This match-up emerged as one of the most dramatic games during the 2023-24 season. The Timberwolves trailed by as many as 22 points (57-35) in the second quarter but then led by 20 points at most in the fourth period.

The Timberwolves' early struggle on Tuesday night was unsurprising because they continued to lack their best offensive big man, Karl-Anthony Towns, who underwent surgery to repair a lateral meniscus tear in his left knee this week. Coach Chris Finch added Kyle Anderson, whose Chinese name is Li Kaier, to the starting lineup for defense.

It turned out to be a bad move because Anderson was unable to stretch the floor or launch an attack off the dribble. The Timberwolves have three starters, including him. The other two are Rudy Gobert and Jaden McDaniels, who pose no threat from downtown. They gave the Clippers every reason to close in on the defensive end and invest most of their defensive efforts in shutting Anthony Edwards out of the 3-point line.

Edwards failed to make their opponents pay for their defensive policy, as he missed five of his six attempts behind the arc in the first half. Though the Timberwolves grabbed 13 offensive rebounds in these two quarters and made good use of every turnover by the Clippers, the game looked very close to being long gone.

Several turning points sparked the Timberwolves' epic rally in the second half. First, 36-year-old veteran Mike Conley knocked down five triples out of eight attempts to counter the Clippers' defense. He had averaged only 10.5 points per game before Tuesday and never reached 20. By contrast, Conley got 23 points in this game, including 12 in the fourth period.

Second, Nickeil Alexander-Walker provided unexpected firepower off the bench for the Timberwolves. He shot 5-for-6 outside the 3-point line to contribute 28 points, including 10 in the third quarter. He and Conley created much better spacing for Edwards to break in and charge the rim. Edwards made eight of his 13 field goals (FGs) in the paint to get 29 points after the first quarter.

The third turning point of Tuesday's game was a hit taken by the Clippers. Their ace, Kawhi Leonard, played through the first quarter but left the arena due to thoracic spasms. His absence led to chaos in the team's offense. Instead of launching attacks via two-time NBA assists leader James Harden off the dribble, they just had everyone on the court attack off the dribble in isolation.

As a result, the Clippers scored only 37 points in the second half at 41.9 percent from the field. They also committed 12 turnovers. Even more confusing was coach Tyronn Lue's sending a small-ball squad to the court in the final period; the tallest player among them was Paul George. However, the Clippers continued to miss shots from the outside with this lineup. Neither did they increase any defensive aggression. Both should have been the signature features of a small-ball squad.

Other games on Tuesday (away teams appear first):

Indiana Pacers 121-111 Oklahoma City Thunder

The Pacers upset the Thunder at Paycom Center in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, and shook their leading position in the Western Conference. Six of their players scored double-digit points thanks to the remarkable orchestrating work of Tyrese Haliburton, who delivered 12 assists. Myles Turner shot 11-for-17 in FGs to achieve a team-high 24 points.

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (SGA) dropped a court-high 30 points in Tuesday's game but missed 13 of his 20 jumpers, including five behind the arc. Without Jalen Williams, the Thunder had no second player to share the offensive load with SGA. Luguentz Dort did his best by making three triples and scoring 18 points. Chet Holmgren continued his offensive struggle since the All-Star break. Gordon Hayward kept giving the team reasons to think trading for him was pointless.

Milwaukee Bucks 94-129 Sacramento Kings

The Bucks threw in the white towel with six minutes left in the fourth quarter at Golden 1 Center in Sacramento, California, on Tuesday. They were trailing 111-83 at that moment. Damian Lillard made a technical foul free throw to get his 10th point in the game after shooting 2-for-12 from the field.

The Kings had three players surpass 20 points in the game, and the whole team kept an FG rate of 53.3 percent. De'Aaron Fox and Domantas Sabonis combined to go 21-for-31 in FGs to contribute 51 points, 17 rebounds and 15 assists for the team. Malik Monk added 25 points off the bench.

Philadelphia 76ers 79-106 New York Knicks

Washington Wizards 97-109 Memphis Grizzlies

Houston Rockets 103-101 San Antonio Spurs

Boston Celtics 123-107 Utah Jazz