On Nov. 1, 2003, Minnesota beat Toronto 73-56, a small piece of a season that ended with the top seed in the West. Twenty-three years later, the Wolves are 4-3 and ninth, and they host a Milwaukee team that has won once in six tries.
The 56-Point Template
That Toronto game was ordinary, and so was the team around it. The 2003-04 Wolves went 58-24, took the top seed in the West, won the franchise's first division title and reached the Western Conference Finals. Kevin Garnett was named MVP. Sam Cassell, Latrell Sprewell and Ervin Johnson were the pieces around him. A night like 73-56 is what that kind of team looks like when it is working.
Two Leaks in a Row
This group has the same self-image. Across seven games this season it carries a 105.0 defensive rating and an 11.1 net rating, both strong marks from a small sample. The last two games complicate that. Golden State scored 119 in a five-point Minnesota loss on Oct. 28. San Antonio scored 121 on Saturday, with Victor Wembanyama going 17 of 34 for 43 points and six blocks. The Spurs also ran a 10-0 burst across the third and fourth quarters, from 88-91 to 88-101, and the Wolves never recovered. Dosunmu's 27 points on 11 of 17 shooting kept it respectable. Rudy Gobert, the anchor of the defense, sat out that game, and his estimated return date is Nov. 2.
Milwaukee Monday
The Bucks are the kind of opponent that rewards a defense-first night. They are 1-5 with a 106.6 offensive rating, a 119.4 defensive rating and a minus-12.8 net rating through six games. Tyler Herro leads them at 22.0 points a game. Minnesota beat them 116-97 on Oct. 5. The schedule is less friendly than the matchup: the Wolves play a second night in a row, while Milwaukee has had two days of rest. Anthony Edwards remains out, with an estimated return of Dec. 21, so the margin has to come from stops. The franchise has a small history here too. The 1996 trade that sent Ray Allen to Milwaukee brought Stephon Marbury to Minnesota. Holding the Bucks near 100 would be a fair way to answer Saturday.
Who do the Timberwolves play next?
They host the Milwaukee Bucks on Nov. 2, then travel to Houston on Nov. 4. Milwaukee is 1-5 this season.
Will Rudy Gobert play against the Bucks?
His estimated return date is Nov. 2, the day of the game. He missed the Oct. 31 loss at San Antonio with a back injury.
