Wolves Notes: Randle, Reid, McDaniels, Beringer
The Timberwolves were missing starting forward Jaden McDaniels on Wednesday, and Anthony Edwards‘ shooting slump continued — he made just 6-of-20 shots from the floor, including 1-of-8 three-pointers, and has now shot just 10% (3-of-30) from beyond the arc over his past four games.
Still, as Chris Hine of The Star Tribune writes, the Wolves built a 27-point lead against the lowly Wizards behind big-time production from forwards Julius Randle and Naz Reid, who signed lucrative new multiyear contracts with the team in free agency over the offseason. The duo combined for 60 points and 15 rebounds, though Minnesota’s lead dropped all the way to five points in the fourth quarter before the club put the game away.
“We got lucky, to be honest,” Randle said after the victory. “Really our edge and our activity and our aggressiveness — all that stuff, we kind of just left it in here at halftime. We’ve got to be better and more mature than that.”
Reid agreed with that assessment, responding, “Yes and no” when he was asked if he was happy with the win.
“Not like that,” Reid said. “It’s still an NBA team. Obviously, I don’t want to just roll over them. But we still got to hold ourselves to a higher standard. We know better than to put ourselves in that situation.”
Here’s more on the Wolves:
- Reid, whose five-year, $125MM deal was the most lucrative contract signed by any free agent this year, got off to a slow start, with averages of 10.8 PPG and 5.0 RPG on .421/.321/.647 shooting through his first 11 games. But he’s rounding into form (20.3 PPG, 8.8 RPG, .552/.483/.750 shooting in his past four games) and is showing why the Timberwolves value him so highly, according to Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic. “He’s a starter coming off the bench for us. He’s one of the best bigs in the league,” teammate Donte DiVincenzo said. “The way he can space the floor, the way he can handle the ball, it gives us such a unique wrinkle to what we can do. We can play him with so many different guys.”
- McDaniels, who has a sprained left wrist, missed his first game in nearly two years on Wednesday, snapping a streak of 157 consecutive regular season appearances. There’s no “firm read” yet on the severity of that injury, tweets Krawczynski. Head coach Chris Finch told reporters that imaging on the injury came back relatively clean and that the team will be monitoring McDaniels to see how his wrist responds to treatment in the next few days.
- Timberwolves rookie big man Joan Beringer, who just turned 19 last Tuesday, has only seen garbage-time action in the NBA so far, logging 37 total minutes across nine appearances. According to Finch, the plan is to assign Beringer to the G League at some point in the near future so that he can get some run with the Iowa Wolves (Twitter link via Hine).
Nikola Jokic, Jalen Johnson Named Players Of The Week
Nuggets center Nikola Jokic has been named the Western Conference Player of the Week, while Hawks forward Jalen Johnson has won the award in the East, the NBA announced on Monday (via Twitter).
Jokic, who won the weekly honor in the West for the second straight time (19th overall), had another phenomenal week, even by his lofty standards. He led Denver to three road victories, averaging 39.0 points, 13.0 rebounds, 8.0 assists and 1.7 steals on .737/.643/.889 shooting splits.
Jokic’s week was highlighted by a 55-point outburst against the Clippers in which he recorded 52 points, 11 rebounds and six assists through only three quarters, the first player to have such a stat line through three periods since the NBA began play-by-play tracking in 1997/98, per the Nuggets. He notched another three points and one rebound in two-plus minutes in the fourth, shooting 18-of-23 from the field, 5-of-6 from three, and 14-of-16 from the line in 34 minutes.
The Nuggets have won seven straight games and are currently 10-2, only trailing the 13-1 Thunder in the West. Jokic, a three-time MVP who finished as the runner-up in the two seasons he didn’t win the award over the past five years, is averaging career highs in several statistical categories in 2025/26.
Johnson had a spectacular stretch of games himself in winning his first Player of the Week award. The 23-year-old guided Atlanta to a perfect 4-0 record on the team’s Western Conference road trip, the first time the Hawks have gone undefeated on a West trip spanning at least four games since 1970/71. He averaged 24.0 points, 12.0 rebounds, 9.3 assists and 2.5 steals on .603/.571/.783 shooting.
Johnson had a historic stat line on Thursday in Utah, recording career highs in points (31), rebounds (18), assists (14) and steals (seven), the first player to meet all of those statistical benchmarks in a game since steals became an official stat in ’73/74. The Hawks are now 9-5, tied for the No. 3 seed in the East.
According to the NBA (Twitter link), the other nominees in the West were Stephen Curry, Luka Doncic, Anthony Edwards, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, James Harden, Lauri Markkanen and Alperen Sengun. Giannis Antetokounmpo, Scottie Barnes, Jaylen Brown, Pistons two-way guard Daniss Jenkins, Karl-Anthony Towns and Franz Wagner were nominated in the East.
Northwest Notes: Hartenstein, Edwards, Hardy, Markkanen
Isaiah Hartenstein erupted for a 33-point night in the Thunder‘s win over Sacramento on Friday. Along with his career high in points, Hartenstein grabbed 19 rebounds and blocked three shots.
“He was on one today,” Thunder guard Ajay Mitchell told Justin Martinez of The Oklahoman. “Hart is a great player. We were able to find him, and he had a great game. He made it very easy for us.”
Hartenstein is averaging a double-double for the banged-up Thunder, with 12.9 points and 11.7 rebounds per game in the early going this season.
“He’s played great as time has gone on here,” Thunder head coach Mark Daigneault said. “He’s getting better and better with his teammates here inside the system. He was obviously highly impactful at the beginning, but he’s only gotten better, especially on the offensive side of the floor.”
We have more from the Northwest Division:
- In his second game back from missing four due to a right hamstring strain, Timberwolves star guard Anthony Edwards poured in 37 points in a 40-point romp over Utah. “He’s our leading light, and he’s got to be aggressive, and he’s got to be himself,” head coach Chris Finch told The Athletic’s Jon Krawczynski. “That’s what we need. And I thought he played quick and clean. Thought we all did to start the game, and it was just really good, really fun to watch.”
- Jazz coach Will Hardy has been very vocal this season and that’s by design, according to Andy Larsen of the Salt Lake Tribune. “It’s all intentional,” Hardy said. “There is a real process right now of trying to have all of our players, especially our young players, understand that every time you take the court, you’re trying to win.” Hardy’s team is currently holds a 3-6 record. “I feel like I need to give the team the urgency every single night to not let moments pass them by, to not take their minutes for granted, to not take this moment in their career for granted — because nothing’s guaranteed,” he said.
- Lauri Markkanen was held to 12 points in 21 minutes on Friday but the Jazz forward is still averaging 28.3 points per game, which would easily be a career best. “He can truly play any style,” Hardy told Chris Mannix of Sports Illustrated. “He can play with anybody there. You could name any All-Star player, and I would say Lauri could play with them. Because he doesn’t dribble too much, because he’s not really an iso player, because he’s not a pick-and-roll ball handler who needs X number of screens a night. It’s nice having somebody who’s that caliber player who doesn’t necessarily dictate your style. There are certain players that dictate the style you kind of have to play. Lauri gives us a lot of flexibility. It’s a real luxury as a coach and it would appear that that would be a luxury from a team-building standpoint.”
Anthony Edwards To Return To Action On Wednesday
Anthony Edwards is available to play for the Timberwolves‘ game against the Knicks on Wednesday after missing his previous four games, reports ESPN’s Shams Charania (Twitter link). Stefan Bondy of the New York Post adds (via Twitter) that Edwards will not be on a minutes restriction.
Edwards was diagnosed with a right hamstring strain on October 27 after exiting the previous night’s game against the Pacers after just three minutes of play.
In his first two games of the season, Edwards was averaging 36.0 points, 5.5 rebounds, and 3.0 assists per night while carrying over his prolific three-point shooting from the previous season by going 8-for-16 from beyond the arc.
The Wolves managed to beat the Pacers by a score of 114-110 and split their next four games, with wins against the Hornets and Nets and losses to the Nuggets and Lakers. They face a Knicks team coming off back-to-back wins against the Bulls and Wizards.
“He’s itching to play,” head coach Chris Finch said of Edwards, per Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic (Twitter link). Missing these four games marked the second-longest absence of the guard’s career, Krawczynski writes, behind only a six-game stretch he missed due to COVID-19 in his sophomore season.
Anthony Edwards Listed As Questionable To Play On Wednesday
Timberwolves guard Anthony Edwards has been upgraded to questionable for Wednesday’s game against the Knicks, the team’s PR department tweets.
Edwards has missed the past four games due to a right hamstring strain. Last Monday, when the injury was revealed via an MRI, the team announced Edwards would be reevaluated in one week. At the time, there was reporting suggesting that Edwards would be out for at least two weeks.
Edwards was cleared to resume contact basketball activities on Monday, according to a press release. The fact that Edwards could suit up on Wednesday is a huge boost for the Timberwolves, who have gone 2-2 without him. They have recorded road wins at Charlotte and Brooklyn heading into their trip to Madison Square Garden to face the Knicks.
Edwards notched a 41-point outing against Portland and a 31-point performance against the Lakers before departing after three minutes against Indiana on Oct. 26. The three-time All-Star averaged a career-best 27.6 points and 4.5 assists per game last season while appearing in 79 regular season contests.
Western Notes: Draymond, Edwards, N. Smith, Kyrie
Draymond Green learned earlier this year that he has a legitimate chance to add his name to a short list of NBA legends with 10 All-Defensive seasons, according to Sam Amick of The Athletic, who notes that the opportunity has become a major source of motivation for the Warriors forward. Tim Duncan, Kevin Garnett, Kobe Bryant, Scottie Pippen, and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar are the only players who have accomplished the feat in the league history. Green, who has earned nine All-Defensive nods, needs one more to join them.
“You see a list like that, and that immediately becomes your ‘why,'” Green told Amick. “It’s like, ‘Man, I need to give all that I f—ing can to be on that thing.’ When you look at a list like that and you say, ‘Man, I can be on that list.’ It’s captivating. If I’m honest, it consumes you.
“You’re always looking to add these stamps (of approval). And I think for me personally, that’s one stamp that I would love to add, for no other reason than the little kid from Saginaw being able to one day look at that list and say, ‘Damn, my name is on the list with those guys.’ …So that’s a huge, huge, huge goal of mine.”
Amick’s wide-ranging interview with Green also touched on several other topics, including how much longer the 35-year-old plans to continue playing. According to Green, he thought at one point that he might only have another year or two in him, but he has since reconsidered that position.
“My body feels better and better every year,” he said. “I’ve learned more about my body and what I need to do. I still enjoy competing at the highest level. I still enjoy setting this goal and then going through the process and trying to reach it. So I wouldn’t necessarily say (just one more) year or two, like I would have said a year ago. I don’t really put a number on it, either. Like I’ve always said, the game will tell me when it’s time to go.”
We have more from around the Western Conference:
- Timberwolves guard Anthony Edwards, who has missed the past four games due to a right hamstring strain, has been cleared to resume contact basketball activities, the team announced on Monday in a press release. As Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic tweets, it’s a sign that Edwards’ return to action should happen sooner rather than later, barring a setback.
- With LeBron James, Luka Doncic, and Austin Reaves all inactive on Monday, the Lakers picked up a 123-115 win over Portland on the second end of a back-to-back. While Rui Hachimura and Deandre Ayton had big games, Nick Smith Jr.‘s 25-point performance was the biggest surprise of the night, as Kevin Pelton of ESPN writes. Smith, a former first-round pick who joined the Lakers on a two-way deal last month after being waived by Charlotte, was reportedly battling an illness and threw up at halftime, per Mike Trudell of Spectrum SportsNet (Twitter link), but said the game was “probably the most fun I’ve had in a long time.”
- After raising eyebrows by hinting in Mexico City that Kyrie Irving has a chance to return from his ACL tear before the calendar turns to 2026, Mavericks head coach Jason Kidd walked back those comments to some extent on Monday, tweets Christian Clark of The Athletic. “When I made the statement (in Mexico), it was more or less, ‘We would love to have him back,'” Kidd said. “But he’s doing great mentally and physically. We still don’t have an official schedule for Kai. Once that comes out, then we can start to speculate if he’s going to be back by ’25. We do miss him. But hopefully it is sooner rather than later.”
Anthony Edwards Out At Least One Week With Hamstring Strain
1:43 pm: Edwards underwent an MRI, revealing the right hamstring strain, and he’ll be reevaluated in one week, according to a Timberwolves press release. While that one-week timeline might be a cause for optimism, Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic has also heard the 24-year-old will miss two weeks (Twitter link).
12:45 pm: Timberwolves superstar guard Anthony Edwards will be sidelined for two weeks with a right hamstring strain, ESPN’s Shams Charania reports (via Twitter).
Edwards departed Sunday’s game against Indiana after just three minutes due to right hamstring tightness. Edwards had gotten off to a roaring start in the first week of the season, pouring in 41 points in a win over Portland and 31 points in a loss to the Lakers.
Minnesota will play against Denver tonight in the second game of a back-to-back. The Timberwolves also play seven more games over the next two weeks, meaning Edwards will miss a minimum of eight contests.
When Edwards departed on Sunday, Julius Randle stepped into the role of top scoring option. A quartet of guards and wings — Mike Conley, Jaylen Clark, Terrence Shannon Jr. and Bones Hyland — all played double-digit minutes off the bench. Making up for Edwards’ minutes will likely be a time-share proposition.
Edwards has been noted for his durability. Entering this season, he had appeared in 381 of 390 possible regular season games since entering the league. The Timberwolves will now have to figure out ways to survive a prolonged stretch without their top player.
Northwest Notes: Randle, Edwards, Watson, Jazz
Julius Randle was comfortable taking over as the Timberwolves‘ primary scoring option after Anthony Edwards left Sunday’s game early due to tightness in his right hamstring, writes Chris Hine of The Star-Tribune (subscription required). Randle wound up with 31 points on 11-for-18 shooting and six assists as Minnesota held off Indiana in its home opener.
“We don’t have to overreact, just do what we’ve been doing,” Randle said. “Naturally, the ball is going to find me a little bit more. So, it doesn’t change my mentality as far as trying to play the right way and make the right play. If they’re guarding me straight up, try to score. If they get in the gaps, help or double team, trust my teammates.”
Coach Chris Finch didn’t have an update on Edwards’ condition following the game, and the Wolves face a quick turnaround with Denver coming to town tonight. The injury appeared to happen with 3:07 gone in the first quarter when Edwards was hit on a layup, per ESPN. Finch pulled him from the game, and he was ruled out a short time later.
“Having Ant is a luxury, but I think he’ll be all right. I think he’ll play tomorrow,” Naz Reid said. “We’ve seen him do that plenty of times before.”
There’s more from the Northwest Division:
- In an interview with Mark Medina of Essentially Sports, Randle talks about his decision to re-sign with the Timberwolves and his appreciation for Finch, who helped him adjust following a surprise trade from New York just before the start of last season. “The trust is always going to be there,” Randle said. “It’s also understanding too that, through adversity, how he showed up for me as well. That was important for me, knowing that he had my back. He was a big reason for me coming to Minnesota. He wanted me here. So that’s my guy, man. I’ll ride with Finch all day, for sure.”
- Peyton Watson would have preferred a rookie scale extension, but he’s looking forward to the opportunity he’ll have as a restricted free agent next summer, relays Bennett Durando of The Denver Post. Durando points out that after giving Christian Braun a five-year, $125MM extension, the Nuggets were limited to about $7MM per year for Watson without moving into future second apron territory. “From what I understand, it was just a financial business decision (for the Nuggets). Obviously, with the new CBA and the second apron, things of that nature, they wanted to stay out of that,” Watson said. “As a business, you’ve gotta operate (based on) what’s best for your business. And when it comes time for me to make my decision next summer, I’ve gotta operate as a business myself.”
- Sarah Todd of The Deseret News examines the advantage the Jazz have with multiple big men who are accomplished passers. Lauri Markkanen, Jusuf Nurkic, Kevin Love and Kyle Filipowski can all make plays for teammates, and Walker Kessler is working to reach that level.
Timberwolves Notes: Randle, Finch, Defense, Dillingham
In an interview with Mark Medina of EssentiallySports, forward Julius Randle explains why he re-signed with the Timberwolves this summer. In addition to seeking stability and happiness both on and off the court, Randle says his strong relationship with head coach Chris Finch also played a significant factor in his decision.
“I just think Finch ultimately trusts in me as a player,” Randle said. “I think he knows how I approach the game and how I work. I think that builds trust. It’s the same thing with him. I know that every night, Finch’s ultimate job and motivation is that for every game, he’s going out there to win.
“Finch is a hell of a competitor. He wants to win at every single thing. He wants to win every single game. I know coming into the game that is his mindset. And myself, I want to win just as badly. So the trust is always going to be there.
“It’s also understanding too that, through adversity, how he showed up for me as well. That was important for me, knowing that he had my back. He was a big reason for me coming to Minnesota. He wanted me here. So that’s my guy, man. I’ll ride with Finch all day, for sure.”
Medina’s interview with Randle covers several other topics, including his relationships with Anthony Edwards and Rudy Gobert, the team’s belief that it can win a championship, and more. It’s worth checking out in full for any fans of Randle and/or the Wolves:
There’s more from Minnesota:
- Randle previously spoke about this offseason as being perhaps the happiest one he’s had in the NBA. Medina asked him why it was so enjoyable. “Just balance, man,” Randle replied. “I think I was able to refresh. I took about a month just to spend time with the family and travel and vacation and all of that different type of stuff. I was feeling refreshed and motivated, basketball-wise. You’re coming into a season knowing that you’re competing for a championship. So I think that makes the training fun because you got a lot of motivation behind it. I just woke up every day excited to be able to do what I love to do. Knowing that I’m coming to a spot where I’m appreciated and somewhere I’m able to enjoy coming to work every single day, that was important for me.”
- The Timberwolves have made the Western Conference finals each of the past two seasons largely due to their stellar defense, which ranked first and sixth in the league during those campaigns. However, their defensive effort has been sorely lacking through most of the first two games of 2025/26, writes Jon Kraczynski of The Athletic. “Honestly, it was just effort,” Donte DiVincenzo said after Friday’s lopsided loss to the Lakers. “Collectively, we know we didn’t bring the effort. A team that we knocked out of the playoffs is going to come in with more hunger. … They wanted to rip your head off. I think we just didn’t match their energy tonight.”
- Second-year guard Rob Dillingham has been out of the rotation in the early going, and when he was put in for garbage-time minutes on Friday, he suffered a broken nose nose after taking an elbow to the face, Krawczynski adds. The 20-year-old is questionable for Sunday’s matchup vs. Indiana, per the league’s latest injury report.
Northwest Notes: Jazz, Blazers, Conley, Edwards, Thunder
Speaking to Tony Jones of The Athletic about the Jazz beginning construction on a new practice facility outside of downtown Salt Lake City, team owner Ryan Smith expressed optimism about the direction of the franchise, despite the fact that its win total has declined in each of the past four seasons.
“I think (new president of basketball operations) Austin (Ainge) is a star. I think (head coach) Will (Hardy) is a star,” Smith said. “I think we have one of the most exciting front offices in the league. We have a lot of picks and a lot of flexibility.”
After racking up 52 victories in 2020/21, Smith’s first year on the job, the club has won 49, 37, 31, and 17 in the years since then, embarking on a full-fledged rebuild during that time. While Smith is eager for the Jazz to begin reversing that trend and climbing back up the NBA standings, he acknowledged he can’t rush the process and has to exercise some patience.
“The picks aren’t coming fast enough for me, but I know this is the NBA. You have to grow the talent,” he told Jones. “We have brought in a lot of people who have a lot of rings. So, the ultimate goal is to win titles. That’s what matters. I understand that’s also the goal of every other team, so it’s really difficult and winning happens rarely. We just have to hit on these picks and keep stacking good decisions. It’s good to have Taylor (Hendricks) back. Walker (Kessler) is coming along. We just have to grow the guys.”
Here’s more from around the Northwest Division:
- Sean Highkin of Rose Garden Report (Substack link) evaluates the extensions the Trail Blazers completed this week with Toumani Camara and Shaedon Sharpe, dubbing Camara’s four-year, $81MM deal a win-win for the forward and the team, while suggesting that Sharpe’s four-year, $90MM contract represents more of a “calculated risk” for the two sides. As Highkin writes, Sharpe still has All-Star upside entering his age-22 season, but there’s certainly no guarantee he’ll reach that ceiling.
- Retirement isn’t a consideration in the short term for Timberwolves point guard Mike Conley, who said ahead of his 19th NBA season that he’s “looking forward to trying to get to 20 and see what happens,” according to Sam Yip of HoopsHype. “There hasn’t been a day that I have felt like I should retire yet,” Conley said within a larger Q&A. “… I think it’ll come to a point where you get kind of overwhelmed with the amount of work you have to do in order to stay at par to keep up with these guys, that it just becomes too much. But so far it’s not there, so hopefully we can squeeze a little bit more juice out of this thing.”
- In an in-depth story for The Athletic, Jon Krawczynski examines Anthony Edwards‘ drive to continue improving and his determination to win an NBA championship after being ousted in the Western Conference Finals in each of the past two years. Edwards is listed as questionable to play in Wednesday’s season opener in Portland due to back spasms, per the Timberwolves (Twitter link).
- Did the defending champion Thunder peak last season, will they peak this season, or are the best years for this core still ahead of them? Zach Kram of ESPN considers that question, outlining why all three possibilities are viable. Oklahoma City picked up its first win of the season in dramatic fashion on Tuesday, beating Houston by one point in a double-overtime thriller after Thunder players received their championship rings.