On Wednesday, the Clippers had one of the best three-point performances in NBA history.
Los Angeles became the 13th team in NBA history to shoot 58% or better from three-point range while attempting at least 35 threes in a game. On the flip side, it was not a good night for the Timberwolves' three-point percentage defense, which came back to the middle of the pack. The three-point defense stood at 14th (33.7%) entering Friday. Prior to Wednesday, it was third (29.9%).
Of course any defense would like to give up no open shots, but in the Wolves' current defensive system, in which they prefer to play at the level on screens and use weak-side defenders in rim protection, there might be open looks from the perimeter as the ball swings around.
Just how many open looks they allow is the question.
"I think a little bit, we didn't have that physicality we usually play with," center Karl-Anthony Towns said after Wednesday's loss. "I think our first couple games you saw really gritty Wolves. I thought you see people who were really being physical, really up into the opponents and making life hell for them."
They may have also benefited from some clunky shooting from opponents.
NBA.com tracking data tell how far away shooters are from defenders and entering Friday, the Wolves were 14th in allowing "open" three-point attempts, the same ranking as their overall three-point percentage defense. The NBA considers a shooter open if the nearest defender is four to six feet away. Teams were shooting 14.3 open attempts on the Wolves. Teams were hitting those shots against the Wolves at a 30% clip, which is lower than all but seven teams. There could be some regression coming for the Wolves in that category.
Meanwhile, the Wolves were allowing 19.4 "wide-open" threes entering Friday. That's the seventh-highest mark in the league. Opponents were hitting those shots at a 36.8% clip, 19th best in the league.
Coach Chris Finch said he evaluates three-point defense based on how well the Wolves contest shots at the perimeter with their length and speed.
"We knew the other day that it was going to be a fly-around game and they shoot a lot of threes," Finch said. "We had to get out there, get there early with their length. They have great length to be able to shoot up over top. The biggest problem with the three-point defense the other day was they made eight of them in the first 10 seconds of the shot clock. That means they were getting loose in transition."
City edition jerseys
The Wolves played Friday in this season's version of the "City Edition" jerseys that paid homage to different eras of Wolves history, such as the first Wolves uniforms and the Kevin Garnett era.
The blue jerseys hearken to the colors of the inaugural jerseys with font reminiscent of the 2004 team. The trimming on the shorts and jersey contain the trees that were once a staple and the logo on the shorts is the old "Shep" logo from the first years.
Russell remains out
D'Angelo Russell remained out for the second consecutive game because of a right ankle sprain. Patrick Beverley started in his place. Finch said Russell was "day to day."
