Wolves 102, Knicks 101: The Neophytes Delight!

Hey there, Canis Hoopers!

What a delight from the neophytes, amirite?!? They were dunkin’ ‘em down in Funkytown tonight! Down 18, the young Wolves refused to lose, showing the men from Manhattan some Minnesota mean. LaMelo Ball may yet get the rookie-of-the-year call, but the Timberwolves may still win the 2020 draft with 2 stars to show for it all.

Jaden McDaniels (JMac) led the wolves first half attack, bringing the fire and desire with 11 points and 3 rebounds on 4-5 shooting (3-for-3 from three) in a stupefying second quarter! The Randall McDaniel Randle/McDaniels matchup was one to watch, as JMac showcased his hustle and muscle doing his best to defend the rampaging Randle, who continued his isolation and devastation of the Timberwolves defense all night.

Meanwhile, the acrobatic and charismatic Anthony Edwards was initially inauspicious, scoring only 2 points in the first quarter. But the ferocious first-year force finished fantastically, leading the Wolves to a valiant victory in the 4th quarter, driving and thriving, making his way into the paint for 12 points on 5-7 shooting! Gambling like Kenny Rogers for 2 crucial breakaway steals, Ant scammed & jammed, and punked & dunked all over the Knicks! Early in the game, some of Anthony’s gambles were costly, but he stuffed the stat sheet with a sensational 6 stocks! Penetrating and creating, the electrifying Edwards found Malik Beasley for the game winner, as Beas hit the last of five 3s to bring the Knicks to their knees.

The Phat KAT, Karl Anthony-Towns was ‘bounding and astounding, leading the game with 17 rebounds. The ferocious physicality of this game was so pronounced that if you squinted, you might imagine it was an old-school Knicks game. The Knicks frontcourt of Randle, Gibson and Noel were stalking and blocking, along with hacking and whacking the big KAT, eager to establish their dominance with hustle & muscle.

Now, I don’t think I’m being a homer when I say that the Knicks have the knack this year. Bolstering their bigs from the backcourt, Payton and Barrett were driving and thriving late into the game. The game was precariously poised to swing either way, right down to the final five seconds, when Towns ‘bounded, astounded, but was then dumbfounded as he perilously passed the ball into a pack, rather than holding the ball and waiting for the hack & whack.

But redemption was rapid and rabid as KAT’s killer instincts scared Barrett, whom Ant antagonized after the game, jovially joking with “Marvelous” Marney Gellner.

The future looks bright tonight, Canis Hoopers!

Clyde’s Aside:

Leadership in sports takes all sorts, and Ant mustered morale with a little dancing and prancing that left his teammates laughing, loose, and confident. Again, the neophyte was simply a delight tonight!