Minnesota Timberwolves 5-3 start: record, form and the Rockets game Wednesday

The Minnesota Timberwolves are 5-3 eight games into the season. That record is a little misleading, and in a good way. Minnesota has outscored opponents by 91 points, which works out to about 11.4 per game. All three losses were close. The wins mostly were not. Next up is a road game Wednesday night against the Houston Rockets, carried locally on DAZN MIN.

For the full roster, schedule and season results, see our Minnesota Timberwolves team page. This story covers what the first two and a half weeks say about the team and what to watch in Houston.

How the record breaks down

Results from ESPN show a team that has blown out weaker opponents and come up just short against strong ones. Minnesota opened with three straight wins, two of them on the road: 131-106 at Miami, 115-93 at Orlando and 117-94 at home against Toronto. The five wins have come by an average of 21.6 points. Only one was decided by fewer than 20 before Saturday's win over Milwaukee, which finished 112-100.

The losses add up to 17 points combined. They lost 127-125 at Cleveland, 119-114 at home to Golden State and 121-111 at San Antonio. Minnesota answered the first two losses with a 127-101 win over the LA Clippers. It answered the Spurs loss by beating the Bucks. The Wolves have yet to lose two straight since the opening week.

The Wolves are 3-1 at Target Center and 2-2 on the road. They are averaging 119 points a game and allowing about 107.6. Holding four of eight opponents to 101 or fewer has done more to build that differential than the scoring has.

What the losses have in common

The Cavaliers, Warriors and Spurs games went the same way. Minnesota was in each one late and could not close it out. A two-point loss in Cleveland and a five-point home loss to Golden State are about late-game execution more than effort or talent. Those finishes are worth watching in Houston against a team built on physical defense and offensive rebounding.

Injury picture

NBA teams have to file injury designations before every game. The official report for Wednesday will show who is listed for Minnesota and Houston, and the late-afternoon update before tipoff is the one to check. Status changes, including any rest decisions, will be posted on our team page as they come in.

Wednesday at Houston: the numbers

The market sees this as Minnesota's toughest game of the young season. On our odds board for the game, which tracks 12 venues, Houston is favored at -257 on Novig, one of the venues listed. BetRivers has the Rockets at -250. Minnesota is +251 on Novig.

On the spread, Houston is favored by 7.5 points on Novig, with Minnesota at -104 at +7.5. BetRivers lists the Rockets at -6.5. The total sits at 220.5 on Novig and 221.5 at Pinnacle. That is well below Minnesota's season scoring pace, so the market expects a slower, lower-scoring game. Sportsbook hold on the moneyline runs from 2.9% to 5.3% across the venues tracked.

A spread of seven-plus points for a team with a double-digit point differential shows how much respect Houston gets at home. The Wolves have been at their best on the road early, with wins at Miami and Orlando by a combined 47 points. The tighter games at Cleveland and San Antonio are a closer match for what Wednesday is expected to look like.

The week ahead

Houston starts the next stretch of the schedule. The full slate of upcoming games, tipoff times and broadcast details is on the team page. We will update this story after Wednesday's result.