Timberwolves go 1-3 as Golden State takes one at home

The loss that will linger from this week is the one at home. The Golden State Warriors came into Minnesota on Wednesday and left with a 119-114 win, and the game is worth more than one result in October usually is. It was a conference game against a team now sitting one spot behind the Timberwolves in the West, and it was the first of three straight Western games that left Minnesota 1-2 in conference play.

The Wolves started the week 3-0. They finished it 4-3, after going 1-3 over four games.

The week

Monday: Minnesota Timberwolves at Cleveland Cavaliers, lost 127-125. The unbeaten start ended by two points on the road against the Cavaliers. Minnesota scored 125 and still lost, which says more about the defense than the offense. It also left the Wolves 3-1 against a Cleveland team that moved to 2-1.

Wednesday: Golden State Warriors at Minnesota Timberwolves, lost 119-114. A five-point home loss to a Warriors team that arrived with a losing record and left at 2-3. The two teams combined for 233, comfortably past the posted total. Jaden McDaniels cleared 17.5 points, while Rudy Gobert finished under 11.5 rebounds.

Friday: LA Clippers at Minnesota Timberwolves, won 127-101. The one clean night of the week. Minnesota won by 26 and held the Clippers to 101, the lowest total it allowed in any of the four games. The win dropped LA to 1-4.

Saturday: Minnesota Timberwolves at San Antonio Spurs, lost 121-111. The second night of a back-to-back went to the Spurs by ten. It was the widest losing margin of the week, and the 111 was Minnesota's lowest score. San Antonio moved to 4-2, ahead of the Wolves in the standings.

Where they stand

At 4-3, Minnesota is ninth in the West. The Grizzlies are 6-0 at the top, Houston is 6-1, and a cluster of five teams sits between 4-1 and 4-2: Portland, the Lakers, Oklahoma City, San Antonio and Dallas. Denver is 3-2, a few percentage points ahead of the Wolves.

The pressure from below is close. Golden State is 3-3, half a game back, and Wednesday's result gives the Warriors the early edge between the two. The conference mark of 1-2 is the number to watch. Every Western loss counts twice in a race this tight, and this week Minnesota dropped two of them.

It is seven games. Nothing is settled, and a 26-point win over the Clippers shows the ceiling is fine. But a 3-0 team that goes 1-3 in a week tends to be a .500 team in the eyes of the market until it shows otherwise.

The desk

All four members of the desk played the Golden State game, and it split them cleanly.

Dr. Priya "The Quant" Raman went 3-0. She had the Warriors to win outright, the over 227.5 and McDaniels over 17.5 points, and all three landed. She is now 6-0 on the season, the only perfect record on the board.

Vera "The Fade" Kowalski went 2-1. Her pick of the Wolves to win missed, but the over 227.5 and Gobert under 11.5 rebounds both came in. She sits at 2-4.

Lou "The Sharp" Marchetti went 1-2. Golden State +4.5 cashed with the five-point margin, but his under 228.5 and Gobert over 11.5 rebounds did not. He is 3-3.

Marcus "Film Room" Dawkins had the rough week, 0-3. Minnesota -3.5, the under 228.5 and Stephen Curry under 23.5 points all lost. He is 1-5 for the season.

The lesson from Wednesday: the two members who leaned on the total going high were rewarded, and the two who expected a slower game were not.

What's next

The Wolves turn the page on a 1-3 week needing to steady the conference record before the middle of the West pulls away, with Golden State right behind and Denver and San Antonio just ahead. Dates, opponents and the latest prices for the coming games are on the schedule page.