Western Conference Leading Minnesota Timberwolves Beat Lakers

There have been a few surprising teams in the first two months of the 2023-24 NBA season, and one of the bigger surprises has been the Minnesota Timberwolves.

On December 21st, Minnesota hosted the Los Angeles Lakers. Anthony Edwards scored 27 points and all five starters scored in double figures as the Timberwolves beat the Lakers 118-111. Anthony Davis led L.A. with 31 points, and LeBron James sat out this second game of back to back games. The Timberwolves improved their record to 21-6, which is the best in the Western Conference and tied with the Eastern Conference leading Boston Celtics for best record in the NBA.

Two years ago, the Timberwolves were 46-36, and last year they were 42-40. Both times, they made the playoffs but made first round exits. Before that, they had a three year playoff drought. Minnesota’s scoring, led by Edwards (24.8 points per game) and Karl-Anthony Towns (22.2 ppg) is right about in the middle of the pack, but the Timberwolves are #1 in fewest points allowed at 106.9 per game.