Can Minnesota's inconsistencies be fixed?
The Minnesota Timberwolves came into Tuesday night's matchup against the Los Angeles Lakers looking to keep their momentum going after winning four of their last five, but instead they were handed a 120-106 loss that was never really close in the second half.
The Lakers took control in the third quarter, outscoring Minnesota 39-23 to blow the game wide open and build a lead that the Wolves never seriously threatened.
After the game, guard Donte DiVincenzo kept his message short and simple when addressing the loss.
"We can't get too low, we learn from this and adjust," DiVincenzo said.
A Familiar Pattern
It's the kind of thing you'd expect a veteran to say, but the problem for Minnesota is that they've had to say it a lot this season.
The Timberwolves sit at 40-25 on the year, which is good enough for a tie with the Los Angeles Lakers in the Western Conference standings, but their record doesn't tell the full story of how inconsistent they've been throughout the year.
Just two games before the Lakers loss, the Wolves got blown out at home by the Orlando Magic 119-92, a game where Minnesota looked flat from start to finish and couldn't generate much of anything on offense.
Before that, they had been rolling, with wins over Toronto, Memphis, Denver and Portland that made it seem like the team was finally hitting its stride heading into the final stretch of the regular season.
That up-and-down play has been the defining theme of Minnesota's year, as they'll reel off a stretch of impressive wins and then drop a game they have no business losing.
Edwards Struggles, Bench Can't Save Them
Anthony Edwards had one of his worst shooting nights of the season against the Lakers, going just 2-for-15 from the field and 1-for-10 from three-point range.
He still managed to score 14 points thanks to getting to the free-throw line, but it wasn't nearly enough to keep the Wolves in the game when the Lakers' offense was clicking on all cylinders.
Edwards is averaging 29.6 points, 5.1 rebounds and 3.6 assists per game this season, and when he's on, Minnesota looks like a legitimate title contender, but when his shot isn't falling, the rest of the roster has struggled to pick up the slack consistently.
DiVincenzo has been solid this season, putting up 13.4 points, 4.5 rebounds and 4.2 assists per game while shooting 39.2 percent from three, but he was limited to just eight points on 3-for-9 shooting against the Lakers.
The Wolves' bench actually outscored the starters' production in some areas, with Ayo Dosunmu chipping in 13 points and Bones Hyland adding 11, but Minnesota's 11 turnovers and 25 percent three-point shooting made it nearly impossible to stay competitive.
The Bigger Picture
With 17 games left in the regular season, the Timberwolves have the talent to be a serious threat in the playoffs, and they've shown it at times this year with dominant wins over quality opponents.
The issue has always been about showing up every single night, which is something that head coach Chris Finch has pointed to as a problem throughout the season.
Minnesota's path doesn't get any easier, as they head to the Los Angeles Clippers on Wednesday before a matchup with the Golden State Warriors later this week, so this is exactly the kind of stretch where DiVincenzo's words need to turn into action.
The Wolves have the pieces to compete with anyone in the West, and that much is clear when you look at their roster from top to bottom, but if they keep having nights like they did against the Lakers, it's going to be hard to build the kind of momentum they need heading into April.
DiVincenzo is right that they can't get too low after a loss like this, but they also can't afford to keep having these kinds of performances if they want to be taken seriously as a championship contender.