Timberwolves intent on keeping guard up vs. struggling Clippers

The Minnesota Timberwolves acknowledge they are not a finished product, but they are stacking up victories as they work on their flaws.

Minnesota will go for its fifth win in a row when it returns home to face the Los Angeles Clippers on Saturday night in Minneapolis.

The Timberwolves are coming off back-to-back wins over the struggling New Orleans Pelicans. The first game went to overtime, and both contests were decided by single digits.

"We're not the best versions of ourselves right now, and that's OK," Timberwolves forward-center Naz Reid said. "We still got the last four wins.

"I think sometimes we kind of, no disrespect to the Pelicans, I think sometimes we can't play down (to) our competition. That's what kind of hurts us sometimes."

The Timberwolves will need to find a way to create a sense of urgency against a Clippers squad that is drawing headlines for the wrong reasons. Los Angeles has lost nine of its last 11 games and lately has been in the spotlight over its sudden decision to part ways with Chris Paul.

The Clippers will play on short rest Saturday after losing 107-98 at the Memphis Grizzlies on Friday night. Los Angeles allowed Memphis to close the game on a 9-0 run.

At 6-17, the Clippers sit near the bottom of the Western Conference despite a veteran-laden team that includes star players such as Kawhi Leonard and James Harden.

"The situation here is difficult," Harden said. "We're not making shots offensively. Defensively, we allow ... mistakes too many times. It's one of the reasons why we lose games."

The Timberwolves, meanwhile, have found a way to turn their mistakes into valuable lessons. Minnesota opened the season with a 4-4 record but has gone 10-4 since then.

Timberwolves coach Chris Finch said versatility has helped his team, which has relied on a variety of different lineups in closing situations as of late.

"We have the ability to win different ways," Finch said, "and we're leaning into that right now."

Anthony Edwards leads Minnesota with an average of 28.8 points per game on 49.4% shooting from the field. He also is averaging 4.6 rebounds, 3.9 assists and 1.2 steals.

Julius Randle is second on the Timberwolves at 22.9 ppg, and Jaden McDaniels rounds out the top three scorers at 15.5.

Harden is coming off an 18-point performance against the Grizzlies on Friday and has a chance to move into the top-10 list of all-time NBA scorers on Saturday.

The 36-year-old Harden has 28,269 career points. He needs 21 more to move past Carmelo Anthony (28,289) for 10th place on the list.

This will be the first of four meetings between the Timberwolves and Clippers during the regular season. They will meet again in Minneapolis on Feb. 8, and they are scheduled to play in Los Angeles on Feb. 26 and on March 11.

--Field Level Media