Julian AndrewsWeb Editorial AssociateTwitter
The Wolves dropped a tough one to the Rockets on Sunday night but got a great boost from their veterans off the bench.
Minnesota’s bench outscored Houston’s 38-16, led by 15 points from Jamal Crawford and 16 from Derrick Rose. Gorgui Dieng also played well, scoring seven points to go along with two rebounds in just seven minutes of action.
As expected, the Wolves played a shorter rotation tonight, but the strong play of their two veteran bench guards allowed for valuable moments of rest for Jeff Teague and Jimmy Butler.
While both players were valuable for Minnesota, they did their damage in different ways. Rose spent the whole night slashing and driving to the rim, getting multiple buckets off of tough finishes at the basket. His physicality gives teams trouble, and it’s clear he’s made progress towards getting back into the incredible shape he was in earlier in his career.
Crawford, meanwhile, was lights out from range. If LeBron James is growing older like a fine wine, Crawford is something like barrel-aged whiskey. I wouldn’t be surprised to turn on my TV in ten years and see a 48-year-old Crawford still draining threes from the logo. He knows what he does, and he does it well.
Minnesota’s veterans know how to play, and they know how to take care of themselves over the course of an NBA season. Not everything worked out for Minnesota tonight, but if these two NBA mainstays continue their excellent work in Game 2, Houston might be in trouble.