The Wolves had one of their best practices of the year on Thursday as they face a critical stretch of games. There are no more breaks, just the grind until the postseason. Wolves players and coaches took time to reflect and rest but also to prepare for the stretch run.
“We raised the intensity of practice today,” said Karl-Anthony Towns. “We got to go out there and we got to play with a certain edge. Especially tomorrow with people coming back from All-Star Break.”
The Wolves will get a little bit of a boost as Tyus Jones will return tomorrow after going through a full practice. Robert Covington went through a limited practice but will still not be on the road trip.
“We had an amazing run when we were at full strength. We’ve shown what we’re capable of when we’re executing and playing with a high intensity and an edge. I saw that today so good signs for tomorrow,” said Towns. “Today was the closest we’ve ever gotten to playoff level. We played with such a tremendous amount of ferocity and concentration.”
Interim Head Coach Ryan Saunders felt similarly. He fully understands that sometimes guys are out of rhythm after the break, but he’s confident in the Wolves not to fall into that trap.
“We feel really good about practice today as a group. We got to the point where they wanted to play more and scrimmage more,” he said. “Guys were ready to get back in the gym. It was good.”
Now that the Wolves have had a good practice post-break, it’s time to put that to use in games.
“Today’s practice was a good one as far as just physicality, guys challenging each other, but we’ve got to go out there and play and use it in the game,” said Taj Gibson.
The Wolves’ recent injury woes have given some players who hadn’t seen much playing time early in the season a chance to shine. Now that the Wolves are getting a few players back, the time those bench players had playing a larger role in the Wolves’ rotation will pay dividends for the team’s depth. The Wolves know they have multiple players they can turn to in many different situations. “It’s all about getting wins,” said Gibson. ‘Whoever is hot, whoever can contribute, they get the minutes. It all comes down to guys knowing the game of basketball, guys understanding the right kind of plays, knowing when to cut and not to cut, knowing defensive sets, knowing good defensive plays, making the right adjustments.”
The Wolves take on the Knicks on Friday at 6 p.m. Check out our scouting report for more details.