Minnesota Timberwolves guard Anthony Edwards, left, looks to shoot over San Antonio Spurs guard Stephon Castle (5) and forward Jeremy Sochan (10) during the first half of an NBA basketball game, Sunday, March 9, 2025, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Abbie Parr)
Abbie Parr/Associated Press
MINNEAPOLIS – Spurs rookie Stephon Castle had 20 points off the bench for his 17th game this season of 20 or more, but it wasn’t enough to withstand Minnesota’s fierce 3-point barrage.
Anthony Edwards had 25 points and Naz Reid scored 20 points of his own off the bench as the Timberwolves thrashed the Spurs 141-124 Sunday night.
Minnesota (37-29) led from start to finish in winning their fifth in a row. The Timberwolves made 21 shots from 3-point range – the most by a Spurs’ foe this season – on 42 attempts.
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Reid and Donte DiVincenzo, who finished with 17 points, each hit 4 of 8 from distance.
“They played a well-executed game on that end of the floor,” acting Spurs coach Mitch Johnson said. “They moved the ball and they made it tough on us at times.”
De’Aaron Fox led the Spurs (26-36) with 22 points. Harrison Barnes had 15 and notched his 34th game this season with at least two 3s.
Castle has scored at least 22 points or more in five of his last six games, including 32 against Oklahoma City on March. 2.
The Spurs have lost 20 of their last 28 games, including two in a row. They are 3-7 since ruling out All-Star center Victor Wembanyama on Feb. 20 for the remainder of the season due to a blood clot in his right shoulder.
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The Timberwolves won three of their four games against the Spurs this season. Minnesota had eight players score in double digits, including Rudy Gobert, who had 16 points and eight rebounds in his first game back after missing 10 in a row with a back injury.
The Spurs went into halftime down 68-60 after giving up 37 points in the first quarter and trailing by as many as 14 points in the second period. Minnesota won the third period, 41-34.
Abbie Parr/Associated Press
Abbie Parr/Associated Press
Abbie Parr/Associated Press
Abbie Parr/Associated Press
Abbie Parr/Associated Press
Abbie Parr/Associated Press
Abbie Parr/Associated Press
Abbie Parr/Associated Press
Abbie Parr/Associated Press
Abbie Parr/Associated Press
Abbie Parr/Associated Press
Abbie Parr/Associated Press
Abbie Parr/Associated Press
Here are three takeaways from the final game of a two-game trip that left the Spurs with a 10-21 road record:
1, Castle continues to make his case for rookie of the year.
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Castle was on the attack from the moment he entered the game in the first quarter. Playing 28 energetic minutes, he hit 7 for 15 from the field and made nine trips to the free-throw line, two shy of matching his season high.
“His aggressiveness and ability to play in the paint is something we wanted,” Johnson said.
It was the kind of relentless up-tempo performance that has made Castle the leading candidate for rookie of the year.
“His confidence is just continuing to grow game by game,” Barnes said. “He is continuing to be assertive, getting to the basket at will, kind of finding his spots, finding his tempo. It’s been fun to enjoy his development.”
It will also be fun for the Spurs if he winds up winning rookie of the year a season after Wembanyama captured the trophy.
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“We’ve thrown a lot of things at him,” Johnson said. “He had to start early on because of health issues and availability and then we brought him off the bench. Then he started again. Then we brought him off the bench. He’s played with the basketball. He’s played off the ball. We’ve challenged him defensively. He’s played at the end of games.
“I mean, we’ve asked basically everything of him that you could of a player, let alone a rookie, and he has not really blinked or flinched through great success and through learning moments. I think that’s what has allowed him to kind of always just find his rhythm become extremely aggressive and confident and fearless.”
2, Minnesota’s 3-point barrage was no surprise.
Johnson had a few complaints about his team’s perimeter defense.
“I thought a couple of times on our closeouts we were maybe a little bit soft just in terms of taking away some of the airspace when we know you got guy like DiVincenzo or Naz Reid, guys who want to do that (shoot 3s),” Johnson said. “They are thinking catch shot more than catch go or put the ball down.”
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That said, stopping Minnesota’s perimeter game is a tall task for any defense.
The Timberwolves came into the game ranked fifth in the NBA in 3-point efficiency (37.7%). They were also fifth in the league in attempts per game (40.0) and fifth in makes from distance (15.1).
Sunday marked Minnesota’s 12th game this season with 20 or more 3s. Only Boston has more.
It was also the Timberwolves’ eighth game since Jan. 1 with 20-plus 3s, which leads the NBA.
“Give them credit,” Johnson said. “They played a good game. They made some tough shots.”
San Antonio Spurs center Victor Wembanyama, center, watches the first half of an NBA basketball game against the Minnesota Timberwolves, Sunday, March 9, 2025, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Abbie Parr)
Abbie Parr/Associated Press
3, Wembanyama staying active on bench.
The 21-year-old Frenchman made the trip to Minneapolis after also traveling with the team to Sacramento, and Johnson suggested he could become a fixture on the road.
Wembanyama isn’t just hanging with the team for the sake of camaraderie. In addition to cheerleading and supporting his teammates, he’s been engaged with the coaches on the bench and during timeouts and has even done a little coaching himself.
“I don’t know if he’s ever been out like this, so I know he’s going crazy from not playing,” Johnson said. “I know he’s going crazy by not being with his team and his teammates. For a lot of guys this game is their sanctuary, their getaway, their outlet, whatever you call it, and even if you can’t necessarily participate always on the court, in the trenches, so to speak, I think just being in the locker room, being on the bench and being with his teammates means a lot to him and everybody else.”
