Frederick: Timberwolves set the standard in fourth quarter of Spurs win

Minnesota trailed the Spurs by four to open the final frame Sunday night at Target Center.

Then the Timberwolves put San Antonio away with six-plus minutes of their very best basketball of the season.

The Wolves moved the ball freely, with possessions flush with drives and kicks and swings that were paid off with buried open triples. It was a fitting ode to the opposition — the Spurs are the Godfathers of basketball’s beautiful game.

On the other end, Minnesota was relentless with its ball pressure and rotations, not allowing the Spurs offense that it couldn’t contain for the first three quarters any room to operate.

Minnesota opened the quarter on a 25-7 run to cruise to a 125-112 win over San Antonio — the Wolves’ second straight win, with both coming over teams with winning records after dropping their first seven such contests this season.

Anthony Edwards finished with 32 points, six assists and four rebounds on a night where he shot a blistering 13 for 18 from the field. And the star guard subbed in for part of that majestic period of basketball excellence.

But the run started with Naz Reid, Julius Randle, Mike Conley, Jaden McDaniels and Donte DiVincenzo. They moved the ball with precision and purpose. All five guys on the floor scored in the first five and a half minutes of the quarter before Spurs coach Mitch Johnson finally called timeout with Minnesota’s lead up to 10.

Sure, the Spurs played center-less for that portion of the contest, which allowed Minnesota’s smaller unit to defend better than it has for much of the season. San Antonio is currently without star big man Victor Wembanyama.

Still, Minnesota was dialed in. Conley noted after Saturday’s win over Boston that the Wolves have so much talent, the defense can suffer because of it.

“I think we have so many guys that can push the ball, score the ball, and that’s the fun part of the game. Everybody looks to run, everybody looks to play with pace,” the guard said. “That’s something we set out to do this year is play faster, throw the ball out, get guys more opportunities. When you’re doing that, you can slip up on the other end with what made you good in prior seasons. Because the fun part is putting that ball in the hole and everybody having a good night.

“But it’s equally hard to do both, and I think we’re finding that out. To run, to play offense and to guard is really hard to do.”

Minnesota has demonstrated that thus far this season, as the defense has waxed and waned. The Wolves simply tried to score alongside the Celtics in the first half Saturday and then did the same for three quarters Sunday against San Antonio.

“But if you want to be one of the better teams, you’ve got to do both,” Conley said. “And that’s what we’re trying to do.”

That’s what the best teams in the NBA do — the two to three that can go to sleep at night truly believing they’re NBA title contenders. The brand of basketball Minnesota played in the fourth quarter Sunday emulated that standard.

That has to be what Minnesota holds itself to moving forward. The results are clear. The Wolves shot 56% from the floor and 46% from deep. The team tallied 35 assists, 12 of which belonged to Julius Randle. Seven players scored eight-plus points.

And, most importantly, Minnesota scored a key win.

Sunday’s fourth quarter provided the path, the roadmap to sustained success and championship contention. This pack of Wolves has found its North Star — how frequently it can follow it will determine its season-long success.