MINNEAPOLIS — The Timberwolves traded the beloved Ricky Rubio twice in his career, the first time for a draft pick in 2017 and the second time for forward Taurean Prince, among other considerations.
Earlier this season it wasn't always easy for Wolves fans to watch as Rubio thrived in Cleveland before tearing his left ACL while Prince struggled to stay in the rotation for the Wolves.
He was coming off ankle surgery and getting used to a new coach and a new defensive system.
But as the surging Prince knocked down six 3-pointers in a 130-115 win over Denver on Tuesday, fans at Target Center were more than happy to greet him with a standing ovation.
Tuesday was not an isolated incident for Prince. Over the last few weeks he has become more comfortable with his role, and coach Chris Finch appreciated the versatility he brings on defense and quick decision-making he has on offense. Against Denver, those quick decisions usually involved firing away.
Prince was on fire and finished with 23 points despite coming off the bench. His night complemented 24 points, 10 rebounds and seven assists from Karl-Anthony Towns, who turned in a solid second half against Nikola Jokic. Jokic, despite being questionable entering the night, had 21 points, 16 rebounds and eight assists. But while Jokic got his, it didn't matter because most of the Wolves' roster got theirs. The Wolves had seven players in double figures — and Anthony Edwards was no one of them.
On a night that D'Angelo Russell sat out and Edwards scored just five points, the Wolves might have otherwise been in trouble. Not Tuesday, when the Prince-led bench played as well as it did in the second quarter and Jarred Vanderbilt turned in 18 points and nine rebounds. They helped turn a two-point first quarter lead into a 24-point lead and the Wolves didn't let up in the second half to put Denver away.
The Wolves got guard Patrick Beverley back for Tuesday night but Beverley picked up three fouls in the first quarter as he played just seven minutes in the first half. Vanderbilt led the Wolves in shot attempts and scoring early as the Wolves were able to find him open inside near the rim. He also helped himself out with three offensive rebounds in the first half.
The Wolves carries a 30-28 lead into the second quarter.
That was just a warmup for what would happen the next 12 minutes.
The Wolves' bench unit was dominant from the opening moments of the second. The combination of Naz Reid, Jordan McLaughlin, Jaylen Nowell, Malik Beasley and Prince grew the two-point lead eventually to 24. The ball movement was crisp, the decision-making quick and the dunks thunderous.
Prince continued his strong play by hitting three 3s and scoring 14 points in just 11 minutes. When he checked out later in the period fans in the sections behind the bench stood and cheered. Reid pitched in 10 points in eight minutes while the defense stifled Denver as long as Jokic was resting.
The bench helped fuel a 30-9 opening to the quarter over the first 7:13. The Wolves shot 58% in the second and as they took a 69-51 lead into the halftime locker room, the bench accounted for 39 of the 69 points. Towns and Edwards had just 13 points combined.
The question for the Wolves after halftime was whether their third-quarter struggles would allow Denver back into it or if they would carry the momentum forward. They came out with a burst of energy that pushed the lead back to 24 in the first few minutes as Towns got going offensively by scoring nine of the Wolves' first 11 points in the quarter. The Wolves coasted from there.
