The Minnesota Timberwolves opened the regular season with a blowout win over the Miami Heat on Wednesday night, and their new starting five barely looked like a group still learning each other’s timing. LaMelo Ball, Jonathan Kuminga, Anthony Edwards, Jaden McDaniels and Rudy Gobert started together and immediately pushed the game out of reach.
That was the part that mattered for readers looking at the Dazn Timberwolves now: two of the starters were new to the group, and Kuminga did not sign until months into the offseason. Still, the unit had already shared time in training camp and the preseason, and it showed from the start. In the first 6:55 of the first quarter, Minnesota scored 27 points, led by eight and forced Chris Finch to make three substitutions only after the opening burst had already tilted the night.
The numbers from that stretch were the kind coaches point to when a new lineup arrives ahead of schedule. The Timberwolves turned it over three times, but they did not attempt a free throw and still went 5-for-8 from beyond the arc while missing none of their 2-point tries. That kind of efficiency usually takes longer to find, especially with two new starters in the mix, which is why the opener stood out as more than just a win.
The timing matters because Minnesota had been linked to Giannis Antetokounmpo in trade rumors for a better part of a year, and the Heat had added him before the game, giving the matchup an added layer of anticipation. Even so, the Timberwolves looked more settled than the team across from them and more polished than a roster still expected to need time. Instead of searching for chemistry, they appeared to have found it before the regular season had really begun.
The larger question now is not whether the Timberwolves can produce one sharp opening stretch. It is whether this version of the lineup can keep that pace when opponents have film, answers and a night to adjust.
