The Minnesota Timberwolves picked up a win on Monday, but it wasn’t their finest hour. Facing a depleted Hawks team without Trae Young, the Wolves scraped by with a sloppy 100-92 victory at Target Center. If you were expecting the same fire from Saturday’s win over Denver, this game was a letdown.

Minnesota dominated the first half, taking a 17-point lead into halftime. But the third quarter was a disaster. The Wolves committed nine turnovers, allowing Atlanta to go on a 14-3 run. By the time the fourth quarter started, their once-comfortable lead had dwindled to 80-74. Coach Chris Finch even called a timeout after the Hawks trimmed the margin to 11, trying to settle his team down.

Coach Finch didn’t sugarcoat his disappointment after the game. Venting his frustration, he remarked, “That second half? Totally unacceptable. If we want to get to where we’re headed as a team, this isn’t going to cut it.” The message was crystal clear—half-hearted efforts like this won’t take the Wolves anywhere meaningful.

In the final quarter, the T-Wolves managed to pull away with a 12-2 run while Anthony Edwards sat on the bench. Despite securing their third straight win, they finished with 18 turnovers and plenty of questions about consistency. For a team with playoff hopes, this kind of sloppiness can’t become the norm.

But one area where the Wolves are getting better is shooting.

Shooting—the only silver lining for the Timberwolves

When the season started, the Minnesota Timberwolves couldn’t seem to figure things out offensively. They even had a painful 12-game stretch from November to December where they couldn’t hit 110 points in a single game. In today’s NBA, where scoring dominates, that’s almost embarrassing.

But things are looking up now. The Wolves have started to fix their offensive issues, and it shows. Different lineups are stepping up, and the team is starting to resemble last season’s squad. You can almost feel the energy shift, right?

Timberwolves radio announcer Alan Horton dropped a stat that highlights this turnaround perfectly. Since Christmas, Minnesota leads the NBA in three-point shooting, hitting 40.8%. Compare that to their pre-Christmas numbers—when they were 14th at just 37%—and it’s clear how much they’ve improved.

Naz Reid, in particular, has been lights out. After Monday’s win over the Hawks, he’s shooting an insane 51.7% from deep since Christmas, making 45 of his 89 attempts. That kind of accuracy isn’t just impressive—it’s game-changing.

This shift isn’t just about better shooting; it’s about smarter play. The Wolves are generating good looks and knocking them down. If they can keep hitting like this and you discount today’s performance, they look like a team that’s starting to find their rhythm. And if they manage to reduce their turnovers, they’ll look really solid.