Jaylen Clark

Julius Randle logged 35 minutes in Saturday’s Game 1 win over the Lakers, recording 16 points (6-of-11 FGs), five rebounds, five assists and four three-pointers.

While Randle shot the ball well and recorded a decent stat line, he was also responsible for seven of the Timberwolves’ 10 turnovers in Game 1. That’s an area he’ll need to clean up moving forward, and he’s certainly capable of doing that. Randle’s high during the regular season was eight, which he recorded in a December 23 loss to the Hawks. The Timberwolves’ forward only had eight games with at least five turnovers, so Saturday’s performance can be considered an outlier. Minnesota will look to extend its series lead in Game 2 on Wednesday.

Naz Reid amassed 23 points (8-of-12 FGs, 1-of-2 FTs), five rebounds, two assists, two blocks and six three-pointers in 31 minutes in Saturday’s Game 1 win over the Lakers.

Reid took a Jarred Vanderbilt elbow to the mouth during the second half of Saturday’s series opener, and that was all that slowed him down. The Timberwolves’ backup big scored 17 in the first half and finished the game one steal shy of a complete stat line. Since scoring 20 points in a March 24 loss to the Pacers, Reid surpassed 15 points once in his final eight appearances of the regular season. The Lakers utilized a “boxes and elbows” defensive strategy in an attempt to keep Anthony Edwards out of the lane, which resulted in players like Reid getting cleaner looks. His play (and that of Jaden McDaniels) could force the Lakers to alter their approach for Wednesday’s Game 2.

Anthony Edwards (calf) shot 8-of-22 from the field and 2-of-2 from the foul line in Saturday’s Game 1 win over the Lakers, scoring 22 points with eight rebounds, nine assists, one steal and four three-pointers in 35 minutes.

Edwards didn’t have his best night shooting the basketball, but he recorded solid numbers in the rebound and assist categories. The lone concern was his exit from Game 1 during the third quarter with an apparent calf injury. Edwards did return early in the fourth with a sleeve on his right leg, and he said during the postgame interview that the calf is getting better “day-by-day.” The good news for him and the Timberwolves is that Game 2 isn’t until Wednesday, so he’ll have a few days to rest up.

Austin Reaves tallied 16 points (5-of-13 FGs, 3-of-3 FTs), three rebounds, three assists and three three-pointers in 37 minutes in Saturday’s Game 1 loss to the Timberwolves.

Malik Beasley recorded 20 points (7-of-16 FGs), four rebounds, two assists, two steals, one block and six three-pointers in 35 minutes in Saturday’s Game 1 loss to the Knicks.

As was the case for most of the regular season, Beasley provided solid production off the bench in Game 1. And after shooting 14-of-25 from three in two games against the Bucks to end the regular season, he carried that form over into Saturday’s matchup. Beasley shot 6-of-12 from three in Game 1 while also providing solid value in rebounds, steals and blocks. In four regular-season meetings with the Knicks, he shot 55.6 percent from three with an average of 3.8 makes and 15.8 points. Based on those numbers and his showing on Saturday, Beasley will have value in this series. Game 2 is on Monday night.

Cade Cunningham accumulated 21 points (8-of-21 FGs, 4-of-5 FTs), six rebounds, 12 assists and one three-pointer in 39 minutes in Saturday’s Game 1 loss to the Knicks.

Cunningham recorded a double-double in his playoff debut, but this was far from a smooth performance for the Pistons’ point guard. Guarded by OG Anunoby for most of Game 1, Cade shot under 50 percent from the field and committed six turnovers. Also, he and the Pistons appeared powerless to stop what would become a 21-0 Knicks run to open the fourth quarter. Now that Cunningham has a taste of the postseason, he’ll look to rebound on Monday when the Pistons and Knicks meet again in Game 2.