October 26 – Julius Randle needed two games to find his place with his new Minnesota Timberwolves teammates.

Randle will look to continue his momentum as he makes his home debut in front of an expected sellout crowd at Target Center against the Toronto Raptors on Saturday night in Minneapolis.

Minnesota split two road games to start the season. The Timberwolves lost their season opener to the Los Angeles Lakers and responded with a victory against the Sacramento Kings, thanks in large part to Randle’s 33 points.

“He was phenomenal,” Timberwolves coach Chris Finch said. “He set the tone, kept us in the game from the start, almost single-handedly.

“This (starting) lineup, especially right now, is struggling to find a good rhythm. He was decisive. He shot the ball well, created a ton of shots for his teammates, played with great physicality. He also loved his defense.

Toronto will try to slow down Randle as he looks for two wins in as many nights. The Raptors are coming off a 115-107 home win over the Philadelphia 76ers on Friday night.

Scottie Barnes led Toronto with 27 points on 8-of-11 shooting from the field. He added five rebounds, four assists, two steals and a blocked shot.

Five other Raptors players scored in double figures, including big man Jakob Poeltl with 19 points to go with nine rebounds and four blocked shots.

Raptors coach Darko Rajakovic praised the collective effort. That’s something he wants to continue to see as Toronto heads west to Minnesota.

“This team is together,” Rajakovic said after Friday’s victory. “I thought we outplayed them tonight. I thought that made up for a lot of mistakes.”

Alongside Randle, Timberwolves guard Donte DiVincenzo is expected to make his home debut for his new team. DiVincenzo and Randle were part of the return of Karl-Anthony Towns, a longtime fan favorite who was shipped to the New York Knicks just before the season started.

In his first two road games, DiVincenzo averaged 9.5 points on 33.3 percent shooting, including 21.4 percent from behind the arc.

Randle said his outstanding performance in his last game was largely due to teammate Anthony Edwards, who attracts the attention of opposing defenses and is able to rush to the rim at a moment’s notice for a shot or to open a teammate.

“Ant makes the game so easy because he’s such a threat,” Randle said. “He’s amazing. I’ve said it from the beginning, he’s so special. When we both start like that, it’s a lot of fun.”

Edwards is averaging 29.5 points, 6.5 rebounds and 3.5 assists in his first two games of the post-Towns era.

The Timberwolves and Raptors played twice last season, with each team picking up a victory on their home court. The Raptors won 97-94 in the first game in Toronto, and the Timberwolves responded with a 133-85 victory in Minneapolis.

–Field level media

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