Five Timberwolves that stood out in preseason opener vs. the Lakers

The Minnesota Timberwolves played their first preseason game of the year when they defeated the Los Angeles Lakers 124-107 on Friday night. The victory was a good – albeit unofficial – start to the 2024-25 season, especially considering Friday's game was filled with young talent.

The Timberwolves' depth will be key if Minnesota wants to make another deep run after reaching the Western Conference Finals last season. Here are five players that stood out in Friday's win over Los Angeles.

Josh Minott

Minott was the big winner of Friday's game, scoring 22 points and pulling down eight rebounds. But while his stats were impressive, he showed a scorer's touch in 29 minutes off the bench.

Minott went 9-for-11 from the floor and produced several highlights. He had a breakaway slam after stealing the ball from Bronny James in the third quarter and worked quickly on the baseline for a reverse dunk in the fourth quarter.

But Minott's jump shot was even more impressive on Friday night. The third-year forward, who will turn 22 in November, shot 4-for-6 on three-pointers and with three steals, a pair of blocks and a +15 rating, he made a worthy case for playing time – even if it is the first preseason game.

Donte DiVincenzo

While young players dominated the playing time, Donte DiVincenzo showed what he could do for the Wolves' bench. Starting at shooting guard with Anthony Edwards resting, Vincenzo quickly showed off his shot, knocking down four three-pointers in the first quarter.

In addition to knocking down all three of his shots from long distance, DiVincenzo had a pair of rebounds and an assist in 10 minutes.

Wolves fans may still be in shock over the Karl-Anthony Towns trade but if DiVincenzo can produce like this, the Timberwolves' bench and lineup options will be much deeper this season.

Rob Dillingham

While DiVincenzo showed off a quick shot, so did Timberwolves' first-round pick Rob Dillingham.

Dillingham played 25 minutes off the bench for Minnesota and finished with 21 points, four assists and a rebound offering a dash of creativity.

Dillingham's efficiency needs some work as he shot 9-for-20 from the floor, but he was good from long range, knocking down 3-for-6 three-pointers. He'll need some time to get used to the size in the NBA but Friday was a good start for the eighth overall pick in last summer's draft.

Terrence Shannon Jr.

The Timberwolves' other first-round pick also had a solid night as Terrence Shannon Jr. played 27 minutes off the bench.

Shannon missed all three of his three-pointers but he contributed just about everywhere else, scoring 15 points to go with five assists and four rebounds.

But the highlight of Shannon's night came in the third quarter when he unleashed a hammer off a eurostep in transition.

Luka Garza

Death, taxes and Luka Garza blowing up in extended playing time. Timberwolves fans know these things as certain in life and Garza did not disappoint on Friday night.

Garza scored 20 points and grabbed nine rebounds in 22 minutes off the bench, going 7-for-13 from the floor and 1-for-4 on three-pointers. Garza likely won't crack the rotation at the beginning of the year but remains a nice insurance policy if someone in the frontcourt gets injured.