Spurs Hold the Edge as Short-Handed Timberwolves Visit San Antonio

By NBA Stat Desk How we produce articles

San Antonio's Finals pedigree should matter against a Minnesota team adjusting to life without Anthony Edwards.

MIN @ SAS Nov 1, 2026 at 12:00 AM UTC

The Spurs enter this game as the reigning Western Conference champions, and that Finals run gives them a credibility edge. They know what it takes to win at the highest level, and Minnesota is arriving at a difficult moment.

The Timberwolves started the season with three blowout wins and an overtime loss to Cleveland, and their offense looked like one of the league's best. The new LaMelo Ball–Anthony Edwards backcourt was a big reason. Minnesota scored 126.8 points per 100 non-garbage-time possessions with that pairing on the floor. With Edwards needing right knee arthroscopic surgery and expected to miss time, the Wolves lose their top scorer and the player who made that retooled backcourt work. Ball will have to carry more of the creation load, and the Wolves will have to find their offense in other ways against a San Antonio team that will be comfortable in this setting.

The Spurs aren't without questions. Their perimeter shooting dipped through the playoffs, falling to 33.9% from three in the Finals, so spacing remains something to watch. Tobias Harris, a veteran shooting addition, suffered a left calf strain in training camp and was questionable for the opener. If he is limited, San Antonio has less help on the wing.

Still, the gap in circumstances matters more. Minnesota's early offensive success was tied to a backcourt that is now broken up, and the Spurs have the better-defined identity and the home floor. Expect Minnesota to stay competitive for stretches thanks to the offensive habits it built early in the year. But San Antonio's experience and the Wolves' missing star should decide it in the second half.

Prediction: Spurs 114, Timberwolves 106.

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