Houston is Minnesota-like in its defensive approach.

The Rockets have a lot of excellent athletes capable of defending at a high level on the perimeter. And their defensive game plans are meticulous.

Houston coach Ime Udoka is on his players all game, directing traffic on how they should be covering each matchup and where the help should come from.

The Rockets effectively game-planned Anthony Edwards out of the game. The 22-year-old star guard scored just 13 points in the game’s first 47 minutes and didn’t record a made field goal until midway through the third frame.

Given that Minnesota is also sans Karl-Anthony Towns, these are the types of performances that you’d assume would lead to Timberwolves defeats.

But that simply has not been the case of late. Because, given the ball movement Minnesota has displayed and the confidence with which everyone on the floor currently possesses, if you commit too many resources to one player, the others will almost certainly kill you.

Such was the case in Tuesday’s 113-106 victory over the Rockets.

Naz Reid led the charge with 25 points, Mike Conley scored 14 points, Kyle Anderson had 13 points, nine assists and six rebounds, and Jordan McLaughlin knocked down three triples to go with seven assists as Minnesota’s offense kept chugging along. The Wolves shot 53 percent from the field and 43 percent from deep.

Because the brand of basketball Minnesota is playing at the moment — with quick decisions and ample ball movement — is impossible to game-plan out.

So long as Edwards requires any extra attention from the opponent, someone else will be granted an advantage. And, at the moment, everyone on the floor is ready and able to capitalize on as much. And the end result is brilliant basketball.

“To me, that’s the idea of the game of basketball at the offensive end. Share it, move it, find the open guy,” coach Chris Finch said. “Particularly when you’re playing switch-heavy defenses because the No. 1 intent is for them to just bait you into slow iso-basketball and load up in the paint. We didn’t fall for that after the first quarter, I thought we did a good job of playing quicker. But no doubt about it. That’s, to me, is the essence of the game.”

To that end, it’s no surprise that as the ball movement has ramped up, the shooting percentages of many around the team have skyrocketed. McLaughlin — who’s now shooting 51 percent from deep on the season — noted the ways in which Minnesota is generating its shots matters.

“The rhythm of the ball, the flow of it. When you know the ball is going to come swing, swing – it’s a drill we do all the time in practice, drive, pass, pass, and you kind of develop that rhythm, you’re able to step into it,” McLaughlin said. “Where off the dribble, it might come a beat late, it might come off target. So it just comes at you a bit differently.”

The former is proving to be a winning formula.

“Everybody gets a chance to get a shot up and everybody is happy for one another, everybody wants to see the next guy flourish and be great,” Reid said. “So I think everybody has that mindset to where we all just want to see the next guy flourish within a win.”

That brand of basketball allowed Minnesota to keep Houston — one of the NBA’s hottest teams — at arm’s length for most of the night.

Finally, after struggling from deep for 95 percent of the contest, Houston got hot from three late, with Fred VanVleet going nuclear with four late triples after starting the game 0 for 7 beyond the arc.

That allowed Houston to close a 10-point fourth-quarter deficit to just one with 112 seconds to play. But Conley hit a floater to push the lead back to three, and Minnesota’s defense then put on the clamps to create turnovers that led to easy Edwards buckets at the end to close the door.

It’s another impressive win for Minnesota, who continues to win at a high clip and now stands in second place in the Western Conference, just a half game back of Denver. And, given the way they’re playing at the moment, if this current style carries forward, there’s no telling where they may end up.

“When KAT’s in the game that’s just a lot of volume and offense through him, rightfully so,” Anderson said. “Now when he’s not there, it’s opportunities for other guys to step up and guys are playing well.”

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Conley’s Corner: Made in March

In what may well end up being the largest snub of the still young NBA awards season, Timberwolves guard Mike Conley wasn’t named one of six finalists for the NBA sportsmanship award on Tuesday.

That honor recognizes “the player who best represents the ideals of sportsmanship on the court.”

Conley is the reigning champ, and has won the award four times. He has never won it in back to back years, so maybe the 36-year-old point guard not winning it this season shouldn’t be a surprise. But his omission from even the list of finalists was surprising.

The six finalists are Philadelphia’s Tyrese Maxey, Cleveland’s Jarrett Allen, Miami’s Kevin Love, Oklahoma City’s Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Sacramento’s Harrison Barnes and San Antonio’s Tre Jones (the Apple Valley product).

Every division has a finalist, so really Gilgeous-Alexander was chosen over Conley. The Wolves’ guard has never received a technical foul in his NBA career.

“I should win it every year. to be honest,” Conley said with a smile earlier this year when discussing the award. “I don’t think there’s anybody like me that exists out there anymore.”

The pursuit of one for the thumb will have to wait until next season.

Perhaps the sting of that omission was lessened Tuesday when Conley was named one of 12 finalists for the Twyman-Stokes Teammate of the Year award, which goes to the player “deemed the best teammate based on selfless play, on- and off-court leadership as a mentor and role model to other NBA players, and commitment and dedication to team.”

Other nominees for that honor are Barnes, Brooklyn’s Mikal Bridges, New York’s Jalen Brunson, Denver’s Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, Orlando’s Markelle Fultz, Boston’s Al Horford, Indiana’s T.J. McConnell, New Orleans’ Larry Nance Jr, Cleveland’s Georges Niang, Dallas’ Dwight Powell and Oklahoma City’s Jalen Williams.

POM NOM

For the second straight month, Wolves guard Anthony Edwards was a nominee for the Western Conference Player of the Month award, which went to Dallas’ Luka Doncic.

In March, Edwards averaged 24.3 points, 6.6 rebounds and 5.1 assists while shooting 44 percent from the field. He put Minnesota on his shoulders through his explosiveness and also wise decision making to keep the Wolves in the race for the No. 1 seed in the Western Conference even after Karl-Anthony Towns went down with a torn meniscus.

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MILWAUKEE — Byron Buxton was getting ready to leave the dugout to head out to center field for the bottom of the sixth inning when he heard his teammate Pablo López calling his name, drawing his attention.

“Get Kep’s glove,’” López told him, referring to right fielder Max Kepler, who had grounded out to end the top of the inning.

Just as Buxton took the glove, he saw a horde of racing sausages heading in his direction, one almost about to plow into him. The Twins’ center fielder quickly darted back into the dugout, narrowly evading a collision with Brat, a running bratwurst.

“I get ready to turn around and it was like, ‘I’m going to have to take a charge if I can’t get out the way,’” Buxton said. “Luckily, he wasn’t running as fast as I thought he was.”

Sausage No. 1 was *thisclose* to taking out Byron Buxton. pic.twitter.com/UT8xOqA9a5

— Betsy Helfand (@betsyhelfand) April 2, 2024

The sausage race, which is held each game at American Family Field, started just beyond the Twins’ third base dugout. It’s different at Target Field, Buxton noted, where they also run a mascot race but the racers start in the outfield and stop before reaching the third base dugout so a potential collision with players isn’t in play.

“I’m so focused on the game, getting Kep his glove (that) I’m not worried about the outside stuff,” he said. “Kind of scared me.”

It was not lost Buxton, a longtime spokesperson for Sheboygan Sausage, that he was nearly run over by a competitor, but the Twins’ center fielder was able to laugh about the close call without his teammates after the fact.

And he definitely heard some barbs from them.

“I think it would’ve been great if he got run over by the bratwurst,” joked catcher Ryan Jeffers, standing nearby Buxton. “It would’ve been a way better story.”

Jeffers paused a beat.

“As long as he’s OK,” Jeffers said. “I mean, the bratwurst was OK.”

Which, of course, evoked an incredulous response from his teammate.

“The bratwurst? What about me?” Buxton asked. “That was a train collision because if I took one (sausage) out, I’m taking out at least two more.”

Paddack eager for start

When Chris Paddack takes the mound on Wednesday at American Family Field, it will have been 696 days since his last start. That’s nearly 700 days of rehabbing, working, waiting.

Paddack returned at the end of last season, after recovering from his second Tommy John surgery that he underwent in May 2022, and pitched out of the bullpen. But Wednesday, when he starts a major league game, it will mark another milestone — the completion of his long path back and the start of his new journey.

“It’s been quite some time since I toed the rubber to start a game,” Paddack said. “I’m super excited. All my hard work has paid off. I’ve prepared for this moment.”

Sure has.

While Tommy John surgery returns usually take about a year, Paddack’s process was lengthier because it was the second time he had required a ulnar collateral ligament repair.

He returned on Sept. 26 last year, pitching twice out of the bullpen in the regular season and then twice in the playoffs, an experience he has said changed his career. Coming out of the bullpen last year, being given just minutes to warm up, not knowing what situation he might be thrown into, simplified things for him that he hopes to take back with him as he transitions back into starting.

“I think the biggest thing, taking in from what I learned in the bullpen and (pitching coach) Pete (Maki) reminded me every start day this spring, is, ‘Go out there and be a bullpen guy for one inning at a time,’” Paddack said. “Next thing you know, you’re in the sixth. … Just going out from pitch number one and I’m throwing my best stuff. I’m not saving stuff for the second, third time through the lineup. I’m not saving stuff for the situation of the game. It’s coming out there and competing and winning every pitch.”

Briefly

Kepler returned the lineup on Tuesday after leaving Thursday’s game early and then missing the final two games over the weekend. The right fielder had fouled a ball off his leg. Kepler went 1 for 4 on Tuesday.

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