MINNEAPOLIS (AP) – Tony Parker scored 28 points in 25 minutes and the San Antonio Spurs cruised past the short-handed Minnesota Timberwolves 121-92 on Friday night.
Parker made 12 of 18 shots, including all three of his 3-pointers, and Danny Green scored 18 points for the Spurs, who got an easy night with a game against the Brooklyn Nets at home on Saturday.
Anthony Bennett scored a career-high 20 points for the Timberwolves, who had just 10 healthy players after announcing earlier in the day that Kevin Martin will be out indefinitely with a fractured right wrist. The Wolves were also missing starters Ricky Rubio, Nikola Pekovic and Thaddeus Young and backup big man Ronny Turiaf.
The Spurs shot 54.8 percent, including 61.9 percent (13 of 21) from 3-pointers, and out-rebounded the smaller Wolves 53-46.
The Spurs have been a little sluggish in the early going here coming off of a breathtaking playoff run to the franchise’s fifth championship last summer. The synergy, the efficiency, the edge that came while they tried to put the heartbreak of the loss to the Heat in the 2013 finals just hasn’t been there yet. And they didn’t need it on Friday night, either.