It is safe to say that D'Angelo Russell would not regret choosing Golden State over Minnesota after the Warriors sent yet another punch to the Wolves' gut. Russell hit 30 and Alec Burks 25 as the absence of Karl-Anthony Towns hurt Minnesota in a 104-113 loss, extending the losing streak to 11 games against a team with a win percentage of 23%.

Over the streak, Towns has missed the last 4 games and Andrew Wiggins an earlier 1, as they have had opportunities to win in all 11 of the games. These games have included contests against a struggling Suns outfit, a 13 game losing streak breaking loss against the Pelicans, Memphis without Ja Morant and now Golden State.

One glaring reason behind the streak is the struggles Andrew Wiggins has had with efficiency after an incredibly positive start to the season. They also lack sufficient perimeter shooting, especially with Robert Covington not hitting his shots of late.

Their defense is sloppy for a team packed full of great individual defenders, they cannot close out games and a lot of the time they play their players out of position and run a lot of unusual lineups. These things add up, and the result is an incredibly tough stretch of basketball.

Can they bounce back? Their next three games include Sacramento, Cleveland and Brooklyn, so they have plenty of chance, especially if Towns is good to go. After a quick trip to Milwaukee they get a new year treat of Golden State, Cleveland and Memphis, all very winnable games. This schedule could get them back to winning ways, and keep their confidence up going forward into a tough 7-game stretch.

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