Julius Randle has been under fire for much of this season. That was easy to see coming. Randle was the immediate replacement for Karl-Anthony Towns, a pillar of the Timberwolves’ organization

The Minnesota Timberwolves are coming off an ugly 104-97 win against the New Orleans Pelicans. It was another game where every player other than Anthony Edwards struggled. There have been consistency issues across the board in Minnesota.

NEW ORLEANS – This week, when Chris Finch made a change to his starting lineup, he substituted Donte DiVincenzo in at point guard for Mike Conley. Staying in the starting lineup, perhaps to the chagrin of a portion of Timberwolves fans, was Julius Randle.

Julius Randle was a key to the Timberwolves' victory against the Pelicans, and Chris Finch gave him his flowers.

The harsher penalties for teams that spent aggressively are impacting the present and futures of two former All-Stars — and their teams.

Randle posted 17 points (6-12 FG, 0-4 3Pt, 5-5 FT), seven rebounds and six assists over 36 minutes during Saturday's 119-105 loss to the Pistons. Randle was the only Minnesota player not named Anthony Edwards who scored in double digits in this game,

Randle has the best offensive rating (points per 100 possessions while he's on the floor) of any Wolves rotation player, but also the worst defensive rating. Despite solid box score statistics, questions persist about his fit in Minnesota's starting lineup and the consistency of his off-ball defensive effort.

Austin Rivers watched Timberwolves All-Star Anthony Edwards dunk over Magic guard Anthony Black. It's what triggered Rivers' plea. However, Edwards doesn’t count it as a poster slam because Black isn’t a forward or center.

The Minnesota Timberwolves are nearing the halfway point of the season and haven't quite lived up to expectations following a Western Conference finals appearance last year, hovering around .500 with a 19-17 record through 36 games.

Anthony Edwards highlighted a 32-point performance with seven 3-pointers, and the Minnesota Timberwolves beat the New Orleans Pelicans 104-97 to take some luster off of Zion Williamson’s return from a 27-game absence.