Naz Reid drops 25 points for Timberwolves in 106-90 home victory over Heat

As the Timberwolves introduced their roster before Saturday's home opener, they started with the reserves. There was polite applause as the end-of-the-bench players came out. The first significant roar of the night came when center Naz Reid was introduced.

Reid kept the home crowd cheering throughout the night in a 106-90 Wolves victory over the Miami Heat, who were without a resting Jimmy Butler. They cheered for him so much that by the fourth quarter, some in the crowd broke out in a "Naz Reid" chant.

"Amazing," Reid said of how he felt hearing his name. "Especially at this level, it's something that you dream of. You never can really imagine something that special. I appreciate every single person that was able to do that for me."

Reid has always been a favorite of the fan base, and Saturday was a mutual lovefest as he delivered 25 points on an efficient 10-for-14 night shooting and 4-for-7 from three-point range in 28 minutes. It was a performance that teammate Kyle Anderson told him was Sixth Man of the Year kind of stuff.

Mike Conley, a veteran in his 17th season, said Reid is one of his "favorite guys" to play alongside.

"Naz is the best, man," Conley said. "Honestly, I'm just happy for him. The love that he's getting from the fans, the love that we show him as a team, you can tell the work he's put in, and the results are starting to show and come together for him."

The player who looked like he could have been a redundancy when the Wolves acquired Rudy Gobert last summer cemented his place on the franchise throughout last season, and he picked up where he left off Saturday after a broken wrist ended his season early.

Reid opted to re-sign on a three-year deal with the Wolves before free agency opened in late June, and he confessed Saturday he never really wanted to go to another team.

"I wasn't going anywhere," Reid said. "I love it here, man. It's special. It's definitely a place I want to be and develop. ... Each and every year, I've gotten better, so there was definitely no reason for me to leave."

Everyone on the Wolves is glad he stayed. The Wolves would not have won Saturday without him, as Anthony Edwards (19 points) and Karl-Anthony Towns (12 points) struggled to find their rhythm offensively most of the night. The Wolves went on an 8-0 run the moment Reid checked in during the first quarter, and he ignited the deciding run in the fourth.

With the Wolves up 89-86 in the fourth quarter, Reid hit a runner while making contact with Heat center Bam Adebayo. Officials initially ruled it an offensive foul, but coach Chris Finch used his challenge and got the call overturned to a foul on Adebayo.

Reid finished off the three-point play and followed that with a pair of threes before Gobert got a layup for an 11-0 Wolves run and a 14-point lead.

"I'm trying to put my imprint on every game, whether it's hustling, scoring, rebounds or diving on the floor, whatever the case may be," Reid said.

As much as Reid lit up the basket on offense, Finch was equally effusive in his praise of Reid's defense, which hasn't been Reid's calling card. But in this big-man era for the Wolves, they will be asking him to keep up with smaller guards and forwards while playing alongside Towns or Gobert. They will also need him to rebound, and he pulled down eight boards Saturday.

"These are all things that are kind of new that we needed him to and continue to do for him to be successful in this role with the way our roster is," Finch said. "We saw glimpses of it last year before he got hurt, but I just thought his defense tonight, particularly chasing and guarding, being up and being impactful, was awesome. His rebounding has taken another leap. Fun to watch him play for sure."

The fans agreed.

"I see a lot of things that I don't really get a chance to acknowledge," Reid said of their adoration for him. "This sign said, 'Honk if you love Naz Reid,' and I didn't really get a chance to acknowledge that. But just stuff like that, it doesn't go unnoticed, and I appreciate all the love."