Reusse: Yes, it’s only one game, but Timberwolves’ opening clunker leaves a bad impression

The opening night schedule for TNT’s final season of NBA telecasts was long set before the Timberwolves-New York trade at the start of October, the one that mainly sent Karl-Anthony Towns to the Knicks and Julius Randle and Donte DiVincenzo to Minnesota.

As it turned out, the TNT doubleheader on Tuesday offered a very early referendum on the huge trade.

The night started with the Knicks playing at Boston, following a lengthy pregame ceremony in which the Celtics received monstrous rings in honor of the franchise’s 18th NBA championship, which was won in June.

This was followed by the Timberwolves playing in Los Angeles vs. the Lakers. The promise here was that the game would include LeBron James, in NBA season No. 22, playing a few minutes with his son Bronny, who earned a second-round selection and Lakers contract by averaging 4.8 points in 25 games as a Southern Cal freshman.

This was going to make them the first father-son team to play together in the NBA. And Bronny did get out there for three minutes late in the first half, and was able to fire a three-point attempt that missed, so we got that drama out of the way.

I must believe there was more interest here in Minnesota on the result of the aforementioned trade referendum. And one game in, which is 1.2% of the regular season, here’s the verdict:

Both teams might have gotten the short end of the deal.

Towns and his teammates ran around in circles and allowed the Celtics to make an NBA record-tying 29 three-pointers in 61 — sixty-one! — attempts. It was a slaughter from the get-go, with the Celtics scoring 74 points in the first half.

Coach Tom Thibodeau and his supposed spectacular starting lineup basically allowed the Celtics to take open threes from anywhere they chose. Charles Barkley, kicking off the last season of “Inside the NBA” with his outstanding cohorts, declared at halftime: “The Knicks should be embarrassed.”

This was true, Charles, but the embarrassment should have been equal for the Timberwolves for their miserable display in a 110-103 loss to the Lakers. That score was way too kind considering the effort put forth by the Wolves, and that included coach Chris Finch.

There were suggestions from some NBA analysts that the Wolves were getting themselves a “ball stopper” in Randle. This was denied in the Wolves camp, but Tuesday was a strong night for the “he doesn’t keep the ball moving” lobby.

Basically, Julius was lost all night, and those moments he wound up in the vicinity of Anthony Davis … his lunch was served. Davis also ate up Naz Reid, and at times Rudy Gobert, proving that when healthy, there’s nobody better than A.D.

Thirty-eight points, 16 rebounds, four assists, three blocks — uff da, Mr. Davis.

While the Knicks were standing back and admiring made three-pointers from the start in Boston, the Woofies were getting beat to every contested rebound or loose ball, getting beat down the court. Two players had a hand on a ball, it always was winding up with the Laker.

Heck, even D’Angelo Russell, the D-Lo who helped the Wolves greatly by getting shipped out of town, beat ‘em to a couple of free balls. The Lakers (except for A.D.) kept missing shots, and it made no difference because the Wolves generally allowed them to take another.

JJ Redick, coaching his first official NBA game, got some excellent energy out of his younger Lakers — rookie Dalton Knecht, high-flying Jaxson Hayes.

Meantime, Finch watched his often-lifeless, slow-to-react veterans, watched poor Mike Conley go 0-for-5 with never-had-a-chance three-pointers and ignored the young talent that might have given his outfit some life.

He used nine players (if you count seven minutes from 37-year-old Joe Ingles), and the least experienced was Jaden McDaniels, playing his 285th regular-season game.

Luka Garza looked outstanding in the preseason. Didn’t play. Josh Minott lit it up in the preseason. Didn’t play. There were two first-rounders, Rob Dillingham and Terrence Shannon Jr. Didn’t play.

Depth and the energy of talented youth won’t do much good if you’re not going to take advantage.

I know, I know. It was one game out of 82, but when much is expected and you start off with a pathetic effort — that does make an impression.

As for the Bronny angle, lobbying with Ken Griffey Sr. and Jr. to show up and sit in good seats, as though this was an equivalent to baseball’s father-and-son tandem — give North America’s sporting public a break.

I was in Arizona for some spring training in 1989, when Ken Jr. was there with the Mariners as a 19-year-old. This was February. I interviewed the young fellow but was assured by M’s officials that he was not going to be allowed to make the team.

And then they needed an outfielder, and Junior was so good, he gave the M’s no choice but to put him in the lineup.

Ken Sr. came to join his son in Seattle in 1990 and 1991. The Griffeys were 180 degrees from this, where Dad is a legend, he makes it clear he wants his son to get a contract and the team says, “Yes, sir.”