It’s safe to say that the problems are not all solved yet.

The new Timberwolves battled back from a big deficit after a disjointed first half, but ultimately fell short in a 110-103 loss to the Los Angeles Lakers Tuesday night at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles.

To be honest, the Timberwolves (0-1) looked like who they were early on: a team that hasn’t played much together. They turned the game over six times in the first quarter – Mike Conley had an uncharacteristic three turnovers in the game – and the Lakers (1-0) took control of the game during a 17-2 run in the second quarter, in which they dominated the paint.

It was noticeable that the Twin Towers were no longer in the Timberwolves lineup. The Lakers crashed the offensive glass and recorded fifteen offensive rebounds on the night. When Rudy Gobert was off the floor, Los Angeles was able to dominate in the paint, which was especially evident during the second quarter run as they ran through the Wolves’ zone defense.

The Wolves went into halftime trailing 55-42, with Anthony Edwards scoring 14 of those 42 points.

Outside of Edwards, who finished with 27 points on 10-for-25 shooting, six rebounds and three assists, the Timberwolves struggled to find much rhythm offensively. Turnovers were an issue all night as the Wolves had 15, and that was a problem that even Edwards wasn’t immune to as he was the biggest offender with four on the night.

The Wolves’ new pieces didn’t have the debut they were looking for with their new team. Julius Randle never really found a rhythm and wasn’t much of a factor early on, but finished with 16 points, nine boards and four assists while committing a pair of turnovers. Donte DiVincenzo struggled mightily with his shot, scoring 10 points on just 3-of-11 shooting.

But despite all the early struggles, the Wolves started to get back into the swing of things and got back into the game. In the second half, they were able to turn the tide on the offensive glass. They reduced their turnover.

The Wolves cut their deficit to single digits by the end of the third quarter and opened the fourth with an 8-3 run on a Naz Reid 3-pointer to get within 85-81 with plenty of time left, giving the new Lakers coach JJ Redick was forced to call a timeout.

A D’Angelo Russell floater and a LeBron James layup pushed the lead back to eight, and the Lakers quickly pushed their lead back to double digits. The Wolves did scale it back, but they never really scared the Lakers even more.

Ultimately, the Wolves won the rebounding battle 47-46, but the battle was noticeable in the first half. The Lakers’ fifteen offensive rebounds were significant, even though Minnesota managed to grab twelve of their own.

Los Angeles crushed the Wolves in the paint, outscoring them 72-40 in close quarters. Forty-one of Minnesota’s 85 shots came from three-point range.

Minnesota had no answer for Anthony Davis, as he finished with 36 points, 16 rebounds, four assists, three blocks and a steal.

In a notable moment during the game, Bronny James and LeBron James checked in together in the second quarter, marking the first time in NBA history that a father and son played together on the same court.

It will certainly be a work in progress for the new Wolves. While this wasn’t the start they were looking for, it certainly wouldn’t all be clear in the first game of the season. They just have to learn from it and move on.