"David Lee wasn't sure how his body would respond in his return from an eight-game layoff because of an infected elbow.

But it was pretty clear how his teammates were going to respond.

Even before Saturday's game against Minnesota, the Warriors' locker room had a different buzz than in the past two weeks. It showed on the court to the tune of a 104-94 victory over the Timberwolves at the Target Center.

"I'm no savior," Lee said. "The biggest thing I'm trying to bring is a positive attitude. Everybody gets down from time to time. Our morale is a little down right now. We need a little pick-me-up. That's what I'm trying to do."

Talking before the game, Lee said no matter his conditioning, he could still find Dorell Wright some open threes, free up the driving lanes for Monta Ellis and Stephen Curry and make room for Andris Biedrins to rebound.

As Lee talked, the locker room started to stir.

"I'm getting looks, for sure," Wright said to Rodney Carney.

"That's what's up," Biedrins said to no one in particular.

Wright had a franchise-record nine three-pointers and a career-high 30 points, Ellis and Curry combined for 46 points on 16-for-30 shooting and 17 assists, and Biedrins had 12 rebounds in 24 minutes.

On a night when Lee could manage only 10 points, six rebounds and four assists, he returned the positivity to the Warriors, who ended their five-game losing streak. If it wasn't for this one, the Warriors (8-9) might have been fighting to escape a losing avalanche."