MINNEAPOLIS — Kurt Rambis had a pained expression on his face as he dissected the Minnesota Timberwolves’ 112-87 bellyflop loss to the Atlanta Hawks on Tuesday night at Target Center. Perhaps it would make him feel better to know that Atlanta coach Mike Woodson used to wear that same grimace a lot, too.

In other words, the Hawks aren’t just Minnesota’s conquerors. They’re the Wolves’ role models.

“We started with a bunch of babies six years ago, 18-, 19- and 20-year-old kids, and they’ve grown,” Woodson said after Atlanta walloped Minnesota for the seventh consecutive game. “Our core guys have been together now for four years, and it makes a big difference.”

Especially in the standings. The young-and-younger Hawks were a 69-loss disaster in Woodson’s first season — sound familiar, Minnesota? — but have added to their win total each year, culminating in their 20-7 start to this season, second-best in franchise history.

The Hawks’ starting five has played together for three successive seasons, “and it gives us a good feel for what each of us likes to do,” said Josh Smith, whose 10-point off-night was more than compensated for by his Atlanta teammates. “When we get off to a good start, it just becomes contagious.”

As opposed to what happens to the Wolves. What happened again Tuesday night, in fact.

After warning his team to protect the ball and force Atlanta to take outside shots, the Wolves proceeded to do exactly the opposite. Their first seven possessions resulted in six turnovers, the Hawks raced to a 16-4 lead “and 14 of their 16 points were from inside the paint,” Rambis complained. “And that set the tone for the ballgame.”

Sure did. Joe Johnson smoothly racked up 21 points, Al Horford added 16 points and 11 rebounds, and newcomer Jamal Crawford came off the bench to score 26, 18 of them after halftime. The Wolves never got closer than eight points after the first quarter, and lost by 18 or more for the third time in four games.

“It’s tough, especially when we’re a team that’s not very good fighting from behind,” sighed Kevin Love, who tied his career high with 19 rebounds, 10 of them in the first quarter. “Which it seems like we’ve been doing all year.”

Love, who added 15 points to go with Al Jefferson’s team-high 17, couldn’t help but notice how effortless the Hawks made their seventh win in their past eight games seem.

That, he said afterward, is the team he wants the Wolves to become.

“I hope we have a core group of guys like that. I’d like to see any team I’m on start young and build,” Love said. “They have guys getting better together, and that’s what I’d like to be part of someday.”

He sees that potential in his own locker room, he said. He understands that, as with the Hawks, it’s a slow process. And he knows what has to happen next.

“They’re the example — they got their players young and kept them together,” Love said. “They worked together during the summers, they stay together during the season. They didn’t trade many guys. They have high points and low points, but they stuck together."