Karl-Anthony Towns and the Timberwolves’ playoff chances
Despite organizational turnover and a rocky season, the Minnesota Timberwolves entered the NBA Western playoffs with renewed hope. At the center of this optimism was franchise player Karl-Anthony Towns, who had shown maturity in his offensive game and helped lead the team to a play-in tournament win over the Oklahoma City Thunder.
Towns’ ability on the court has been impressive, with new addition Nickeil Alexander-Walker expressing surprise at his teammate’s talents. However, the big man had experienced ups and downs in past playoff appearances, making his performance crucial for the Timberwolves’ upcoming playoff series against the Denver Nuggets.
As Towns stated, “I’m feeling good heading into these playoffs. Our rhythm has improved over the last 10 games, and I’m looking forward to showing what we can do.”
Minnesota Timberwolves lose to Denver Nuggets in their first playoff game
Unfortunately for Timberwolves fans, this optimism quickly evaporated in their first game against a well-prepared Denver Nuggets team. The struggling Minnesota squad looked rusty after their play-in tournament win, showing inconsistency in their play throughout the game. Despite a relatively close score at halftime, with Denver leading by just 10 points, things got out of hand for Minnesota in the final two quarters.
The Nuggets led by 30 or more points throughout most of these quarters as they dominated every aspect of the game. The complete team performance from six players scoring in double figures helped seal a convincing 10980 victory.
The loss was particularly frustrating given that no one on Denver’s roster scored more than 24 points, while Minnesota’s stars Karl-Anthony Towns and Rudy Gobert contributed just 37 combined points. Towns struggled all game long, scoring only four points in the first three quarters, and Gobert finished with a game-worst plus/minus of minus-28. As one Twitter user stated, “The Timberwolves looked like they had never been to the playoffs before.”
Timberwolves need to bounce back in Game 2
As difficult as this opening loss was, Minnesota must now regroup ahead of their second game against the Nuggets. Coach Chris Finch acknowledged that his team’s offense was not at its best, while also lamenting a lack of physicality and speed compared to Denver.
“We need to improve on our shooting and take care of the ball,” said Finch. “We also need our stars to step up and play well if we’re going to have a chance to compete against this talented Nuggets team.”
Despite the importance of this upcoming game and the heightened pressure on the Timberwolves, Towns remained optimistic about his team’s chances.
“We know what we’re capable of, and we’re not going to let one game define our whole playoff series,” he said.
With Game 2 just hours away, Minnesota must demonstrate that optimism on the court. Only time will tell if the Timberwolves can turn things around for an improved playoff-performance.
Image Source: Wikimedia Commons
