The Minnesota Timberwolves struggled to find words after the Dallas Mavericks abruptly ended their season 124-103 in Game 5 of the Western Conference finals. Karl-Anthony Towns sat at the podium and spoke from the heart about his experience in Minnesota: “These fans deserve the chance to see the Finals.… It hurts when you feel you let ’em down.”
The Timberwolves’ perseverance through adversity this season has been a testament to their commitment to themselves and bringing winning basketball back to the Twin Cities. However, in their final postseason game of the 2023-24 season, they ran into a Mavericks team determined to close out the Western Conference finals emphatically. Fueled by star Luka Doncic, Dallas began nailing Minnesota’s coffin shut early in the first quarter, with Doncic scoring 12 of the Mavs’ first 16 points.
Doncic effectively finished snuffing out Minnesota’s season later in the first quarter. After a Rudy Gobert miss, Daniel Gafford corraled a rebound and flipped it upcourt to Doncic. Doncic brought the ball upcourt and directed traffic before calling Gafford up on a screen. Doncic would sidestep, rise up from the center court logo, and drill a three-point shot to give him 17 in the first quarter with 3:02 left, extending Dallas’ lead to 27-18.
After the Wolves missed a shot, Doncic called a similar pick-and-roll. He went around the screen and dribbled to a spot at the top of the three-point arc before rising up and sinking another three. Doncic screamed and flexed, walking back down the court. The back-to-back threes capped off an emphatic 24-point quarter. The Mavericks led 30-18 with 2:24 to go in the first.
Dallas expanded its lead further in the final two minutes, ending the quarter at 36-19. Doncic alone outscored the Wolves, 20-19. Minnesota struggled to contain him at every opportunity, and not from a lack of trying. They blitzed in pick-and-rolls, and Doncic made the perfect pass or dribble before cutting to the basket and making a shot. The Timberwolves dropped back in coverage, and Doncic would rise up from distance, like on his back-to-back threes.
The Wolves tried to double him, but Doncic would make the right pass or split the double and drive to the rim. Doncic’s ability to decipher Minnesota’s coverage and attack whatever the Wolves attempted to confront him with resulted in his 20 points coming efficiently on 8 for 11 shooting and four of six from three. After just ten minutes of gameplay, Doncic’s first-quarter performance effectively ended Minnesota’s season.
In the second quarter, Minnesota seemed punch drunk from the haymakers Doncic threw in the first. With Doncic on the bench, Kyrie Irving took control and managed the pace of Dallas’ offense. He scored six points in Doncic’s absence, extending the Mavericks’ lead to 20 (46-26) before Doncic checked back in with 8:31 left in the second. Just 28 seconds later, Doncic responded to a Towns layup and hit a floater.
In the second quarter, the Wolves never could get traction to respond and cut into Dallas’ lead. Any movement they made was quickly snuffed out. Minnesota trailed 69-40 into halftime. In the third quarter, the Wolves never cut the lead below 20 points.
The fourth quarter progressed similarly. Minnesota’s season continued to fade because they were never able to recover from the first ten minutes. The Wolves fans occasionally would get back into the game when the Timberwolves started a run or gained momentum. However, anytime that occurred, Jason Kidd would call a timeout, or Doncic or Irving would hit a shot to maintain Dallas’ momentum.
Ultimately, the Wolves never made the improbable comeback, and their season slipped into the record books as the Western Conference runner-ups. Before the game ended, Finch subbed in his bench to allow everyone on the team to get applause from the playoff crowd. After the final horn sounded, a “Let’s go, Wolves” chant broke out among the impressive amount of remaining fans. Kyle Anderson removed his jersey and threw it to the stands as he entered the tunnels. Naz Reid left the floor as a deafening “Naz Reid” chant broke out, followed shortly thereafter by affectionate Ruuuuuu’s for Gobert as he left the court.
Minnesota’s season is over — it had been since early in the first quarter. Doncic ended their championship hopes early in the first 12 minutes, and the Wolves never recovered. As the distance grows between this loss, people will hopefully remember this Wolves team for the records they broke and what they accomplished. Still, the Timberwolves have a young team that has had a taste of success. Edwards said it best at the post-game podium after the loss.
“We’ll be back next year.”
