On a lazy Tuesday in early December, the Minnesota Timberwolves made hard work out of a win in the Big Easy.
The New Orleans Pelicans didn’t have Zion Williamson or Jordan Poole available. Still, they took the Wolves to overtime on Dec. 2. Minnesota came back from down 15 to win 149-142, but they shouldn’t have had this much trouble with the shorthanded Pelicans.
That stretch between losses to the Phoenix Suns on Nov. 21 and Dec. 8 became a microcosm of Minnesota’s regular season. They lost on the road to the Sacramento Kings in overtime on Nov. 24, then to the Oklahoma City Thunder two days later.
The Timberwolves returned home to beat the Boston Celtics and San Antonio Spurs, before the Pelicans took them to overtime in the first of two games in New Orleans. The Wolves beat the Pels in regulation two days later, then took a close game against the LA Clippers before losing to Phoenix again on Dec. 8.
Minnesota started 10-8 before beating the Celtics. It was a slow start for a team that had been to the Western Conference Finals in back-to-back years and had championship aspirations. They could beat anyone, but also lose to the worst teams in the league. Chris Finch attributed it to the team being “bored.” Anthony Edwards, who had 44 points in the Dec. 2 Pelicans game, said the Wolves were “waiting around for the playoffs.”
Well, the playoffs are here, and the Timberwolves have turned it on.
In Game 1, they coughed up opportunities to beat the Denver Nuggets in high altitude. Then, they came back from down 19 in Game 2, stealing a victory and home-court advantage from the Nuggets.
Anthony Edwards was brash again in his press conference, like he was two years ago when the Timberwolves eliminated the Nuggets in a seven-game series. Chris Finch expressed disdain for Denver’s flopping. However, Jaden McDaniels made the biggest stir when he called out the Nuggets for having poor defenders.
“We talked about them,” Finch said before Thursday’s game regarding McDaniels’ comments. “Now, we gotta go back them up,”
And back them up, they did. The Wolves brought Denver down to sea level and drowned them with shotmaking and drives to the basket. The Nuggets had nobody to turn to when Aaron Gordon went out with a calf injury, and Minnesota could take command of the series with a win on Saturday.
“Jaden is one of our intense and most ornery competitors,” said Finch. “I didn’t have any worry that he wasn’t going to come out and try his darndest to back up whatever was said.”
If Edwards is the Timberwolves’ pugilist – their brash, physical leader fighting through evident pain – McDaniels is the arsonist. He lit a fire under a team that had been in a lull most of the season.
“Jaden is kind of crazy,” Donte DiVincenzo said with a smile after the game. “We love him. That’s why we love him.”
The Wolves are a sixth-seed that didn’t win 50 games this year. They lost to the three worst teams in the West – Sacramento, the Utah Jazz, and the Memphis Grizzlies – during the season. Anthony Edwards has “runner’s knee.” Naz Reid has a shoulder injury, and Jaden McDaniels is coming off a knee injury. The Los Angeles Lakers and New York Knicks have better odds of winning a championship.
Still, they’re talking trash like they’re the No. 1 seed and favorites to win it all. They’re the irrationally confident team Minnesota has always needed. They have the makeup to beat a wounded Nuggets team.
The Timberwolves know that if they eliminate Denver and go on a run, nobody will care that a hobbled Pelicans team nearly beat them in December. They’ve been chaotic all season. They’ve been waiting for this opportunity to light the match, drop it, and watch the world burn.
