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  1. <?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
  2. <feed xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2005/Atom" xml:lang="en">
  3.  <title>Canis Hoopus -  All Posts</title>
  4.  <subtitle>82-0</subtitle>
  5.  <icon>https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/community_logos/48315/canis_hoopus_favicon.png</icon>
  6.  <updated>2024-05-17T23:38:48-05:00</updated>
  7.  <id>http://www.canishoopus.com/rss/current/</id>
  8.  <link type="text/html" href="https://www.canishoopus.com/" rel="alternate"/>
  9.  <entry>
  10.    <published>2024-05-17T23:38:48-05:00</published>
  11.    <updated>2024-05-17T23:38:48-05:00</updated>
  12.    <title>Lynx 102, Storm 93: Collier Scores 29, Secures Win in a Double Overtime Marathon</title>
  13.    <content type="html">  
  14.  
  15.    &lt;figure&gt;
  16.      &lt;img alt="Seattle Storm v Minnesota Lynx" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/qdXvQ5vY-UmNSFxmoZP1PaiIj-A=/0x0:8640x5760/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/73355093/2152920495.0.jpg" /&gt;
  17.        &lt;figcaption&gt;Photo by Jordan Johnson/NBAE via Getty Images&lt;/figcaption&gt;
  18.    &lt;/figure&gt;
  19.  
  20.  &lt;p&gt;&lt;em&gt;Minnesota topped Seattle for the second straight game, coming out on top in double overtime in the home opener to remain undefeated on the season. &lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p id="rRrY7l"&gt;After taking a game on the road against the Seattle Storm last Tuesday, the Minnesota Lynx returned home Friday to host their first game of the year at Target Center against the same opponent.&lt;/p&gt;
  21. &lt;p id="lfvftI"&gt;Though Minnesota controlled most of the game, Seattle stormed back late in the fourth quarter to even the contest in the final minutes while forcing overtime in Minneapolis. From there, the marathon game went back-and-forth and ended in double-overtime with the Lynx ultimately taking the contest 102-93.&lt;/p&gt;
  22. &lt;p id="THF4HA"&gt;“We were really good in moments and we had some really tough moments. At the end of the day, we found a way to get a W at home. We just didn’t quit,” Cheryl Reeve said after the game. “There’s lots to work on, but we know that with the second game of the season.”&lt;/p&gt;
  23. &lt;p id="KC8Pbz"&gt;With the win, the Lynx remain undefeated through two games in the young season. &lt;/p&gt;
  24. &lt;p id="gjg30w"&gt;“I’m happy to be 2-0, I’m happy we found a way,” Reeve said. “I’m happy to be 1-0 at home, that’s what I’m most happy about.”&lt;/p&gt;
  25. &lt;hr class="p-entry-hr" id="xIY5Ax"&gt;
  26.  &lt;figure class="e-image"&gt;
  27.        &lt;img alt="Seattle Storm v Minnesota Lynx" data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/2-55Zi7wRp12Nq3pZxK6-nTJyKg=/400x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25453825/2152922809.jpg"&gt;
  28.      &lt;cite&gt;Photo by David Sherman/NBAE via Getty Images&lt;/cite&gt;
  29.  &lt;/figure&gt;
  30. &lt;h2 id="TXAsEJ"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Missed Opportunities Late&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/h2&gt;
  31. &lt;p id="lXCkgj"&gt;Although it ultimately came out on top, Minnesota had a few chances late in the game to seal the victory, only to come up short resulting in missed opportunities. &lt;/p&gt;
  32. &lt;p id="M8MEzR"&gt;At the end of regulation, with the Lynx up three with under a minute left, Kayla McBride surprisingly missed two free throws, resulting in Jewell Loyd tying the game with three free throws on the next possession to force overtime.&lt;/p&gt;
  33. &lt;p id="cBSYp3"&gt;In the first overtime, Minnesota once again had a chance to seal the game late. Napheesa Collier — who was outstanding all night long — had an opportunity to put the Lynx ahead with 2.7 seconds left on the clock, only to make one of two free throws to keep things at 88-88 and resulting in double overtime.&lt;/p&gt;
  34. &lt;p id="id__u7nkq6w0pcm"&gt;“You can imagine how they felt in those respective situations,” Reeve said. “I felt that if we could get to another overtime, they would have their moments to get us across the finish line. And they did.”&lt;/p&gt;
  35. &lt;hr class="p-entry-hr" id="9WEowO"&gt;
  36.  &lt;figure class="e-image"&gt;
  37.        &lt;img alt="Seattle Storm v Minnesota Lynx" data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/3XedtJkvqF00GooXMZ5bWE8zow8=/400x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25453827/2152924444.jpg"&gt;
  38.      &lt;cite&gt;Photo by Jordan Johnson/NBAE via Getty Images&lt;/cite&gt;
  39.  &lt;/figure&gt;
  40. &lt;h2 id="SddNkj"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Balanced Attack&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/h2&gt;
  41. &lt;p id="mQC6aw"&gt;Minnesota saw contributions from multiple players in Friday’s win, with a total of 10 players finding their way into the scoring column. &lt;/p&gt;
  42. &lt;p id="hPnZ2a"&gt;At the head of that effort for the Lynx was Collier, who did it all for the Lynx — especially in both overtime periods — en route to 29 points, nine rebounds, six steals, five assists and two blocks over 44 minutes. &lt;/p&gt;
  43. &lt;p id="oG3mmN"&gt;Behind Collier, McBride, Alanna Smith and Courtney Williams all reached double-digit scoring totals. McBride — who recorded her 1,000th career rebound — finished with 19 points, four rebounds and four assists, Smith added 16 points, a franchise-record-tying six blocks, five rebounds and three steals, and Williams notched 10 points, six rebounds and six assists. &lt;/p&gt;
  44. &lt;p id="CdMgjK"&gt;Minnesota also saw Diamond Miller have a bounce-back performance among the starting five after finishing the season opener with just two points, adding nine points and three boards in Friday’s contest. &lt;/p&gt;
  45. &lt;p id="YEC8n4"&gt;The Lynx bench stepped up when called upon, with the second unit totaling 19 points. Leading that group was Bridget Carleton with five points, six rebounds and two steals, Natisha Hiedeman with five points, seven assists and two steals, and rookie Alissa Pili with five points and two rebounds.&lt;/p&gt;
  46. &lt;hr class="p-entry-hr" id="8RoonA"&gt;
  47.  &lt;figure class="e-image"&gt;
  48.        &lt;img alt="Seattle Storm v Minnesota Lynx" data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/HJP9KgtYb2Co7MPSx_Zpb-uPi_M=/400x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25453830/2152918320.jpg"&gt;
  49.      &lt;cite&gt;Photo by Jordan Johnson/NBAE via Getty Images&lt;/cite&gt;
  50.  &lt;/figure&gt;
  51. &lt;h2 id="P7tve3"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Turnovers, Turnovers, Turnovers&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/h2&gt;
  52. &lt;p id="cgNgre"&gt;Throughout Friday’s contest, turnovers haunted both Minnesota and Seattle, resulting in extra chances for the opposition. &lt;/p&gt;
  53. &lt;p id="aqXVOp"&gt;On the Lynx side, they ended with 28 turnovers, resulting in 22 points for Seattle. &lt;/p&gt;
  54. &lt;p id="eHzKQ5"&gt;On the side of the Storm, they finished with 25 turnovers, which resulted in 35 points for Minnesota. &lt;/p&gt;
  55. &lt;p id="YH06SX"&gt;The Lynx did a nice job in being active defensively, seeming to get in the way of passes with deflections every time Seattle was on offense. Minnesota ended the contest with 18 steals, the second straight game they have recorded at least 15 swipes defensively. Minnesota had four players with at least two steals, led by Collier with five steals herself. &lt;/p&gt;
  56. &lt;hr class="p-entry-hr" id="kzWQX5"&gt;
  57. &lt;h2 id="e0YUPL"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Pair of Debuts&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/h2&gt;
  58. &lt;p id="CZZO0w"&gt;Minnesota saw two players make their season debuts after not appearing in the season opener Tuesday. Sika Koné and Olivia Époupa each stepped on the court for the first time, checking in together with just over a minute left in the first quarter.&lt;/p&gt;
  59. &lt;p id="ZdsrlF"&gt;Koné, who wasn’t with the team in the season opener after arriving late from overseas play, ended up playing three minutes off the bench in her debut, finishing with two points, five rebounds and one steal.&lt;/p&gt;
  60. &lt;p id="SqqkYF"&gt;Époupa, who signed a training camp contract with the Lynx this offseason and was one of the final players to make the regular-season roster, didn’t appear in Minnesota’s win over Seattle last Tuesday. In her season debut, she finished with two points, one rebound, one assist and one steal over nine minutes. &lt;/p&gt;
  61. &lt;hr class="p-entry-hr" id="BsWqS9"&gt;
  62. &lt;h2 id="NWnoKA"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Rotation&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/h2&gt;
  63.  &lt;figure class="e-image"&gt;
  64.        &lt;img alt=" " data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/FJk86RppbTCpbpVUrMmJIXQISbI=/400x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25453822/Screenshot_2024_05_17_at_11.34.14_PM.png"&gt;
  65.      &lt;figcaption&gt;From Jack Borman (@jrborman13)&lt;/figcaption&gt;
  66.  &lt;/figure&gt;
  67. &lt;hr class="p-entry-hr" id="0lPHmf"&gt;
  68. &lt;h2 id="KJSfPS"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Up Next&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/h2&gt;
  69. &lt;p id="uRKM08"&gt;After a brief one-game stay in Minneapolis, the Lynx will get back on the road this week for a one-game road trip out East. &lt;/p&gt;
  70. &lt;p id="MVJKtw"&gt;Minnesota will take on the Connecticut Sun at 6 PM CT on Thursday at Mohegan Sun Arena, the first meeting of the year between two teams that last met in the first round of the &lt;a href="https://www.swishappeal.com"&gt;WNBA&lt;/a&gt; Playoffs last season. That game will be available locally in Minnesota on Bally Sports North. &lt;/p&gt;
  71.  
  72. </content>
  73.    <link rel="alternate" type="text/html" href="https://www.canishoopus.com/2024/5/17/24159491/lynx-vs-storm-final-score-recap-napheesa-collier-skylar-diggins-smith-nneka-ogwumike-kayla-mcbride"/>
  74.    <id>https://www.canishoopus.com/2024/5/17/24159491/lynx-vs-storm-final-score-recap-napheesa-collier-skylar-diggins-smith-nneka-ogwumike-kayla-mcbride</id>
  75.    <author>
  76.      <name>Mitchell Hansen</name>
  77.    </author>
  78.  </entry>
  79.  <entry>
  80.    <published>2024-05-17T18:35:37-05:00</published>
  81.    <updated>2024-05-17T18:35:37-05:00</updated>
  82.    <title>Film Room: How Karl-Anthony Towns Dominated Game 6 for the Timberwolves</title>
  83.    <content type="html">  
  84.  
  85.    &lt;figure&gt;
  86.      &lt;img alt="DENVER NUGGETS VS MINNESOTA TIMBERWOLVES, NBA" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/-zF2oM2S9AH1l7nZyMpuN2PSKhc=/0x137:7135x4894/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/73354858/2152767733.0.jpg" /&gt;
  87.        &lt;figcaption&gt;Photo by AAron Ontiveroz/The Denver Post&lt;/figcaption&gt;
  88.    &lt;/figure&gt;
  89.  
  90.  &lt;p&gt;Even though Minnesota’s victory margin was huge, KAT’s box score wasn’t impressive on the surface. But with a closer look, he was the Wolves’ MVP of Game 6 on both ends of the court.&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p id="mznKvD"&gt;In all of NBA history, there have been exactly &lt;a href="https://stathead.com/basketball/player-game-finder.cgi?request=1&amp;amp;timeframe=seasons&amp;amp;comp_type=post&amp;amp;game_of_series=6&amp;amp;ccomp[1]=gt&amp;amp;cval[1]=10&amp;amp;cstat[1]=pts&amp;amp;ccomp[2]=gt&amp;amp;cval[2]=5&amp;amp;cstat[2]=ast&amp;amp;ccomp[3]=gt&amp;amp;cval[3]=13&amp;amp;cstat[3]=trb"&gt;100 different instances&lt;/a&gt; of an NBA player scoring at least 10 points, grabbing at least 13 rebounds and dishing at least five assists in a playoff Game 6.&lt;/p&gt;
  91. &lt;p id="Da9PLQ"&gt;I didn’t use the fine-tooth comb on the weight and importance of each of those games; some may have been blowouts. Some may have been double-overtime thrillers. Some were losses and some were wins. I imagine at least a handful carried the burden of involving a team that had a dream-like season on the line, their fanbases clinging to every possession for dear life and their players minutes away from wondering what uniform they’d be wearing the following fall.&lt;/p&gt;
  92. &lt;p id="Vghw60"&gt;I surely haven’t watched all 100 of those games, but I can tell you one thing: &lt;a href="https://www.canishoopus.com"&gt;Minnesota Timberwolves&lt;/a&gt; star Karl-Anthony Towns’ name made the list, and I watched &lt;em&gt;that &lt;/em&gt;game very closely. It’s one of the best he’s ever played.&lt;/p&gt;
  93. &lt;p id="dh7gYO"&gt;Let’s get into why.&lt;/p&gt;
  94.  &lt;figure class="e-image"&gt;
  95.        &lt;img alt="DENVER NUGGETS VS MINNESOTA TIMBERWOLVES, NBA" data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/q-GWIgD0fxUCmJzEy2qQtcH00Ec=/400x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25453598/2152767567.jpg"&gt;
  96.      &lt;cite&gt;Photo by AAron Ontiveroz/The Denver Post&lt;/cite&gt;
  97.  &lt;/figure&gt;
  98. &lt;h3 id="0J2q3L"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Defense on Nikola Jokić&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/h3&gt;
  99. &lt;p id="4SIsFA"&gt;The Denver Nuggets posted up 18 times through the three quarters that mattered in Game 6. They scored &lt;strong&gt;0.61 points per possession on those post-ups&lt;/strong&gt;, per Synergy. Who’s the one player getting a catch on the block for Denver? The best player in the world, Nikola Jokić. Towns was and always has been the primary defender in the Timberwolves defensive scheme against the Nuggets. &lt;a href="https://youtu.be/o7RvkIu3kpk?si=BWtLV9elpG5OzHa_&amp;amp;t=295"&gt;Some people haven’t caught onto that yet&lt;/a&gt; after 19 meetings between the two teams in the last two seasons.&lt;/p&gt;
  100. &lt;p id="Kyz3b4"&gt;What makes Towns the best counter to an 81st percentile post-up player who has a playmaking supercomputer between his ears? It all starts with where the catch occurs and how Towns holds up on the first backdown dribble.&lt;/p&gt;
  101. &lt;h5 id="I9ssSw"&gt;(Editor’s Note: If you are reading this on Apple News, please &lt;a href="https://www.sbnation.com/e/23923113"&gt;click here&lt;/a&gt; so you can view embedded videos important to the analysis, and enjoy the best overall reading experience.)&lt;/h5&gt;
  102. &lt;div id="ctcan7"&gt;&lt;div style="left: 0; width: 100%; height: 0; position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.25%;"&gt;&lt;iframe src="https://streamable.com/o/e688qr?autoplay=0" style="top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute; border: 0;" allowfullscreen="" scrolling="no" allow="encrypted-media;"&gt;&lt;/iframe&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  103. &lt;p id="Kracxq"&gt;The Nuggets run this “wedge” screen for Jokić a ton to get him an isolated catch on his own side of the floor. From there, it’s a long recovery and rotation for a defense that wants to double-team him, and four players on the weak side can cut, relocate or space for a great scoring opportunity.&lt;/p&gt;
  104. &lt;p id="asWGxR"&gt;But once again, the design is predicated on the Joker gaining an advantage first. Most often that comes in his immense upper body strength to bully and bury his defender closer to the paint and then get the nearest off-ball defender to commit on a trap.&lt;/p&gt;
  105. &lt;p id="ZMjLgR"&gt;Towns, not known for his balance or body-to-body physicality on defense throughout his whole career, has made each of these attempts by Jokić take more time and effort to get to the desired playmaking spot. Though not as defined or cut, he is thicker than Gobert up top, and the three-time MVP has more trouble backing down Towns than anyone else in the league. The resistance allows for shorter distances to double-team and get the ball out of Jokić’s hands faster than he’d like. It often results in a quicker shot with less strain on the Wolves’ helpside defense, like this clip. Mike Conley gets a strong contest on Michael Porter Jr. and forces a miss. That’s a win.&lt;/p&gt;
  106. &lt;div id="t6y5kL"&gt;&lt;div style="left: 0; width: 100%; height: 0; position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.25%;"&gt;&lt;iframe src="https://streamable.com/o/0akfwr?autoplay=0" style="top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute; border: 0;" allowfullscreen="" scrolling="no" allow="encrypted-media;"&gt;&lt;/iframe&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  107. &lt;p id="3E7z9a"&gt;On this play late in the first quarter, KAT’s resistance with his chest is important to keep Joker from getting a foot in the paint. He’s hard for anyone to stop once he gets that position (yes, Draymond Green, &lt;em&gt;anyone&lt;/em&gt;). But the first step to the defensive possession win is how Karl moves his feet on the spin move at the elbow.&lt;/p&gt;
  108. &lt;p id="LUUenD"&gt;KAT knows he has to be physical with Jokić. You can’t let him have space within the arc — and Towns has picked up some silly hip and hand check fouls in this series by being aggressive into Joker before he actually has to. He moves his feet beautifully to stay between his man and the rim, survives one body bump and then forces someone else to make the shot.&lt;/p&gt;
  109. &lt;div id="6wOVyP"&gt;&lt;div style="left: 0; width: 100%; height: 0; position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.25%;"&gt;&lt;iframe src="https://streamable.com/o/4izkrt?autoplay=0" style="top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute; border: 0;" allowfullscreen="" scrolling="no" allow="encrypted-media;"&gt;&lt;/iframe&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  110. &lt;p id="FvzQZg"&gt;Now the Wolves start adding some more moving parts to the scheme on Denver post-ups. Once again, Karl’s resistance on the first dribble gives his teammates time to dig from the perimeter and rotate back to their shell defense. Adding Jaden McDaniels’ length and activity to the double-team forces a speedy decision from Jokić, albeit an otherworldly pass, but Ant recovers enough for a good contest on Porter Jr.&lt;/p&gt;
  111. &lt;p id="Pi0dpU"&gt;KAT’s ability to hold up his position and not allow his man — much less &lt;em&gt;this Serbian superstar &lt;/em&gt;— to get any closer to the paint after the post touch is frankly something that nobody else in the league is doing well.&lt;/p&gt;
  112.  &lt;figure class="e-image"&gt;
  113.        &lt;img alt="DENVER NUGGETS VS MINNESOTA TIMBERWOLVES, NBA" data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/Tx-IDePTdbWlioYAAlvLPeX5t0Q=/400x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25453600/2152767853.jpg"&gt;
  114.      &lt;cite&gt;Photo by AAron Ontiveroz/The Denver Post&lt;/cite&gt;
  115.  &lt;/figure&gt;
  116. &lt;h3 id="1cI5h7"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Offense&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/h3&gt;
  117. &lt;p id="omFMl4"&gt;Remember that post-up efficiency stat I shared in the previous section? The Nuggets scored 0.61 points per possession on post-ups?&lt;/p&gt;
  118. &lt;p id="IlOIAI"&gt;Polar opposite for the Timberwolves — &lt;em&gt;&lt;strong&gt;they scored 1.64 points per possession on 14 post-up instances.&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  119. &lt;p id="EmTGlt"&gt;And who do the Timberwolves design post-ups for the most? Karl-Anthony Towns.&lt;/p&gt;
  120. &lt;p id="rgQbVB"&gt;The play type has been a point of tension for anyone who follows or covers the team for a long time. KAT came out of college as a jump hook savant — that might still be his primary offensive resource if he didn’t come into the league the same year Stephen Curry turned it upside down from beyond the arc.&lt;/p&gt;
  121. &lt;p id="D9em1D"&gt;And none of that is to say Karl isn’t still a good post player; if he has single coverage against a smaller defender, he gets to that jump hook with ease. He had a really pretty one in the game Thursday.&lt;/p&gt;
  122. &lt;p id="ifTk58"&gt;But in the playoffs and even the regular season, teams aren’t going to make it that easy. He had a really tough time making good decisions out of a post-up when defenses sent a second guy at him — a Towns post touch that involved a hard double-team or the defense committing a second player near him resulted in about 0.68 points per possession this season for Minnesota, per Synergy.&lt;/p&gt;
  123. &lt;div id="rX7G4F"&gt;&lt;div style="left: 0; width: 100%; height: 0; position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.25%;"&gt;&lt;iframe src="https://streamable.com/o/hio44q?autoplay=0" style="top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute; border: 0;" allowfullscreen="" scrolling="no" allow="encrypted-media;"&gt;&lt;/iframe&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  124. &lt;p id="rvNJsl"&gt;Minnesota went to this Horns Out set to gain a size advantage switch for KAT’s post touches in the third quarter. Conley pops out to the wing, and instead of Gobert setting an empty ball screen to get an efficient look, it’s KAT.&lt;/p&gt;
  125. &lt;p id="Qc1JY6"&gt;But this is no standard pick-and-roll. The inexplicable decision Denver is making to switch even the slightest resistance on a screen or exchange allows Towns to get Jamal Murray on his back for a post touch.&lt;/p&gt;
  126. &lt;p id="r28K6Y"&gt;Now Aaron Gordon has to help Murray, and it’s 4-on-3 basketball from there. Towns actually takes a &lt;em&gt;&lt;strong&gt;retreat &lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/em&gt;dribble on this touch, not attempting to get closer to the basket! Gordon doesn’t need to leave Conley quite yet, but he does and forces a rotation from Porter Jr. on the weak side.&lt;/p&gt;
  127. &lt;p id="C0tCPT"&gt;Towns’ retreat dribble was not for nothing — it opened up a perfect passing lane across the court to find the hot-shooting Jaden McDaniels. This pass from KAT is unbelievable. It’s Joker-level in accuracy and velocity. One extra pass to Gobert in the dunker spot and he takes care of business for the easy two.&lt;/p&gt;
  128. &lt;div id="YoK2Dm"&gt;&lt;div style="left: 0; width: 100%; height: 0; position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.25%;"&gt;&lt;iframe src="https://streamable.com/o/jsup0b?autoplay=0" style="top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute; border: 0;" allowfullscreen="" scrolling="no" allow="encrypted-media;"&gt;&lt;/iframe&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  129. &lt;p id="DAluKm"&gt;KAT also displayed a little more urgency when the double-team came late. Here he puts down his dribble toward the middle of the floor quickly on Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and uses his strength and length to shoot right over him with a foot in the paint.&lt;/p&gt;
  130. &lt;div id="7aFgLq"&gt;&lt;div style="left: 0; width: 100%; height: 0; position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.25%;"&gt;&lt;iframe src="https://streamable.com/o/4bnja8?autoplay=0" style="top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute; border: 0;" allowfullscreen="" scrolling="no" allow="encrypted-media;"&gt;&lt;/iframe&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  131. &lt;p id="UAMsOb"&gt;One more for good measure. With Anthony Edwards one pass away, Gordon hesitates on leaving him for the Towns double-team. That’s all the time Karl needs to get his jump hook rhythm over KCP once again.&lt;/p&gt;
  132. &lt;p id="8yfa3U"&gt;I’d expect the Wolves to continue going back to this look after its efficiency in Game 6. The only tweak I’d see happening is being more strategic about placing personnel one pass away from Towns’ post-ups. I like Mike Conley being there so he can make a great decision on the Denver recovery, whether it’s letting a shot rip from deep or finding the extra pass. Anthony Edwards being two passes away also makes lots of sense, giving him a runway against a scrambling defense after one extra pass to go hammer something in the paint.&lt;/p&gt;
  133. &lt;p id="VDux4q"&gt;But the key to Game 6 going the way it did was certainly how smart, patient, composed and mission-oriented Karl-Anthony Towns played on both ends of the floor. He kept it simple and found the best way to win the game within the game — not the scoring game, not the flashiness game, but the ultimate win-or-go-home scenario game.&lt;/p&gt;
  134. &lt;p id="EI0s6Q"&gt;Here’s to a Game 7 with as much control and high-level processing as he possessed in Game 6.&lt;/p&gt;
  135.  
  136. </content>
  137.    <link rel="alternate" type="text/html" href="https://www.canishoopus.com/2024/5/17/24159072/karl-anthony-towns-dominated-game-6-minnesota-timberwolves-denver-nuggets-film-room-nba-playoffs"/>
  138.    <id>https://www.canishoopus.com/2024/5/17/24159072/karl-anthony-towns-dominated-game-6-minnesota-timberwolves-denver-nuggets-film-room-nba-playoffs</id>
  139.    <author>
  140.      <name>Jared Martinson</name>
  141.    </author>
  142.  </entry>
  143.  <entry>
  144.    <published>2024-05-17T00:19:58-05:00</published>
  145.    <updated>2024-05-17T00:19:58-05:00</updated>
  146.    <title>Wolves 115, Nuggets 70: Minnesota Dominates From Start to Finish to Force Game 7</title>
  147.    <content type="html">  
  148.  
  149.    &lt;figure&gt;
  150.      &lt;img alt="Denver Nuggets v Minnesota Timberwolves - Game Six" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/aJ_ZfIq3kQ3xcs2eRZnBkLwzX2A=/0x0:1961x1307/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/73352842/2153319719.0.jpg" /&gt;
  151.        &lt;figcaption&gt;Photo by David Berding/Getty Images&lt;/figcaption&gt;
  152.    &lt;/figure&gt;
  153.  
  154.  &lt;p&gt;Anthony Edwards provided a game-high 27 points, while Jaden McDaniels scored 21 big points and the Wolves’ three bigs corralled 38 rebounds to lead Minnesota past Denver and force a Game 7.&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p id="1hzVxJ"&gt;It wouldn’t be the Minnesota way if it wasn’t the hard way. &lt;/p&gt;
  155. &lt;p id="vkWqcw"&gt;Down 3-2, facing elimination, the &lt;a href="https://www.canishoopus.com"&gt;Minnesota Timberwolves&lt;/a&gt; returned home to Downtown Minneapolis with their backs against the wall, staring down the threat of a fourth straight loss at the hands of three-time MVP Nikola Jokić and the defending champion Denver Nuggets. An even-more-gentlemanly sweep after a 2-0 series lead would be a nightmarish end to what has been an incredible run filled with rewriting the franchise’s history books and reimagining what a brighter future could be. &lt;/p&gt;
  156. &lt;p id="CqzBN2"&gt;Wolves Head Coach Chris Finch remained calm before the game, explaining that his team has played very well in the first six minutes of every game in this series and that his group is still very confident in what they can do. &lt;/p&gt;
  157. &lt;p id="dOCacD"&gt;Nuggets Head Coach Michael Malone validated that confidence from the Minnesota side, saying that he fully expected Anthony Edwards to try and do everything in his power to put the Timberwolves on his 22-year-old shoulders and force a Game 7. Malone added that “pressure is a privilege” and the opportunity to go into an environment like Target Center with no one but the man standing next to you is “what you live for” at the NBA level. &lt;/p&gt;
  158. &lt;p id="uPe5wo"&gt;Minnesota got some good injury news before the game, as Mike Conley returned to play after missing Game 5 with a calf injury. Finch said pregame that the Wolves would “be mindful” of Conley’s status throughout the game as it pertains to the 36-year-old’s minutes. &lt;/p&gt;
  159. &lt;p id="UcvNJF"&gt;Conley was dancing and dapping up everyone in sight in the locker room before the game, but admitted postgame things could’ve been better physically earlier in the week. &lt;/p&gt;
  160. &lt;blockquote&gt;&lt;p id="ohnx7F"&gt;“Couldn’t walk two days ago. Had a day of treatment yesterday and was able to get to my toes a little bit more and this morning, from that to being able to really jump, move and run a little bit better,” he said. “That’s all I needed was to have that confidence to be able to move like that. It was a tough injury to deal with if you’re talking about the calf and Achilles and moving well this morning and felt like I would be good to go for the game.”&lt;/p&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;
  161. &lt;p id="lCbKAk"&gt;Finch was thrilled to get him back. &lt;/p&gt;
  162. &lt;blockquote&gt;&lt;p id="1N5YVW"&gt;“Mike means everything for us,” he said postgame. “Just experience. Shot making. Unbelievable next to Anthony in terms of being able to set him up, play off of him, be in his ear all of the time. Smart defender. Just everything you want in an experienced, veteran point guard and just the very fact that Ant doesn’t have to handle it every single time. That alone helps us. So Mike’s invaluable, it was great to see him out there. We desperately missed him the other night.”&lt;/p&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;
  163. &lt;p id="hbpeqV"&gt;Some fans also welcomed the news that Marc Davis — the official who Jamal Murray threw a towel and a heat pack at in Game 2 — was the crew chief for Game 6.&lt;/p&gt;
  164. &lt;div id="YZxx4D"&gt;
  165. &lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-dnt="true" align="center"&gt;
  166. &lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Marc Davis, the official who Jamal Murray threw a towel and a heat pack at in Game 2, is the crew chief for tonight's Wolves/Nuggets Game 6.&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;He'll be joined by James Williams and Tyler Ford.&lt;/p&gt;— Canis Hoopus (@canishoopus) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/canishoopus/status/1791104378125852764?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;May 16, 2024&lt;/a&gt;
  167. &lt;/blockquote&gt;
  168. &lt;script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"&gt;&lt;/script&gt;
  169.  
  170. &lt;/div&gt;
  171. &lt;p id="AU4C6O"&gt;Despite three straight losses, Timberwolves faithful packed Target Center to the gills, with 20,000 fans donning white “I &amp;lt;3 WOLVES” shirts ready to do whatever they needed to help their favorite team survive 48 minutes and earn 48 more on Sunday night in Denver. &lt;/p&gt;
  172. &lt;p id="sREZqQ"&gt;The Wolves understood the assignment and so did their fans.&lt;/p&gt;
  173. &lt;hr class="p-entry-hr" id="AqdbO2"&gt;
  174. &lt;p id="7ZufxP"&gt;That energy was palpable from the jump, as the crowd roared with each Nuggets miss in the early going. Minnesota on Denver’s first two possessions doubled Jokić on the catch, unlocking a pair of looks for Murray, who missed both, much to the delight of the home fans. After Rudy Gobert threw down a lob from Karl-Anthony Towns in the 4/5 two-man game, it felt as though the Wolves might build a lead early, especially after Murray grimaced in pain holding his shooting elbow after an awkward collision defensively. &lt;/p&gt;
  175. &lt;p id="Xs1MFt"&gt;But just like they have all series, the Nuggets responded. Edwards missed a wide open layup on a defensive breakdown, and the energy flipped. Jokić streaked down floor for an easy two in transition not once, but twice, and Michael Porter Jr. — who scored a combined 10 points in Games 4 and 5 — scored five quick points, prompting a Wolves timeout down 9-2 early. &lt;/p&gt;
  176. &lt;p id="8fsCtt"&gt;The Timberwolves got their lick back, with Jaden McDaniels sparking it. After previously missing a left corner 3, he confidently stepped back into one to cut the lead to four. Then, McDaniels forced a turnover on Murray in the back-court, leading to Edwards getting on the board with a breakaway dunk. The 23-year-old capped it off by paying off a pair of Towns stops on Jokić in the form of a put-back to tie it at 11. A 7-0 run created by the Minnesota X-factor to tie it up. &lt;/p&gt;
  177. &lt;div id="WMy1Sh"&gt;
  178. &lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-dnt="true" align="center"&gt;
  179. &lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Jaden McDaniels back doin crazy stuff on defense &lt;a href="https://t.co/a5k0yExNx2"&gt;pic.twitter.com/a5k0yExNx2&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Dane Moore (@DaneMooreNBA) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/DaneMooreNBA/status/1791275372631224491?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;May 17, 2024&lt;/a&gt;
  180. &lt;/blockquote&gt;
  181. &lt;script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"&gt;&lt;/script&gt;
  182.  
  183. &lt;/div&gt;
  184. &lt;p id="B2NbDY"&gt;A sold out Target Center crowd then showed its intelligence and belief in their players. After the Nuggets got a switch for Jokić onto Gobert, they immediately started chanting “RU-DY, RU-DY, RU-DY” as loud as they could, before Gobert then came away with a steal that led to free throws for Ant on the other end. It was a tremendous way of displaying their support for Gobert after he got fried online for his defense on Jokić in Game 5. It is shows of support like that that have separated this crowd from others in the NBA all season long. &lt;/p&gt;
  185. &lt;div id="yvzqJF"&gt;
  186. &lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-dnt="true" align="center"&gt;
  187. &lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Crowd sees that the Nuggets isolate Nikola Jokić on Rudy Gobert on the block and immediately  breaks out in a "RU-DY RU-DY RU-DY" chant.&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;Gobert responds by deflecting a second entry pass, leading to Ant FTs on the other end.&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;Pretty cool way to support Gobert after Game 5&lt;/p&gt;— Jack Borman (@jrborman13) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/jrborman13/status/1791271518556586036?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;May 17, 2024&lt;/a&gt;
  188. &lt;/blockquote&gt;
  189. &lt;script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"&gt;&lt;/script&gt;
  190.  
  191. &lt;/div&gt;
  192. &lt;p id="vpbMoC"&gt;Minnesota kept it rolling on the defensive end of the floor, doing an excellent job of keeping both Jokić and Murray out of the paint, forcing both to take tough shots outside the paint. After the MVP took just three 3s in Game 5, he took two in the opening quarter — a win for the Wolves. Towns did an excellent job sticking with Joker and not allowing the Nuggets to get the switches they wanted and also was a menace on the glass with Gobert. The pair combined for seven of the Wolves’ 19 rebounds to make good on holding the Nuggets to shoot 6/22 in the opening frame.&lt;/p&gt;
  193. &lt;div id="7Yeh78"&gt;
  194. &lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-dnt="true" align="center"&gt;
  195. &lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;WORKIN' ON BOTH ENDS.   &lt;a href="https://t.co/daiIzhdvPz"&gt;pic.twitter.com/daiIzhdvPz&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Minnesota Timberwolves (@Timberwolves) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/Timberwolves/status/1791275039821570261?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;May 17, 2024&lt;/a&gt;
  196. &lt;/blockquote&gt;
  197. &lt;script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"&gt;&lt;/script&gt;
  198.  
  199. &lt;/div&gt;
  200. &lt;p id="49u7lc"&gt;The Wolves’ offense down the stretch was fantastic. They kept their foot on the gas pedal, moving the ball and spreading out the Denver defense to allow Edwards and Towns to attack open lanes. Edwards finished the first quarter with 14 points on 4/7 shooting and made all four of his free throws, too. &lt;/p&gt;
  201. &lt;p id="tXiaQk"&gt;A great marriage of tenacious defense and aggressive offense resulted in an 18-0 run (eventually 29-5) that blew the game wide open to the tune of a 31-14 Timberwolves lead at the end of the first quarter in what was the best showing in any home quarter of the second round for Minnesota. &lt;/p&gt;
  202. &lt;div id="QydZ8y"&gt;&lt;div style="left: 0; width: 100%; height: 0; position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.25%;"&gt;&lt;iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/u1TpdMQSBbo?rel=0" style="top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute; border: 0;" allowfullscreen="" scrolling="no" allow="accelerometer; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share;"&gt;&lt;/iframe&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  203. &lt;p id="LXigrL"&gt;The Timberwolves held Murray scoreless in the first quarter on 0/5 shooting, but you knew it wouldn’t last forever. The star guard put down the first score of the second quarter for Denver, who kept Nikola Jokić on the floor to start the frame, something they never do, but had to considering the stakes and the score. The Nuggets destroyed the Wolves on the offensive glass in these minutes, collecting four offensive rebounds for five second chance points in the first 2:30 of the frame. Minnesota was very fortunate that Denver’s shooters missed wide open 3 after wide open 3, but they couldn’t capitalize on those misses on the other end with a lineup of Conley/Nickeil Alexander-Walker/Kyle Anderson/Naz Reid/Gobert. &lt;/p&gt;
  204. &lt;p id="25NLr7"&gt;Denver cut into the lead by four, down to 13, when Jokić exited at the 8:53 mark of the quarter. Edwards checked in 41 seconds later, and the Wolves immediately went on a 8-0 run with Reid scoring the final six. &lt;/p&gt;
  205. &lt;p id="IAB6oW"&gt;Fortunately for the Wolves, the Nuggets continued clanking jumpers, with pretty much all of Denver’s rotation player taking rushed shots early in the shot clock that were not in the flow of the offense at all. Even when players like Murray broke free going down hill, the Timberwolves defense made him work hard enough that he couldn’t finish at the rim. &lt;/p&gt;
  206. &lt;p id="wKaHhw"&gt;Minnesota won the two-and-a-half non-Jokić minutes 9-3, but built the lead up to a game-high 24 after a KAT put-back mid-way through the quarter. Denver then found a little bit of a rhythm with better off-ball activity and shot selection, earning their way to the free throw line for four freebies and a score in the paint, an and-1, from Porter Jr. However, the a pair of clutch jumpers from Conley, plus a raucous environment, prevented the Nuggets from chipping into the lead in a meaningful way. &lt;/p&gt;
  207. &lt;p id="Xr8RHk"&gt;Murray seemed apprehensive about shooting after a 1/10 start (0/4 after his make to start the quarter), while Jokić was evidently gassed and did not maintain the same attack mindset that fueled a legendary Game 5 effort. Perhaps a telling sign was that the Nuggets didn’t play through him in the same way they did in Games 3, 4 and 5.&lt;/p&gt;
  208. &lt;p id="WdEMz9"&gt;The only thing that went wrong for Minnesota late in the half was Towns picking up his third foul inside of two minutes left before the break. &lt;/p&gt;
  209. &lt;p id="hFKUPk"&gt;After getting dominated in the paint in Game 5, the Wolves flipped the script on the Nuggets in Game 6, outscoring the defending champs 30-18 inside. Minnesota also feasted off Denver turnovers, scoring 12 points off seven giveaways. Taking care of the ball was a key area Malone harped on pregame as something his team did successfully in Games 3, 4 and 5 and needed to replicate in Game 6. &lt;/p&gt;
  210. &lt;p id="7Vdwor"&gt;The Wolves led 59-40 at halftime, led by 19 from Edwards and 13 (!) from McDaniels, who got a put-back to go as the second-quarter horn sounded. Towns and Gobert combined for 10 points, 19 rebounds and five assists, while Reid added six points and nine rebounds off the bench. The Minnesota defense held Denver to 10/23 shooting on 2s (43.4%) and 4/21 on 3s (19.0%), coming out to 31.8% overall. &lt;/p&gt;
  211. &lt;div id="MuGJa0"&gt;
  212. &lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-dnt="true" align="center"&gt;
  213. &lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;The Wolves allowed .833 points per possession in the 1st half.&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;The only game all season they gave up fewer points per possession for a game was against The April Raptors, who the Wolves beat by 48 points. Toronto scored .798 points per possession in that game.&lt;/p&gt;— Dane Moore (@DaneMooreNBA) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/DaneMooreNBA/status/1791284767708623036?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;May 17, 2024&lt;/a&gt;
  214. &lt;/blockquote&gt;
  215. &lt;script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"&gt;&lt;/script&gt;
  216.  
  217. &lt;/div&gt;
  218. &lt;p id="jSyVU0"&gt;While the Timberwolves’ defensive activity was certainly better, they gave up &lt;em&gt;a ton &lt;/em&gt;of open perimeter jumpers, which you can’t bet on Denver missing at this level at home in Game 7. Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, Murray, Porter Jr., Justin Holiday and Jokić were a combined 2/16 (12.5%) from 3 in the first half, while Aaron Gordon continued his hot shooting with a 2/4 effort from beyond the arc.&lt;/p&gt;
  219. &lt;p id="XUFOkb"&gt;Minnesota smelled blood in the water coming out of the halftime break.&lt;/p&gt;
  220. &lt;p id="A1xiUo"&gt;Gobert immediately drew a shooting foul on Porter Jr. and, while he missed both, it set a good tone for the half. The Wolves followed it up on the other end forcing Murray and Jokić into semi-contested 3s — good outcomes considering where the star duo likes to operate. &lt;/p&gt;
  221. &lt;p id="Da3wKR"&gt;Denver defensively began to double Edwards on the catch, but it didn’t matter. McDaniels attacked off the catch against a late rotating defense for a thunderous two-handed dunk on Jokić, before following it up with a left corner 3 — his second of the game — to balloon the lead back north of 20. &lt;/p&gt;
  222. &lt;p id="gNNzvB"&gt;Edwards came away with a steal the other way, before inviting a Nuggets defender to dance on the perimeter before throwing down a patented two-handed jam to tie the game-high with a 24-point lead and prompt a Malone timeout. But instead of egging on the crowd, a business-like Edwards instead mean-mugged, nodding his way to the bench without saying a word or cracking a smile, a clear sign of the headspace he found during this game.  &lt;/p&gt;
  223. &lt;div id="EFfjGg"&gt;&lt;div style="left: 0; width: 100%; height: 0; position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.25%;"&gt;&lt;iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/V7hgzNdrqnQ?rel=0" style="top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute; border: 0;" allowfullscreen="" scrolling="no" allow="accelerometer; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share;"&gt;&lt;/iframe&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  224. &lt;p id="aAQIs5"&gt;But shortly after the break, Edwards drove to the rim, drawing a foul on Porter Jr., who was trying to block Ant’s shot. Edwards landed straight on his lower back, and remained down on his stomach for three or four minutes. He was helped to his feet and showered with MVP chants as he walked to the bench. &lt;/p&gt;
  225. &lt;p id="SFxRou"&gt;He unsurprisingly stayed in the game, shot his free throws, and then picked up Murray 94 feet after the make. That sent a message to the rest of the team and they responded accordingly.&lt;/p&gt;
  226. &lt;p id="O3t8ZN"&gt;The defensive effort went from a 10 to a 12. Minnesota doubled Jokić and rotated masterfully behind it, communicating extremely well, flying around the floor to contest shots, and remaining disciplined in their rebounding efforts. It was the Minnesota Timberwolves defense we’ve loved watching all season on full display. &lt;/p&gt;
  227. &lt;p id="lPa8RK"&gt;Offensively, meanwhile, Towns continued to play a very in-command game, especially as a passer. He made simple passes, threw half-court lasers, lobs to Gobert, you name it. He also forced the Nuggets to pay when trying to stick KCP on him and bait Towns into posting into a double team. &lt;/p&gt;
  228. &lt;p id="zUbu4t"&gt;McDaniels, like he has all season when Towns is rolling, maintained his offensive excellence. He remained active as a scorer and also a playmaker, as he threw a beautiful extra pass to Gobert for a dunk after a KAT cross-court rocket got the defense out of position. Jaden sat on 21 points on 8/10 shooting after three, as the lead got as high as 29 late in the third.&lt;/p&gt;
  229. &lt;div id="eLAwTr"&gt;
  230. &lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-dnt="true" align="center"&gt;
  231. &lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;IT’S LOUD IN &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/TargetCenterMN?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;@TargetCenterMN&lt;/a&gt;. &lt;a href="https://t.co/SxkqvO1wui"&gt;pic.twitter.com/SxkqvO1wui&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Minnesota Timberwolves (@Timberwolves) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/Timberwolves/status/1791294179915469251?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;May 17, 2024&lt;/a&gt;
  232. &lt;/blockquote&gt;
  233. &lt;script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"&gt;&lt;/script&gt;
  234.  
  235. &lt;/div&gt;
  236. &lt;blockquote&gt;
  237. &lt;p id="Fx9W4Y"&gt;“Just confidence. He played with a confidence he hadn’t been shooting the ball well, hadn’t necessarily been scoring it for us. But I thought he got a lot of good looks the other day, of course. They were gonna continue to give him good looks. It was his 3 that kinda sparked us out of that timeout. We really needed to see that thing go down,” Finch said about McDaniels postgame. &lt;/p&gt;
  238. &lt;p id="EFhI0d"&gt;“And then it was just play off the catch, make the right play, stay confident, everything came in the flow of the offense, and he got a bunch of buckets in a lot of different ways. Which is for us, when that’s happening with Jaden, we know we’re playing the right way.”&lt;/p&gt;
  239. &lt;/blockquote&gt;
  240. &lt;p id="MzPBbl"&gt;Minnesota led 86-61 after three quarters, to that point holding the Denver bench scoreless and Jokić to just one assist — both major drivers of their success. &lt;/p&gt;
  241. &lt;p id="9lQKJ6"&gt;The Wolves started the final quarter with Conley, Edwards, Alexander-Walker, Reid and Gobert on the floor and quickly sent the lead up to 30 behind a step-back 3 from Ant and a nice finish at the rim from Gobert off a feed from Mike. The Nuggets called timeout at the 9:52 mark, down 93-63, and Malone waived the white flag, sending in DeAndre Jordan, Peyton Watson and Holiday to replace Jokić, Porter Jr. and Murray, respectively.&lt;/p&gt;
  242. &lt;p id="S9cGRA"&gt;Maybe the only bad thing about this game was Finch and Micah Nori recklessly leaving their lineup on the floor for a couple more trips. While it resulted in 3s from Conley and NAW, it was irresponsible. Even up 36, Gobert remained on the floor inside of nine minutes to go. Especially after Conley hurt his calf on a meaningless play at the end of Game 5, it was disappointing to see the coaching staff play with fire to that degree. &lt;/p&gt;
  243. &lt;p id="YvL9Ef"&gt;But outside of that, the Wolves threw a damn-near perfect game. The held Jokić to just one assist and Murray to 10 points on 4/18 shooting, dominated the paint, saw each of their three bigs collect 10+ rebounds, and turned it over just four times before garbage time set in, while scoring 19 points off 10 Nuggets giveaways.&lt;/p&gt;
  244. &lt;div id="CEgYdv"&gt;
  245. &lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-dnt="true" align="center"&gt;
  246. &lt;p lang="zxx" dir="ltr"&gt;&lt;a href="https://t.co/czLSIgPygO"&gt;https://t.co/czLSIgPygO&lt;/a&gt; &lt;a href="https://t.co/meNT6Vm88f"&gt;pic.twitter.com/meNT6Vm88f&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Timberwolves Clips (@WolvesClips) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/WolvesClips/status/1791309649456546138?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;May 17, 2024&lt;/a&gt;
  247. &lt;/blockquote&gt;
  248. &lt;script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"&gt;&lt;/script&gt;
  249.  
  250. &lt;/div&gt;
  251. &lt;p id="intThH"&gt;We got eight-plus minutes for Monte Morris to stay in rhythm after not getting rotation minutes, Luka Garza scoring, and Jordan McLaughlin doing his usual Jordan McLaughlin things getting everyone involved and playing the beautiful game. &lt;/p&gt;
  252. &lt;p id="gYggrK"&gt;After the lead reached 50 at one point, the score read 115 to 70 when the final buzzer sounded, sending a loud and clear message that this series ain’t over, and the Nuggets have a lot of work to do if they want to continue their title defense into the Western Conference Finals. &lt;/p&gt;
  253. &lt;p id="dWpYxG"&gt;&lt;a href="https://x.com/bball_ref/status/1791304837566468170"&gt;&lt;em&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Denver’s 70 points is the fewest they’ve scored in the Nikola Jokić era.&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  254. &lt;div id="nHILvI"&gt;
  255. &lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-dnt="true" align="center"&gt;
  256. &lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;The &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/Timberwolves?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;@Timberwolves&lt;/a&gt; beat the Nuggets by 45 points.&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;No team had ever beaten the defending NBA champs by more than 36 points in the playoffs before tonight. &lt;a href="https://t.co/avxghrBa7q"&gt;pic.twitter.com/avxghrBa7q&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— OptaSTATS (@OptaSTATS) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/OptaSTATS/status/1791304261042630786?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;May 17, 2024&lt;/a&gt;
  257. &lt;/blockquote&gt;
  258. &lt;script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"&gt;&lt;/script&gt;
  259.  
  260. &lt;/div&gt;
  261. &lt;p id="hm4mPu"&gt;Edwards led the way for the Wolves with 27 points, four boards, four assists and three steals and was a whopping +43, while McDaniels played one of the best games of his career, amounting to 21 points on 8/10 shooting and 3/5 from 3, to go along with three stocks. Towns added 10 points (0/4 from 3), 13 rebounds and five assists (just one turnover), while Gobert put up eight points, 14 rebounds and two assists. Reid posted a double-double of 10 points and 11 rebounds off the bench, while NAW added nine points on 3/5 shooting from beyond the arc.&lt;/p&gt;
  262. &lt;div id="6BmlUJ"&gt;
  263. &lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-dnt="true" align="center"&gt;
  264. &lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Players to average 30/5/5 in elimination games:&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;Michael Jordan&lt;br&gt;LeBron James&lt;br&gt;Luka Doncic&lt;br&gt;Anthony Edwards &lt;a href="https://t.co/i66Gla0FcW"&gt;pic.twitter.com/i66Gla0FcW&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— StatMuse (@statmuse) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/statmuse/status/1791305558701543754?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;May 17, 2024&lt;/a&gt;
  265. &lt;/blockquote&gt;
  266. &lt;script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"&gt;&lt;/script&gt;
  267.  
  268. &lt;/div&gt;
  269. &lt;p id="aAhjRf"&gt;Jokić scored 22 points on 9/19 shooting (0/4 from deep), nine rebounds, just two assists to three turnovers. Murray provided just 10 on 4/18 shooting and was a team-worst -32, while Gordon was the only other Nugget in double figures at 12 points, but also gave Denver eight boards, four assists and three blocks.&lt;/p&gt;
  270. &lt;h4 id="64Z8pj"&gt;This story will be updated throughout the night after coach and player media availabilities. &lt;/h4&gt;
  271. &lt;hr class="p-entry-hr" id="dnrbEk"&gt;
  272.  &lt;figure class="e-image"&gt;
  273.        &lt;img alt="2024 NBA Playoffs - Denver Nuggets v Minnesota Timberwolves" data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/TM87uFH1k1EMs9ioFINmTPQkD8g=/400x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25452220/2152767744.jpg"&gt;
  274.      &lt;cite&gt;Photo by Jordan Johnson/NBAE via Getty Images&lt;/cite&gt;
  275.  &lt;/figure&gt;
  276. &lt;h3 id="xRR56f"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;The Timberwolves Got Their Swagger Back&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/h3&gt;
  277. &lt;p id="v4DiSp"&gt;Yeah, I think the Timberwolves got their swagger back. A 45-ball on the defending champions on your home floor will do that to you. But what fueled it started well before the game. &lt;/p&gt;
  278. &lt;blockquote&gt;
  279. &lt;p id="iVEfJx"&gt;“Guys just believing in themselves. I think the last three games we were all down on ourselves. Just trying to point the finger, blame somebody,” Edwards said postgame about why this team always finds a way to respond. &lt;/p&gt;
  280. &lt;p id="vTwCMK"&gt;“Today before the game, the coaches, the whole staff, they did a great job of putting a clip together, as far as like the plays that we made the two games that we won against these guys and everybody started to believe after that little edit that they put together. I could tell the energy shifted after that little edit. That was big time. I told them that was big time putting the edit together.”&lt;/p&gt;
  281. &lt;/blockquote&gt;
  282. &lt;p id="HUTopI"&gt;McDaniels added some more color to it.&lt;/p&gt;
  283. &lt;blockquote&gt;
  284. &lt;p id="6xcYLU"&gt;“It was like kind of a hype video. It had a good effect on us. Just showing that we’re able to compete with these guys. Like we’ve done it before. Like we’ve won games,” McDaniels said. &lt;/p&gt;
  285. &lt;p id="k19crA"&gt;“Just being able to see that and trying to recreate things we seen on the video. Like they showed me and Nickeil trapping Jamal. Just us getting out in fastbreaks playing Timberwolves basketball. It was good video. I think it was a great idea from them.”&lt;/p&gt;
  286. &lt;/blockquote&gt;
  287. &lt;p id="GNpl1V"&gt;Towns also gave his take, adding that it helped the Wolves understand the desperation they needed to play with.&lt;/p&gt;
  288. &lt;blockquote&gt;
  289. &lt;p id="9G9Ly8"&gt;“I think it just made us realize the swag I felt we lost in the last three games. Just to visually see it, see the way we play, the desperation, the toughness, the physicality, the emotion. But also the discipline, the execution, the tenacity, I think that we were lacking it that for the last three games,” KAT said in the locker room. &lt;/p&gt;
  290. &lt;p id="PLaIUn"&gt;“I thought we did a great job, the coaches and our staff all the way from the top to the bottom, did a great job of getting those edits, getting that film made. What a great time to pull that trick out of his hat.”&lt;/p&gt;
  291. &lt;/blockquote&gt;
  292. &lt;p id="Wu6Brh"&gt;It clearly worked, and it all started with the way Edwards set the tone on the defensive end of the floor, picking up Murray, who had a..... response postgame. &lt;/p&gt;
  293. &lt;div id="o6itHR"&gt;
  294. &lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-dnt="true" align="center"&gt;
  295. &lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Jamal Murray saying "Who?" when asked about Anthony Edwards going straight to the bulletin board for game 7.  &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/WolvesBack?src=hash&amp;amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;#WolvesBack&lt;/a&gt; &lt;a href="https://t.co/C5ttLIVXec"&gt;pic.twitter.com/C5ttLIVXec&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Jesse Monson (@jessemonson) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/jessemonson/status/1791309013721727170?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;May 17, 2024&lt;/a&gt;
  296. &lt;/blockquote&gt;
  297. &lt;script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"&gt;&lt;/script&gt;
  298.  
  299. &lt;/div&gt;
  300. &lt;blockquote&gt;
  301. &lt;p id="0SeMHZ"&gt;“It’s what I look forward to. I don’t know how long ago I said I want to be the best player on both sides of the ball in the NBA. I think it was probably two years ago. It’s something that I’ve been working on,” Edwards said postgame.&lt;/p&gt;
  302. &lt;p id="TB4b54"&gt;“It all comes with being in shape. It seems like towards the end of the season I always tend to get in my best shape. And I wasn’t tired at all chasing him around and following him everywhere he went and contesting all his shots. He’s a great player man and I feel like I did a good job tonight. &lt;/p&gt;
  303. &lt;/blockquote&gt;
  304. &lt;p id="ZBtv1i"&gt;Minnesota built two runs of at least 16-0, fulling displaying that rediscovered swagger that the team sorely lacked in Games 3-5, eventually building the lead as high as 50, the largest ever against a defending champion in the playoffs. &lt;/p&gt;
  305. &lt;blockquote&gt;
  306. &lt;p id="DEgEvt"&gt;“We talked a lot today just about getting our edge back, our swagger, playing a little more free and easy. It just felt like we hadn’t had our best effort on both sides of the ball yet in this series. I felt we left kind of a lot of meat on the bones offensively the other day and guys did a good job of reacting to that,” Finch said postgame. &lt;/p&gt;
  307. &lt;p id="DBJjMO"&gt;“We always knew it was gonna be a long series coming in, it proved to be the case. To win it, you gotta get four. They didn’t say how ya gotta get em. So it should be fun on Sunday.”&lt;/p&gt;
  308. &lt;/blockquote&gt;
  309. &lt;div id="cNCy89"&gt;
  310. &lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-dnt="true" align="center"&gt;
  311. &lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;"Hell yeah, I said I'll see y'all muhfuckas for Game 7"&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;- Anthony Edwards, confirming he told a Nuggets attendant he'd see them back in Denver for Game 7&lt;/p&gt;— Jack Borman (@jrborman13) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/jrborman13/status/1791309886287909067?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;May 17, 2024&lt;/a&gt;
  312. &lt;/blockquote&gt;
  313. &lt;script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"&gt;&lt;/script&gt;
  314.  
  315. &lt;/div&gt;
  316. &lt;div id="ti46Aw"&gt;
  317. &lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-dnt="true" align="center"&gt;
  318. &lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Anthony Edwards confirms the rumors &lt;a href="https://t.co/LE6xP66DDk"&gt;pic.twitter.com/LE6xP66DDk&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Rob Perez (@WorldWideWob) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/WorldWideWob/status/1791310348185936239?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;May 17, 2024&lt;/a&gt;
  319. &lt;/blockquote&gt;
  320. &lt;script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"&gt;&lt;/script&gt;
  321.  
  322. &lt;/div&gt;
  323. &lt;div id="iCfbYF"&gt;
  324. &lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-dnt="true" align="center"&gt;
  325. &lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Ants girl wearing a shirt that says ‘Hoes Mad’ with Ant dunking on Collins on it   &lt;a href="https://t.co/XWgVaHGF4o"&gt;pic.twitter.com/XWgVaHGF4o&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;—    |   (@HoodieNaz_) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/HoodieNaz_/status/1791320216322167224?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;May 17, 2024&lt;/a&gt;
  326. &lt;/blockquote&gt;
  327. &lt;script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"&gt;&lt;/script&gt;
  328.  
  329. &lt;/div&gt;
  330. &lt;hr class="p-entry-hr" id="NzBKQN"&gt;
  331. &lt;h2 id="vLo6YZ"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Rotation&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/h2&gt;
  332.  &lt;figure class="e-image"&gt;
  333.        &lt;img alt=" " data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/wNuHbQDKpFFqF1s-DHH_x_8f11E=/400x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25452148/Screenshot_2024_05_16_at_9.57.17_PM.png"&gt;
  334.      &lt;figcaption&gt;&lt;a class="ql-link" href="https://www.pbpstats.com/live/nba/0042300236/game-flow" target="_blank"&gt;https://www.pbpstats.com/live/nba/0042300236/game-flow&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/figcaption&gt;
  335.  &lt;/figure&gt;
  336. &lt;hr class="p-entry-hr" id="DG7AeF"&gt;
  337. &lt;h2 id="f5BQGO"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Up Next&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/h2&gt;
  338. &lt;p id="Jaeabh"&gt;The Timberwolves and Nuggets will both travel back to Denver on Friday ahead of Game 7 on Sunday, which will be on ABC. The time will be announced at a later date, but it will likely be in the early afternoon.&lt;/p&gt;
  339. &lt;div id="pcJKbG"&gt;
  340. &lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-dnt="true" align="center"&gt;
  341. &lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;*IF* the Timberwolves can win tomorrow and extend the series, Game 7 would be on Sunday, May 19th.&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;May 19th is the 20-year anniversary of Minnesota defeating Sacramento in Game 7 of the 03-04 Western Conference Semifinals.&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;May 19th is also Kevin Garnett’s birthday.&lt;/p&gt;— Kyle Theige (@KyleTheige) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/KyleTheige/status/1790880070397202894?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;May 15, 2024&lt;/a&gt;
  342. &lt;/blockquote&gt;
  343. &lt;script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"&gt;&lt;/script&gt;
  344.  
  345. &lt;/div&gt;
  346. &lt;p id="wmIkEH"&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  347. &lt;p id="u1oxOL"&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  348. &lt;hr class="p-entry-hr" id="PZkr8B"&gt;
  349. &lt;h2 id="Tqrcvw"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Highlights&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/h2&gt;
  350. &lt;div id="gsLT7M"&gt;&lt;div style="left: 0; width: 100%; height: 0; position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.25%;"&gt;&lt;iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/00xelcwOSo8?rel=0" style="top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute; border: 0;" allowfullscreen="" scrolling="no" allow="accelerometer; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share;"&gt;&lt;/iframe&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  351. &lt;p id="lhwTdo"&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  352.  
  353. </content>
  354.    <link rel="alternate" type="text/html" href="https://www.canishoopus.com/timberwolves-scores-results/2024/5/16/24158609/wolves-vs-nuggets-final-score-game-6-recap-playoffs-anthony-edwards-nikola-jokic-karl-anthony-towns"/>
  355.    <id>https://www.canishoopus.com/timberwolves-scores-results/2024/5/16/24158609/wolves-vs-nuggets-final-score-game-6-recap-playoffs-anthony-edwards-nikola-jokic-karl-anthony-towns</id>
  356.    <author>
  357.      <name>Jack Borman</name>
  358.    </author>
  359.  </entry>
  360.  <entry>
  361.    <published>2024-05-16T13:48:53-05:00</published>
  362.    <updated>2024-05-16T13:48:53-05:00</updated>
  363.    <title>Playoff Game Preview #10: Wolves vs. Nuggets</title>
  364.    <content type="html">  
  365.  
  366.    &lt;figure&gt;
  367.      &lt;img alt="Phoenix Suns v Minnesota Timberwolves - Game Two" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/JJIo8nXHA8JE7gLYIUQR9tuGIxs=/0x0:5226x3484/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/73350380/2151183697.0.jpg" /&gt;
  368.        &lt;figcaption&gt;Photo by David Berding/Getty Images&lt;/figcaption&gt;
  369.    &lt;/figure&gt;
  370.  
  371.  &lt;p&gt;After losing their third straight game, Anthony Edwards and the Minnesota Timberwolves return home for Game 6 against the Denver Nuggets with their season on the line.&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p id="SoolFh"&gt;The &lt;a href="https://www.canishoopus.com"&gt;Minnesota Timberwolves&lt;/a&gt; jumped out to a historic start to the postseason, building on their equally as historic regular season. They finished with a 56-26 record, good for third in the Western Conference. That was the second-best record in franchise history and the second time the Wolves hosted a first-round playoff series.&lt;/p&gt;
  372. &lt;div class="c-float-right"&gt;&lt;div id="fDhabC"&gt;&lt;div data-anthem-component="aside:12299189"&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  373. &lt;p id="YX9lz6"&gt;The Timberwolves swept the &lt;a href="https://www.brightsideofthesun.com"&gt;Phoenix Suns&lt;/a&gt; in the first round and quickly went up 2-0 against the Denver Nuggets on the road in the second round. Minnesota seemed unbeatable, as it became favorites to make the Western Conference Finals and had t&lt;a href="https://x.com/CharlieWaltonMN/status/1787855230022869033"&gt;he second-best odds to hoist the Larry O’Brien Championship Trophy in June&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;
  374. &lt;p id="t9Lyef"&gt;However, reality came crashing back into the picture. The undefeated Cinderella run was over as the Nuggets marched into Target Center, stole games 3 and 4 away from the Wolves, and returned to Ball Arena, &lt;a href="https://www.canishoopus.com/timberwolves-scores-results/2024/5/15/24157088/wolves-vs-nuggets-final-score-game-5-recap-nikola-jokic-rudy-gobert-anthony-edwards-jamal-murray"&gt;taking a commanding 3-2 series lead after their 112-97 win in Game 5&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;
  375. &lt;p id="E8JBxJ"&gt;Minnesota’s memorable 2023-24 campaign is on the brink of coming to a close in Game 6. For the first time in the playoffs, the Wolves are pinned in a corner, trying their best to fight their way out and deliver some much-needed counterpunches while facing elimination.&lt;/p&gt;
  376. &lt;hr class="p-entry-hr" id="jlY92v"&gt;
  377. &lt;h2 id="V9q5ky"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Game Info&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/h2&gt;
  378. &lt;ul&gt;
  379. &lt;li id="bvunDu"&gt;
  380. &lt;strong&gt;Who:&lt;/strong&gt; #3 Minnesota Timberwolves (2-3) vs Denver Nuggets (3-2)&lt;/li&gt;
  381. &lt;li id="AothrI"&gt;
  382. &lt;strong&gt;When: &lt;/strong&gt;Thursday, May 16 at 7:30 PM CT&lt;/li&gt;
  383. &lt;li id="fLsoAr"&gt;
  384. &lt;strong&gt;Where:&lt;/strong&gt; Target Center — Minneapolis, MN&lt;/li&gt;
  385. &lt;li id="nGm7q3"&gt;
  386. &lt;strong&gt;National TV:&lt;/strong&gt; ESPN&lt;/li&gt;
  387. &lt;li id="K1sjdq"&gt;
  388. &lt;strong&gt;Radio:&lt;/strong&gt; KFAN FM 100.3, Wolves App&lt;/li&gt;
  389. &lt;li id="NuKkfx"&gt;
  390. &lt;strong&gt;Line:&lt;/strong&gt; Wolves -2 | &lt;strong&gt;Total:&lt;/strong&gt; 203 (courtesy of &lt;a href="https://sportsbook.draftkings.com/teams/basketball/nba/minnesota-timberwolves"&gt;DraftKings Sportsbook&lt;/a&gt;)&lt;/li&gt;
  391. &lt;li id="cGvVwb"&gt;
  392. &lt;strong&gt;Jerseys:&lt;/strong&gt; Minnesota (Classic Edition), Denver (Statement)&lt;/li&gt;
  393. &lt;/ul&gt;
  394.  &lt;figure class="e-image"&gt;
  395.        &lt;img alt=" " data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/osarX0IcksQGM9tJdLr06Qy6Nk8=/400x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25450224/Screenshot_2024_05_15_at_6.27.34_PM.png"&gt;
  396.      &lt;cite&gt;Photo of jerseys via NBA LockerVision&lt;/cite&gt;
  397.  &lt;/figure&gt;
  398. &lt;hr class="p-entry-hr" id="boHF9g"&gt;
  399. &lt;h2 id="QLiSH7"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Injury Report&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/h2&gt;
  400. &lt;p id="7OXeT4"&gt;&lt;em&gt;Updated as of Thursday, May 16 at 1:45 PM CT&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  401. &lt;h3 id="Lc3pm0"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Minnesota&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/h3&gt;
  402. &lt;p id="pJWcCH"&gt;EXPECTED TO PLAY:&lt;/p&gt;
  403. &lt;ul&gt;&lt;li id="HaZOoF"&gt;Mike Conley (right soleus strain)&lt;/li&gt;&lt;/ul&gt;
  404. &lt;div id="gzzaK2"&gt;
  405. &lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-dnt="true" align="center"&gt;
  406. &lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Minnesota's Mike Conley Jr. (calf) is expecting to return for must-win Game 6 vs. Denver tonight, sources tell &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/TheAthletic?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;@TheAthletic&lt;/a&gt; &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/Stadium?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;@Stadium&lt;/a&gt;. Key for the Wolves, facing 3-2 deficit after missing their veteran point guard in Game 5 loss. &lt;a href="https://t.co/olatIKwx4P"&gt;pic.twitter.com/olatIKwx4P&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/ShamsCharania/status/1791176007837254131?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;May 16, 2024&lt;/a&gt;
  407. &lt;/blockquote&gt;
  408. &lt;script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"&gt;&lt;/script&gt;
  409.  
  410. &lt;/div&gt;
  411. &lt;p id="3Ctklo"&gt;(Conley didn’t play in Game 5 due to right achilles soreness. Your soleus sits right below the knee, runs down your lower leg, and connects your Achilles tendon to your heel, &lt;a href="https://x.com/CharlieWaltonMN/status/1790867411807224102"&gt;according to the Cleveland Clinic&lt;/a&gt;. This is the same injury that has kept Giannis Antetokounmpo and Kristaps Porziņģis out of playoff games in recent weeks.) &lt;/p&gt;
  412. &lt;h3 id="RYUFf4"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Denver&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/h3&gt;
  413. &lt;p id="2BMUAu"&gt;QUESTIONABLE:&lt;/p&gt;
  414. &lt;ul&gt;&lt;li id="T4X6RI"&gt;Jamal Murray (left calf strain)&lt;/li&gt;&lt;/ul&gt;
  415. &lt;p id="OEhguD"&gt;(Murray has been played in all five games so far, averaging the second-most minutes on Denver (38.7) despite being listed as questionable for each game).&lt;/p&gt;
  416. &lt;p id="LEn5u8"&gt;OUT:&lt;/p&gt;
  417. &lt;ul&gt;&lt;li id="woNfQr"&gt;Vlatko Čančar (left torn ACL surgery)&lt;/li&gt;&lt;/ul&gt;
  418. &lt;hr class="p-entry-hr" id="CaRXic"&gt;
  419. &lt;h2 id="wsJPAO"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;What to Watch For&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/h2&gt;
  420.  &lt;figure class="e-image"&gt;
  421.        &lt;img alt="DENVER NUGGETS VS MINNESOTA TIMBERWOLVES, NBA" data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/L-0J08JzW2NDOQbI9OXxhTdcgHE=/400x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25448711/2152470878.jpg"&gt;
  422.      &lt;cite&gt;Photo by AAron Ontiveroz/The Denver Post&lt;/cite&gt;
  423.  &lt;/figure&gt;
  424. &lt;h3 id="frRqAW"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Anthony Edwards Get-Back Game&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/h3&gt;
  425. &lt;p id="QiI3hW"&gt;He’s been on a ridiculous postseason run this year, averaging 30.6 points, 6.2 rebounds, and 6.0 assists on 54.1% from the floor and 42.2% from deep in 40.4 minutes. Still, the Nuggets have successfully defended Anthony Edwards in recent games, particularly games 3 and 5. He’s shouldered a hefty load, one that would make certain stars crumble and fall to their knees due to the weight, but Edwards somehow needs to break free and turn in one of his best postseason games for the Wolves to force a Game 7.&lt;/p&gt;
  426. &lt;p id="eGFUf0"&gt;In Game 4, Ant was a one-man wrecking crew. He hung 44 points on the board in Minnesota’s eventual eight-point loss. However, the games before and after that one were relatively unmemorable, thanks to a stingy and physical Denver defense.&lt;/p&gt;
  427. &lt;ul&gt;
  428. &lt;li id="mGchOj"&gt;Game 3: &lt;strong&gt;19&lt;/strong&gt; points, &lt;strong&gt;5 &lt;/strong&gt;assists, &lt;strong&gt;8/15 &lt;/strong&gt;FG, &lt;strong&gt;3/8&lt;/strong&gt; 3P, &lt;strong&gt;-32&lt;/strong&gt;
  429. &lt;/li&gt;
  430. &lt;li id="1ZG1kB"&gt;Game 5: &lt;strong&gt;18&lt;/strong&gt; points, &lt;strong&gt;9&lt;/strong&gt; assists, &lt;strong&gt;5/15&lt;/strong&gt; FG, &lt;strong&gt;1/5&lt;/strong&gt; 3P, &lt;strong&gt;-12&lt;/strong&gt;
  431. &lt;/li&gt;
  432. &lt;/ul&gt;
  433. &lt;p id="Azh60K"&gt;It is proven that if you can eradicate Edwards offensively over a full 48 minutes, there is a very high chance you will come away with a win. The Atlanta, Georgia native averaged 35 points on 60.9% from the floor and 36.4% from deep through the first two games against the Nuggets, who quickly realized they needed to change their defensive game plan.&lt;/p&gt;
  434. &lt;p id="31FAGl"&gt;As a response, we have seen an uptick in doubles sent Ant’s way. Every time he catches the ball in isolation situations or screening plays, Denver blitzes and sends two, maybe even three, to the ball while packing the paint when Edwards attacks downhill.&lt;/p&gt;
  435. &lt;h5 id="rEuS11"&gt;(Editor’s Note: If you are reading this on Apple News, please &lt;a href="https://www.sbnation.com/e/23921026"&gt;click here&lt;/a&gt; so you can view embedded videos important to the analysis, and enjoy the best overall reading experience.)&lt;/h5&gt;
  436. &lt;div id="8rykMd"&gt;&lt;div style="left: 0; width: 100%; height: 0; position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.25%;"&gt;&lt;iframe src="https://streamable.com/o/63pkdj?autoplay=0" style="top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute; border: 0;" allowfullscreen="" scrolling="no" allow="encrypted-media;"&gt;&lt;/iframe&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  437. &lt;p id="v6g6SK"&gt;It was encouraging to see that Ant dished out nine assists, but he probably should have had a few more if his teammates connected on open shots from outside. &lt;/p&gt;
  438. &lt;p id="q6l28E"&gt;The Timberwolves went 8 of 26 from 3-point range on Tuesday. That simply isn’t going to get the job done. And when you aren’t punishing a double-heavy defense by making quick passes and open shots, they feel no need to alter their defensive scheme.&lt;/p&gt;
  439. &lt;p id="5XFHsk"&gt;The Wolves will need another megastar performance from Edwards to keep their season alive. We know he is more than capable of providing just that, but if Denver’s defense remains dialed in with smart doubles and one-on-one defense, Minnesota’s supporting cast will hold the key to unlocking another 35+ point performance from AE 5.&lt;/p&gt;
  440.  &lt;figure class="e-image"&gt;
  441.        &lt;img alt="DENVER NUGGETS VS MINNESOTA TIMBERWOLVES, NBA" data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/UJNs_qxCjnUP9NEegHCW6wSE-KM=/400x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25448712/2152475982.jpg"&gt;
  442.      &lt;cite&gt;Photo by AAron Ontiveroz/The Denver Post&lt;/cite&gt;
  443.  &lt;/figure&gt;
  444. &lt;h3 id="T8dj4W"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;How in the World Do You Stop Nikola Jokić?&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/h3&gt;
  445. &lt;p id="qYuPKd"&gt;There isn’t a sure-fire answer to that question, and we saw exactly why in Game 5.&lt;/p&gt;
  446. &lt;p id="s54Hk8"&gt;Nikola Jokić is a generational talent — one of the best big men ever to play the game. When an opposing team maps out its defensive scheme against the Nuggets, it typically tries to make life as difficult as possible on Jokić while simultaneously taking Jamal Murray out of the mix. Denver becomes an unbeatable team if both players are dialed in on offense.&lt;/p&gt;
  447. &lt;p id="11eJQ8"&gt;When game planning for Jokić, here are two questions the defensive coaching staff must ask themselves:&lt;/p&gt;
  448. &lt;ul&gt;
  449. &lt;li id="ahruky"&gt;Do we want to double Jokić, turning him into a passer?&lt;/li&gt;
  450. &lt;li id="KpvYZq"&gt;Do we want to let him operate one-on-one and live with the result, turning him into a scorer?&lt;/li&gt;
  451. &lt;/ul&gt;
  452. &lt;p id="Kr13kQ"&gt;The Timberwolves have been quite open about wanting to make the 3x Most Valuable Player score the ball. Relatively speaking, you can live with the Joker scoring as long as your offense on the other end plays at a somewhat high level, but if he drops 25 or more points and dishes out ten or more assists, he becomes a five-alarm fire that only makes his teammates better.&lt;/p&gt;
  453. &lt;blockquote&gt;&lt;p id="2JOXV4"&gt;“I just laugh. That’s all I can do. I can’t be mad because he is good, man,” Edwards &lt;a href="https://x.com/DaneMooreNBA/status/1790629475400491425"&gt;told&lt;/a&gt; the media when asked about Jokić after Game 5. “I think I said that after Game 1 when we won, and Game 2: He’s the MVP, he’s the best player in the NBA. He showed it the last three games, three games in a row. He did it tonight. He was special tonight. I got to give him his flowers. I don’t know what we were supposed to do. He was that guy tonight.”&lt;/p&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;
  454. &lt;p id="qW3RXf"&gt;In Game 5, Jokić recorded 40 points and 13 assists with zero turnovers on 15 of 22 from the floor, 2 of 3 from deep, and 8 of 9 from the charity stripe in 41 minutes. Honestly, it felt like he had north of 60 points with his ability to dominate in timely stretches. Whenever the Wolves made any rebuttal, Jokić came down on the other end, slowed everything down, and easily scored from wherever he wanted to, particularly in the third quarter.&lt;/p&gt;
  455. &lt;p id="kf7PCD"&gt;Over the first 2:14 minutes of the second half, the Timberwolves went on an 11-3 run, taking a two-point lead after trailing by six at halftime. They finally had momentum and appeared ready to gain a sizeable lead for the first time in three games. However, the Wolves made offensive miscues the rest of the frame, and Jokić turned in one of the most dominant quarters of basketball in recent memory. He played all 12 minutes of the third, scoring 16 points of Denver’s 38 points on 6 of 7 from the floor and 4 of 4 from the free throw line.&lt;/p&gt;
  456. &lt;div id="UakM9w"&gt;&lt;div style="left: 0; width: 100%; height: 0; position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.25%;"&gt;&lt;iframe src="https://streamable.com/o/41mey9?autoplay=0" style="top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute; border: 0;" allowfullscreen="" scrolling="no" allow="encrypted-media;"&gt;&lt;/iframe&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  457. &lt;div id="kWNGRL"&gt;&lt;div style="left: 0; width: 100%; height: 0; position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.25%;"&gt;&lt;iframe src="https://streamable.com/o/tsltik?autoplay=0" style="top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute; border: 0;" allowfullscreen="" scrolling="no" allow="encrypted-media;"&gt;&lt;/iframe&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  458. &lt;div id="ZjwVFF"&gt;&lt;div style="left: 0; width: 100%; height: 0; position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.25%;"&gt;&lt;iframe src="https://streamable.com/o/ndzm0g?autoplay=0" style="top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute; border: 0;" allowfullscreen="" scrolling="no" allow="encrypted-media;"&gt;&lt;/iframe&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  459. &lt;p id="WH83nt"&gt;Minnesota threw every defender they could at Jokić, mixing and matching to the best of its abilities. Rudy Gobert took stabs at the assignment, as did Karl-Anthony Towns, Kyle Anderson, and Naz Reid. However, there was absolutely nothing the Wolves could do in Game 5. Not only was the Joker dominating inside against the 4-time Defensive Player of the Year one-on-one, but he was also exploding (yes, exploding) off the dribble.&lt;/p&gt;
  460. &lt;blockquote&gt;&lt;p id="ZKlvky"&gt;“He was in the zone. I mean, a couple of shots, I think I actually blocked, and the ball went in,” Gobert &lt;a href="https://x.com/DaneMooreNBA/status/1790632652384428340"&gt;responded&lt;/a&gt; when asked postgame about Jokić third quarter performance. “It was just incredible in that quarter. He put the team on his back and he was making everything. Drawing fouls, getting to the line. So, definitely one of those stretches that we’re going to watch the film and I think there are things we should have done better, but there’s also plays he made that I think are tough to overcome.”&lt;/p&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;
  461. &lt;p id="2ZMdqV"&gt;Do I possess the lucrative game plan that can stop Jokić? Of course not, but I’m not sure one actually exists, which is precisely what makes him so scary to go up against. Regardless, the Wolves must find some level of success in Game 6. Maybe that comes in the form of denying Nikola entry passes and being more physical. But be too physical, and he will mow into you and draw a foul. You also really can’t double-team him, or Jokić will kick the ball out, and the Nuggets will move the ball around the horn until someone is open.&lt;/p&gt;
  462. &lt;p id="XCAYwj"&gt;Do you feel helpless reading that? I’m sure you do because he is an absolute matchup nightmare that — somehow — needs to be contained in order for Minnesota’s season to stay alive. Woof.&lt;/p&gt;
  463.  &lt;figure class="e-image"&gt;
  464.        &lt;img alt="DENVER NUGGETS VS MINNESOTA TIMBERWOLVES, NBA" data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/irtRIi0QlMgdDgW2oLBgvMUlTO8=/400x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25448713/2152470612.jpg"&gt;
  465.      &lt;cite&gt;Photo by AAron Ontiveroz/The Denver Post&lt;/cite&gt;
  466.  &lt;/figure&gt;
  467. &lt;h3 id="s1jEQi"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Transition Defense&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/h3&gt;
  468. &lt;p id="eWJeFS"&gt;When a player of the caliber of Jokić or Jamal Murray is playing out of their mind, it's imperative that you don't reward the team they are on by making stupid mistakes that are a byproduct of laziness. Unfortunately, that’s what happened in Game 5 for the Wolves.&lt;/p&gt;
  469. &lt;p id="EevCfa"&gt;Denver outperformed Minnesota in two significant areas on Tuesday. One of those being points in the paint, as the Nuggets had 62 and the Wolves had 48. But Jokić went 11 of 14 from the paint on his own, being responsible for 22 of those paint points as the scorer alone, so having a disparity in the category is expected.&lt;/p&gt;
  470. &lt;p id="a5nzEd"&gt;However, Denver's 16 fastbreak points, compared to Minnesota's four, was arguably more lethal to the Wolves’ chances of pulling out a win.&lt;/p&gt;
  471. &lt;p id="bwJejd"&gt;Off misses and turnovers, the Wolves rarely got back in transition well. They turned the ball over 14 times, missed 40 shot attempts, and 18 threes, which allowed the Nuggets to get out and run frequently. Before Game 5, &lt;a href="https://cleaningtheglass.com/stats/team/8#tab-offensive_overview"&gt;Denver averaged 147 points per 100 transition plays in the playoffs, ranking 17th in the league&lt;/a&gt;, according to Cleaning the Glass. Head Coach Michael Malone’s team isn’t particularly productive in the open court, but they sure can be when presented with the opportunity.&lt;/p&gt;
  472. &lt;div id="cGtS1S"&gt;&lt;div style="left: 0; width: 100%; height: 0; position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.25%;"&gt;&lt;iframe src="https://streamable.com/o/imny96?autoplay=0" style="top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute; border: 0;" allowfullscreen="" scrolling="no" allow="encrypted-media;"&gt;&lt;/iframe&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  473. &lt;p id="12pVCN"&gt;When Jokić gets a rebound, the first thing he does is look down the floor to see if any of his teammates are streaking. Most of the time, they are, especially when the opposition is caught ball-watching and doesn’t realize when someone is contesting and releasing.&lt;/p&gt;
  474. &lt;div id="4EYxnL"&gt;&lt;div style="left: 0; width: 100%; height: 0; position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.25%;"&gt;&lt;iframe src="https://streamable.com/o/bw7w0o?autoplay=0" style="top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute; border: 0;" allowfullscreen="" scrolling="no" allow="encrypted-media;"&gt;&lt;/iframe&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  475. &lt;div id="sfuDD7"&gt;&lt;div style="left: 0; width: 100%; height: 0; position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.25%;"&gt;&lt;iframe src="https://streamable.com/o/v5mqj9?autoplay=0" style="top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute; border: 0;" allowfullscreen="" scrolling="no" allow="encrypted-media;"&gt;&lt;/iframe&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  476. &lt;p id="HqLhBf"&gt;Time and time again in Game 5, the Wolves were slow to get back on defense, made miscues in the open court, or failed to contest a triple after missing a shot or turning the ball over. If you are going to make mistakes, you need to try your best to make up for it on the other end, and Minnesota didn’t do that in Game 5.&lt;/p&gt;
  477. &lt;p id="m5s4JI"&gt;Of course, making more threes, limiting long defensive rebounds for the opposition, and taking care of the ball will limit the damage Denver can cause in transition. However, mistakes are inevitable, and when they happen, the Wolves must be more connected, physical, and quick to limit how much the Nuggets get out and run in Game 6.&lt;/p&gt;
  478.  &lt;figure class="e-image"&gt;
  479.        &lt;img alt="2024 NBA Playoffs - Denver Nuggets v Minnesota Timberwolves" data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/Wj2hD_1uUoLJHamASYDOkT1oqrM=/400x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25448937/2152114593.jpg"&gt;
  480.      &lt;cite&gt;Photo by David Sherman/NBAE via Getty Images&lt;/cite&gt;
  481.  &lt;/figure&gt;
  482. &lt;h3 id="6ngOJt"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Mike Conley’s Availability&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/h3&gt;
  483. &lt;p id="e6m1Kq"&gt;About nine hours before Game 5 tipped off, the Timberwolves announced that Mike Conley was questionable to play with right Achilles soreness. Chris Finch told the media pregame that Conley was injured in the final play of Game 4, where the result was already definite, as the Nuggets were up eight points with 25 seconds left in the game.&lt;/p&gt;
  484. &lt;div id="q48ea4"&gt;&lt;div style="left: 0; width: 100%; height: 0; position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.25%;"&gt;&lt;iframe src="https://streamable.com/o/dpssec?autoplay=0" style="top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute; border: 0;" allowfullscreen="" scrolling="no" allow="encrypted-media;"&gt;&lt;/iframe&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  485. &lt;p id="OQJniC"&gt;Finch also added that Conley was a game-time decision. After the 36-year-old guard went through his pregame warmups, the team decided he wasn’t good enough to play, so they ruled him out and elected to start Nickeil Alexander-Walker in his place.&lt;/p&gt;
  486. &lt;p id="1zUURT"&gt;Prior to Game 5, the lineup of Alexander-Walker, Edwards, McDaniels, Towns, and Gobert logged 13 minutes in the playoffs, &lt;a href="https://x.com/CharlieWaltonMN/status/1790563576874246288"&gt;recording a +6.14 net rating, 124 offensive rating, and 117.89 defensive rating&lt;/a&gt;, according to PBP stats. Overall, the group was productive, especially on offense. But the sample size was small, and it’s almost impossible to replicate Conley's level-headed impact over the course of an entire game.&lt;/p&gt;
  487. &lt;p id="zPJA1Z"&gt;Expectedly, the Wolves sorely missed Minnesota Mike in Game 5. NAW, who logged 14 points and five assists on 5 of 12 from the floor and 4 of 8 from deep in 39 minutes, was incredibly productive. But he isn’t a true floor general and spent most of his time off-ball, spotting up patiently from the wings and corners.&lt;/p&gt;
  488. &lt;p id="D00k22"&gt;Minnesota’s coaching staff turned to Monte Morris for 12 minutes to inject some feeling of calm. He registered six points and three assists on 3 of 6 from the floor during that time. Morris was good, but he wasn’t great. The former Nuggets guard did what you expected from a player who hasn’t received meaningful minutes for quite some time.&lt;/p&gt;
  489. &lt;p id="xoeewz"&gt;Simply put, the Wolves missed everything that Conley brings in Game 5. They missed his empty-corner PnRs with Gobert. They missed his ability to sift into the paint. They missed his occasional pull-up threes off screens to stem the tide for the opponent. And above all else, they missed his veteran leadership when Denver was going on its runs.&lt;/p&gt;
  490. &lt;blockquote&gt;&lt;p id="0U63KR"&gt;“We’re hopeful Mike [Conley] can go in Game 6,” Chris Finch &lt;a href="https://x.com/JaceFrederick/status/1790658797486121077"&gt;told&lt;/a&gt; the media postgame. “That was one of the reasons to be cautious with him right here, didn’t feel like he could go, but maybe in a couple more days, he could go.”&lt;/p&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;
  491. &lt;p id="cy3iZn"&gt;You must always be cautious with soft tissue injuries, especially for older players. Kristaps Porziņģis and Giannis Antetokounmpo both &lt;a href="https://x.com/jrborman13/status/1790867164838166627"&gt;had a soleus strain and missed multiple weeks&lt;/a&gt; over the last month.&lt;/p&gt;
  492. &lt;p id="01bHGk"&gt;However, the Wolves face elimination, so it is fair to expect Conley will play through some discomfort if the medical staff clears him. He wants to win a championship now more than anyone else on the team. Mike, along with all of his teammates, has worked incredibly hard to get to where they are in the postseason. Momentum may not be in their favor, but the Wolves should be all hands on deck, fighting for their lives on Thursday at Target Center.&lt;/p&gt;
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  517.    <id>https://www.canishoopus.com/2024/5/15/24156985/wolves-vs-nuggets-game-6-preview-starting-time-tv-schedule-injury-report-odds-edwards-towns-jokic</id>
  518.    <author>
  519.      <name>Charlie Walton</name>
  520.    </author>
  521.  </entry>
  522.  <entry>
  523.    <published>2024-05-15T01:24:13-05:00</published>
  524.    <updated>2024-05-15T01:24:13-05:00</updated>
  525.    <title>Lynx 83, Storm 70: Have a Debut, Alanna Smith </title>
  526.    <content type="html">  
  527.  
  528.    &lt;figure&gt;
  529.      &lt;img alt="" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/GmKTwxy2MNzYgUX4Hbzx5Tt3DXQ=/0x398:1639x1491/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/73348146/GNmCVWdbAAA_7Ve.0.jpg" /&gt;
  530.        &lt;figcaption&gt;&lt;em&gt;Minnesota Lynx&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/figcaption&gt;
  531.    &lt;/figure&gt;
  532.  
  533.  &lt;p&gt;&lt;em&gt;Alanna Smith’s 22-point career night highlights Minnesota’s impressive come from behind victory at Climate Pledge Arena. The Lynx staunch defensive helped start their season with a victory for the first time in four years.&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p id="v1SDDh"&gt;The &lt;strong&gt;Minnesota Lynx&lt;/strong&gt; embarked on their 26th season on the road against a reloaded &lt;strong&gt;Seattle Storm&lt;/strong&gt; team. If this sounds familiar, it’s because just two years ago, the Storm played their very first game at Climate Pledge Arena in the season opener*. That was the season where both Sue Bird and Sylvia Fowles bid their farewells to the &lt;a href="https://www.swishappeal.com"&gt;WNBA&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;
  534. &lt;p id="snfc8g"&gt;A lot has changed in two years. Both of these world-class organizations have had to reshape their rosters in different ways. Seattle &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/Y0Leo/status/1695955066828775619"&gt;unsuccessfully tanked&lt;/a&gt; for Caitlin Clark in their first season without Breanna Stewart, finishing with the second worst record in the league. This offseason, they cleared cap space to arm Jewell Loyd with a pair of 33-year-old vets in Skyler Diggins-Smith and Nneka Ogwumike. That star trio combines for 19 All-Star and 15 All-WNBA team selections.&lt;/p&gt;
  535. &lt;p id="shWcUc"&gt;Meanwhile, Lynx Head Coach and President of Basketball Operations Cheryl Reeve opted to build continuity with a young core and push forward with incremental progress. She surrounded MVP-candidate Napheesa Collier with a pair of promising rookies in Diamond Miller and Dorka Juhász, and returning staple role players like Jessica Shepard and Bridget Carleton. Despite their second straight sub-.500 season, Minnesota still made the playoffs and gave the No. 3 seed Connecticut Sun a run for their money in the first round.&lt;/p&gt;
  536. &lt;p id="hnKyGT"&gt;Who would begin their quest to become the first franchise to five championships with a W?&lt;/p&gt;
  537. &lt;p id="hnGxkj"&gt;&lt;small&gt;*&lt;/small&gt;&lt;small&gt;&lt;em&gt; The 2022 season opener in Seattle was the same game that &lt;/em&gt;&lt;/small&gt;&lt;a href="https://x.com/Y0Leo/status/1522837231307698176"&gt;&lt;small&gt;&lt;em&gt;this life event happened for me&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/small&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;em&gt;.&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  538.  &lt;figure class="e-image"&gt;
  539.        &lt;img alt="Minnesota Lynx v Seattle Storm" data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/MIL67mnprMek4Rcdk6O8QePAeqg=/400x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25448683/2152468702.jpg"&gt;
  540.      &lt;cite&gt;Photo by Scott Eklund/NBAE via Getty Images&lt;/cite&gt;
  541.  &lt;/figure&gt;
  542. &lt;h3 id="6FIsJ4"&gt;
  543. &lt;strong&gt;The Start &lt;/strong&gt;— &lt;em&gt;Alanna’s Night&lt;/em&gt;
  544. &lt;/h3&gt;
  545. &lt;p id="UF02Ln"&gt;Right from the opening whistle, it looked like it was going to be a long night for the visiting Lynx. Seattle head coach Noelle Quinn saw the lack of rim protection and called for paint attack after paint attack early. This yielded results, drawing three Minnesota personal fouls in the first two minutes, while scoring a number of easy paint points (14 in the quarter). The poor ball contain allowed every Seattle player to waltz into the lane, eventually allowing &lt;strong&gt;Jewell Loyd &lt;/strong&gt;(&lt;em&gt;10 points, 10 rebounds; 3/19 FG&lt;/em&gt;) get into a comfortable rhythm.&lt;/p&gt;
  546. &lt;p id="88hcbK"&gt;Despite the disappointing effort on that end of the court, the Lynx were able to stay in the game by hitting four of seven 3-point attempts in the first quarter. Bridget Carleton canned her lone triple which led to a pair of back-to-back trey balls from &lt;strong&gt;Alanna Smith &lt;/strong&gt;(&lt;em&gt;22 points, 8 rebounds, 2 assists, 4 stocks&lt;/em&gt;).&lt;/p&gt;
  547. &lt;div id="lKe7rd"&gt;
  548. &lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-dnt="true" align="center"&gt;
  549. &lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;‘Lan from deep.   &lt;a href="https://t.co/ajloA0ro4P"&gt;pic.twitter.com/ajloA0ro4P&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Minnesota Lynx (@minnesotalynx) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/minnesotalynx/status/1790575080432378298?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;May 15, 2024&lt;/a&gt;
  550. &lt;/blockquote&gt;
  551. &lt;script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"&gt;&lt;/script&gt;
  552.  
  553. &lt;/div&gt;
  554. &lt;p id="M5o7wZ"&gt;This was foreshadowing of what was to come from the newly acquired Smith. The perimeter strikes capped off her 10-point quarter to lead Minnesota. After sitting for just 41 seconds in the period, she would go on to play 26 of the remaining 30 minutes of the game. Despite the heavy workload, she was effective in the short roll game and admirably defended &lt;strong&gt;Nneka Ogwumike &lt;/strong&gt;(&lt;em&gt;20 points, 9 rebounds&lt;/em&gt;) and &lt;strong&gt;Ezi Magbegor &lt;/strong&gt;(&lt;em&gt;15 points, 9 rebounds, 3 blocks&lt;/em&gt;) down low.&lt;/p&gt;
  555. &lt;h3 id="J8h4Iw"&gt;
  556. &lt;strong&gt;The Middle &lt;/strong&gt;— &lt;em&gt;Hanging in the Balance&lt;/em&gt;
  557. &lt;/h3&gt;
  558. &lt;p id="UWpsba"&gt;The Storm repeatedly took advantage of Minnesota lack of cohesion on the offensive end as well. A handful of their six turnovers in the second quarter were failed entry passes to rookie Alissa Pili, which helped Seattle get out to a 34-26 advantage. Reeve had seen enough and immediately subbed &lt;strong&gt;Napheesa Collier&lt;/strong&gt; (&lt;em&gt;20 points, 12 rebounds, 3 stocks&lt;/em&gt;) back into the game, who was finally able to help lock up the interior. The defense led to offense, as Minnesota responded with a 7-2 run to keep things from getting out of hand.&lt;/p&gt;
  559. &lt;div id="97Omlp"&gt;
  560. &lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-dnt="true" align="center"&gt;
  561. &lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;BULLY BALL  &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Lynx?src=hash&amp;amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;#Lynx&lt;/a&gt; | &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/WNBA?src=hash&amp;amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;#WNBA&lt;/a&gt; &lt;a href="https://t.co/0pgZGBW3zY"&gt;pic.twitter.com/0pgZGBW3zY&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Bally Sports North (@BallySportsNOR) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/BallySportsNOR/status/1790574219035562116?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;May 15, 2024&lt;/a&gt;
  562. &lt;/blockquote&gt;
  563. &lt;script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"&gt;&lt;/script&gt;
  564.  
  565. &lt;/div&gt;
  566. &lt;p id="MqFyky"&gt;Ogwumike and Magbegor combined for 12 points in the second quarter, but a final 7-0 run by the Lynx helped steal a 45-44 lead heading into the break. It became a back-and-forth affair as both teams returned to the court in the second half. &lt;strong&gt;Courtney Williams&lt;/strong&gt; (&lt;em&gt;14 points, 5 rebounds, 7 assists, 5 steals&lt;/em&gt;) continued to play winning basketball with her all-around skillset. Collier and Ogwumike dueled in the post. Both teams exchanged 8-0 runs. Both teams combined for six turnovers in the final minute of the third quarter.&lt;/p&gt;
  567. &lt;p id="4xtq4S"&gt;Minnesota held a slim 63-60 advantage heading into the final period.&lt;/p&gt;
  568.  &lt;figure class="e-image"&gt;
  569.        &lt;img alt="WNBA: MAY 14 Commissioner’s Cup - Minnesota Lynx at Seattle Storm" data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/7Lv4LKw6fImcTyeu3bE5us4bmxk=/400x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25448706/2152473953.jpg"&gt;
  570.      &lt;cite&gt;Photo by Jeff Halstead/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images&lt;/cite&gt;
  571.  &lt;/figure&gt;
  572. &lt;h3 id="bB7pwO"&gt;
  573. &lt;strong&gt;The Finish &lt;/strong&gt;— &lt;em&gt;Defensive Clinic&lt;/em&gt;
  574. &lt;/h3&gt;
  575. &lt;p id="pBzOE9"&gt;Coach Reeve said about midway through the third quarter, &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/M_Hansen13/status/1790597304761663856"&gt;she had finally gotten through to her team regarding the defense&lt;/a&gt;. Consider the field goal percentage of the Storm quarter-by-quarter:&lt;/p&gt;
  576. &lt;ul&gt;
  577. &lt;li id="UkxEci"&gt;1st quarter — 47.6%&lt;/li&gt;
  578. &lt;li id="httXdF"&gt;2nd quarter — 36.4%&lt;/li&gt;
  579. &lt;li id="YYNVJe"&gt;3rd quarter — 31.6%&lt;/li&gt;
  580. &lt;/ul&gt;
  581. &lt;p id="JeLtUn"&gt;The pressure they put on Seattle at their point of attack coupled perfectly with timely low-man rotations, wearing the newly formed “Super Team” down. The newly signed &lt;strong&gt;Skyler Diggins-Smith&lt;/strong&gt; (&lt;em&gt;10 points, 6 assists; 4/13 FG&lt;/em&gt;) was visibly frustrated as she was unable to get space to operate. Loyd, who led the league in scoring last season, also went ice cold, combining with her backcourt mate to shoot 1/7 in the fourth quarter. No sequence summed up the defensive clinic that Reeve’s Lynx were putting on more than this play.&lt;/p&gt;
  582. &lt;div id="FxZOhe"&gt;
  583. &lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;
  584. &lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Watch the defensive brilliance of the &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Lynx?src=hash&amp;amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;#Lynx&lt;/a&gt; with 5:50 left to play, where Alanna Smith &amp;amp; Napheesa Collier smothered Ezi Magbegor with perfect rotations and form.&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;Ezi traveled AND got blocked     &lt;a href="https://t.co/v2m3MfkJmo"&gt;pic.twitter.com/v2m3MfkJmo&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Leo S (@Y0Leo) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/Y0Leo/status/1790615555273277495?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;May 15, 2024&lt;/a&gt;
  585. &lt;/blockquote&gt;
  586. &lt;script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"&gt;&lt;/script&gt;
  587.  
  588. &lt;/div&gt;
  589. &lt;p id="GQKZsO"&gt;Seattle shot 31.3% from the field in the fourth quarter.&lt;/p&gt;
  590. &lt;p id="wkLiJK"&gt;The look of exasperation on the Storm’s faces mirrored the dispirited home crowd. &lt;strong&gt;Kayla McBride &lt;/strong&gt;(&lt;em&gt;9 points, 5 rebounds, 5 assists, 3 steals&lt;/em&gt;), who was fairly quiet on the offensive end, delivered the final dagger to put the game firmly out of reach with four minutes and change left in the game.&lt;/p&gt;
  591. &lt;div id="v2VREI"&gt;
  592. &lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-dnt="true" align="center"&gt;
  593. &lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;  MCBUCKETS  &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Lynx?src=hash&amp;amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;#Lynx&lt;/a&gt; | &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/WNBA?src=hash&amp;amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;#WNBA&lt;/a&gt; &lt;a href="https://t.co/GQDEfMUBBo"&gt;pic.twitter.com/GQDEfMUBBo&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Bally Sports North (@BallySportsNOR) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/BallySportsNOR/status/1790589294391820367?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;May 15, 2024&lt;/a&gt;
  594. &lt;/blockquote&gt;
  595. &lt;script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"&gt;&lt;/script&gt;
  596.  
  597. &lt;/div&gt;
  598. &lt;p id="GHH3bL"&gt;What began as struggle to stop the most simple Storm action, slowly, but steadily, turned into the complete opposite by the end. Smith poetically notched a new career-high of 22 points with 1:47 left, swishing home a triple as her new teammates went wild on the bench.&lt;/p&gt;
  599. &lt;p id="ZurwtY"&gt;For the first time since 2020, the Lynx opened their season with a W.&lt;/p&gt;
  600. &lt;hr class="p-entry-hr" id="YEiRuP"&gt;
  601. &lt;h2 id="XQ0RLg"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Five Key Takeaways&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/h2&gt;
  602.  &lt;figure class="e-image"&gt;
  603.        &lt;img alt="WNBA: MAY 14 Commissioner’s Cup - Minnesota Lynx at Seattle Storm" data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/vWpzI76A0VOoTFePWKPLRKdsHlM=/400x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25448702/2152473973.jpg"&gt;
  604.      &lt;cite&gt;Photo by Jeff Halstead/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images&lt;/cite&gt;
  605.  &lt;/figure&gt;
  606. &lt;ol&gt;
  607. &lt;li id="xraeYu"&gt;
  608. &lt;strong&gt;Alanna’s Dominance&lt;/strong&gt;: What more can you say? If tonight is any indication, the 27-year-old will be regularly playing over 30 minutes a night. It’s possible that her workload was higher than usual because of Seattle’s size in the frontcourt, but make no mistake, Smith is going to blossom this season.   &lt;/li&gt;
  609. &lt;li id="OGbuYr"&gt;
  610. &lt;strong&gt;Don’t Forget about Phee&lt;/strong&gt;: After the game, Reeve said &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/M_Hansen13/status/1790598334396199421"&gt;she thought Collier was pretty darn good&lt;/a&gt;. Though most headlines will focus on the outstanding performance by Smith, Phee continued to be the lynchpin on both ends of the court. A 20 &amp;amp; 12 night is routine for this special talent, as she tied Smith with a team-high +16 on the night.&lt;/li&gt;
  611. &lt;li id="xQupsS"&gt;
  612. &lt;strong&gt;Defense of Carleton&lt;/strong&gt;: BC’s box score doesn’t look particularly exciting and you won’t see her pop up on many highlights, but she played excellent defense on just about everybody on the Storm. She will likely be much better than her 1/7 performance from deep moving forward, and until then, Reeve will continue trotting Carleton out there for her outstanding defensive contributions.&lt;/li&gt;
  613. &lt;li id="AvL8Wb"&gt;
  614. &lt;strong&gt;Shiny New Backcourt&lt;/strong&gt;: How I got through this recap without saying more about Courtney Williams is wild. Her presence on the court pops on both ends, whether it’s skying in to clean up a defensive possession, throwing beautiful pocket passes, or a patented catch-and-shoot middy. Similarly, Natisha Hiedeman was also brilliant tonight. The pair of former Connecticut Sun guards combined for 23 points, 7 rebounds, 13 assists, and 7 steals.&lt;/li&gt;
  615. &lt;li id="6GtXk3"&gt;
  616. &lt;strong&gt;Who’s in the Rotation?&lt;/strong&gt;: Alissa Pili was surprisingly one of the first players off the bench, perhaps to do with Collier’s early foul trouble, but looked a bit overwhelmed in her 10 minutes. Ceci Zandalasini also got nine minutes off the bench, but with mixed results. Sophomore Diamond Miller did start, but struggled mightily going 1/5 from the field as she continues to work her way back from offseason knee surgery. It’ll be interesting to see how the rotation shakes out moving forward. &lt;/li&gt;
  617. &lt;/ol&gt;
  618. &lt;hr class="p-entry-hr" id="ApH2aM"&gt;
  619. &lt;h2 id="1Lm7Pz"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Game Highlights&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/h2&gt;
  620. &lt;div id="Wh39vU"&gt;&lt;div style="left: 0; width: 100%; height: 0; position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.25%;"&gt;&lt;iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/JjVh2gozlb8?rel=0" style="top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute; border: 0;" allowfullscreen="" scrolling="no" allow="accelerometer; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share;"&gt;&lt;/iframe&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  621. &lt;h2 id="dwYZFX"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Lead Tracker&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/h2&gt;
  622.  &lt;figure class="e-image"&gt;
  623.        &lt;img alt=" " data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/clyxMO2d49qPXzkiTYH1DjZRCvc=/400x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25448622/leadtrackedminsea1.png"&gt;
  624.      &lt;cite&gt;&lt;em&gt;NBA Courtside&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/cite&gt;
  625.  &lt;/figure&gt;
  626. &lt;hr class="p-entry-hr" id="LCec4p"&gt;
  627. &lt;h2 id="KJSfPS"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Up Next&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/h2&gt;
  628. &lt;p id="gBbfUr"&gt;The Lynx will fly back for their home opener to run it back against the &lt;strong&gt;Seattle Storm&lt;/strong&gt; on &lt;strong&gt;Friday, 5/17 &lt;/strong&gt;at &lt;strong&gt;8:30 PM CT&lt;/strong&gt;. Minnesota fans should keep the energy going at Target Center and pack the house as the Lynx rematch their four-time champion rivals.&lt;/p&gt;
  629. &lt;p id="Vk4MSf"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Invest in women’s sports&lt;/strong&gt; by getting your game tickets and merch!&lt;/p&gt;
  630. &lt;div id="9ojMdy"&gt;
  631. &lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-dnt="true" align="center"&gt;
  632. &lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;NEWS: &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/minnesotalynx?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;@minnesotalynx&lt;/a&gt; Single Game Tickets On Sale Today&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;Full release:&lt;a href="https://t.co/7MErfngiDt"&gt;https://t.co/7MErfngiDt&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Lynx PR (@Lynx_PR) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/Lynx_PR/status/1778045520541339955?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;April 10, 2024&lt;/a&gt;
  633. &lt;/blockquote&gt;
  634. &lt;script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"&gt;&lt;/script&gt;
  635.  
  636. &lt;/div&gt;
  637. &lt;div id="8xi2Px"&gt;
  638. &lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-dnt="true" align="center"&gt;
  639. &lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;  Rebel Jerseys  &lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;available online now » &lt;a href="https://t.co/loMRQKDzrP"&gt;https://t.co/loMRQKDzrP&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;available in-store SOON! &lt;a href="https://t.co/3QfRhYFxc9"&gt;pic.twitter.com/3QfRhYFxc9&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Minnesota Lynx Team Store (@TeamStoreLynx) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/TeamStoreLynx/status/1664023810729713664?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;May 31, 2023&lt;/a&gt;
  640. &lt;/blockquote&gt;
  641. &lt;script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"&gt;&lt;/script&gt;
  642.  
  643. &lt;/div&gt;
  644. &lt;p id="X6TWJh"&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  645.  
  646. </content>
  647.    <link rel="alternate" type="text/html" href="https://www.canishoopus.com/2024/5/15/24155400/lynx-vs-storm-final-score-alanna-smith-napheesa-collier-nneka-ogwumike-skylar-diggins-smith-wnba"/>
  648.    <id>https://www.canishoopus.com/2024/5/15/24155400/lynx-vs-storm-final-score-alanna-smith-napheesa-collier-nneka-ogwumike-skylar-diggins-smith-wnba</id>
  649.    <author>
  650.      <name>Leo Sun</name>
  651.    </author>
  652.  </entry>
  653.  <entry>
  654.    <published>2024-05-15T01:21:01-05:00</published>
  655.    <updated>2024-05-15T01:21:01-05:00</updated>
  656.    <title>Nuggets 112, Wolves 97: Sometimes, All You Can Do Is Laugh</title>
  657.    <content type="html">  
  658.  
  659.    &lt;figure&gt;
  660.      &lt;img alt="Minnesota Timberwolves v Denver Nuggets - Game Five" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/c-n7a1PEGGADnwYU2v-Waun6Juo=/0x0:2999x1999/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/73348142/2152996057.0.jpg" /&gt;
  661.        &lt;figcaption&gt;Photo by Matthew Stockman/Getty Images&lt;/figcaption&gt;
  662.    &lt;/figure&gt;
  663.  
  664.  &lt;p&gt;An unconscious Nikola Jokić put up 40 points and 13 assists with zero turnovers, while Anthony Edwards scored just 18 points on 5/15 shooting. Minnesota will now face elimination in Game 6.&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p id="NCryJ7"&gt;At which points in Tuesday’s late night affair did you think the final punch was landed on the &lt;a href="https://www.canishoopus.com"&gt;Minnesota Timberwolves&lt;/a&gt; on behalf of the Denver Nuggets? The Nikola Jokic and-one runner? The Nikola Jokić step-back three over Rudy Gobert in the fourth? The Nikola Jokić one-handed rebound to 80-foot pass to Jamal Murray for the fast break layup?&lt;/p&gt;
  665. &lt;div id="hHoVEV"&gt;
  666. &lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-dnt="true" align="center"&gt;
  667. &lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;What an absurd pass by Nikola Jokic &lt;a href="https://t.co/Fy8PwqH9nx"&gt;pic.twitter.com/Fy8PwqH9nx&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Kevin O'Connor (@KevinOConnorNBA) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/KevinOConnorNBA/status/1790596657584955428?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;May 15, 2024&lt;/a&gt;
  668. &lt;/blockquote&gt;
  669. &lt;script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"&gt;&lt;/script&gt;
  670.  
  671. &lt;/div&gt;
  672. &lt;p id="uVUyVw"&gt;Perhaps it was one of those, perhaps it wasn’t. But whenever that realization was come to for yourself, chances are it was after something the league MVP did. It was like watching a car accident in slow motion from the Wolves side; whether it was Jokic taking fellow award-winner Rudy Gobert to task near the basket, or making the right play on the fast break and ensuring that Denver dominated the Wolves in that area.&lt;/p&gt;
  673. &lt;div id="VF6UjL"&gt;
  674. &lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-dnt="true" align="center"&gt;
  675. &lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Thought Jokic was brilliant in every facet tonight, but the main area was how he orchestrated fastbreaks and turned that into a massive problem for the Wolves.&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;Denver had a 16-4  advantage in fastbreak points tonight. That would have a lot to do with your ballgame.&lt;/p&gt;— Andrew Carlson (@andrew_carlson2) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/andrew_carlson2/status/1790614980150145340?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;May 15, 2024&lt;/a&gt;
  676. &lt;/blockquote&gt;
  677. &lt;script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"&gt;&lt;/script&gt;
  678.  
  679. &lt;/div&gt;
  680. &lt;p id="xxYo2q"&gt;Initially, it looked as though the gameplan execution was going to be sound in forcing Jokic into a scorer’s role, and limiting his options to get others involved. Associate Head Coach Micah Nori said as much in his post-first quarter interview.&lt;/p&gt;
  681. &lt;p id="Vubhtg"&gt;When Jokić records seven or less assists, the Nuggets were 20-11 this year. When he records six or less, they were 11-7.&lt;/p&gt;
  682. &lt;p id="dbksjH"&gt;The attempt in the first quarter to do so looked good initially, but four more assists in the second quarter made a low-assist to win trend look bleak. He finished the first half with 19 points and 8 assists. &lt;/p&gt;
  683. &lt;p id="hasHNV"&gt;Despite a lackadaisical 1-8 from the floor on the part of Anthony Edwards, no Mike Conley due to injury, and a no-show from Sixth Man of the Year Naz Reid, the Wolves found themselves down just six points at halftime. They just didn’t have the firepower and shotmaking to hang on throughout the rest of the game.&lt;/p&gt;
  684. &lt;p id="Sh39WV"&gt;“I thought the offense started great, I thought the three [consecutive] charges took us out of it,” Head Coach Chris Finch said afterward.&lt;/p&gt;
  685. &lt;p id="iMfi8F"&gt;Jokić led all scorers with 40 points on 15/22 shooting to go along with a game-high 13 assists and zero turnovers. Aaron Gordon added 18 points and 10 rebounds, while Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and Jamal Murray each provided 16 points and four assists for Denver. &lt;/p&gt;
  686. &lt;p id="x41GnA"&gt;Towns paced Minnesota with 23 points on 10/19 shooting, six rebounds and four assists, while Edwards mustered up just 18 points on 5/15 shooting; Ant did record nine assists, but also had four costly turnovers. Gobert had his best scoring night of the series, dropping 18 points on 7/7 shooting, 11 rebounds, three assists and four stocks. Nickeil Alexander-Walker also scored in double figures with 14 points on 4/8 shooting from beyond the arc. &lt;/p&gt;
  687. &lt;p id="LlYXZZ"&gt;The Wolves’ bench got outscored yet again, with Reid scoring just seven points on 3/8 shooting, Anderson scoring two points in 16 minutes, and Monte Morris added six points in his 12 minutes. Christian Braun led the Nuggets’ bench with 10, while Reggie Jackson scored six points, making all three of his looks. &lt;/p&gt;
  688. &lt;p id="5zOD55"&gt;Denver also destroyed Minnesota in the paint, 62-48, and on the break, 16-4. &lt;/p&gt;
  689. &lt;hr class="p-entry-hr" id="WaL4oz"&gt;
  690.  &lt;figure class="e-image"&gt;
  691.        &lt;img alt="2024 NBA Playoffs- Minnesota Timberwolves v Denver Nuggets" data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/9d9UUhpVwLqcPTS7OlH6Id9bxUU=/400x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25448670/2152471704.jpg"&gt;
  692.      &lt;cite&gt;Photo by David Sherman/NBAE via Getty Images&lt;/cite&gt;
  693.  &lt;/figure&gt;
  694. &lt;h3 id="n7rsF8"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;A Good Offensive Gobert Game He’ll Never Forget for the Wrong Reasons&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/h3&gt;
  695. &lt;p id="QjYgiv"&gt;Rudy Gobert finished Tuesday night with an 18-point, 11-rebound game and didn’t miss a shot in 40 minutes. If you read the box score, he was the most effective player Minnesota had, maybe outside of Karl-Anthony Towns.&lt;/p&gt;
  696. &lt;div id="kk2P2k"&gt;
  697. &lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-dnt="true" align="center"&gt;
  698. &lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;He is not human &lt;a href="https://t.co/Bd3Kj7ME48"&gt;pic.twitter.com/Bd3Kj7ME48&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Matt Brooks (@MattBrooksNBA) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/MattBrooksNBA/status/1790607584614822273?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;May 15, 2024&lt;/a&gt;
  699. &lt;/blockquote&gt;
  700. &lt;script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"&gt;&lt;/script&gt;
  701.  
  702. &lt;/div&gt;
  703. &lt;p id="lMVqtP"&gt;The unfortunate reality is he was on the receiving end of one of the best games of Nikola Jokic’s career and one of the best individual performances in NBA history&lt;/p&gt;
  704. &lt;div id="jDPek9"&gt;
  705. &lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-dnt="true" align="center"&gt;
  706. &lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;40 points&lt;br&gt;13 assists&lt;br&gt;7 rebounds&lt;br&gt;0 turnovers&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;Nikola Jokic is the only player to do this in a game in NBA history.&lt;/p&gt;— Underdog NBA (@Underdog__NBA) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/Underdog__NBA/status/1790609165439905913?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;May 15, 2024&lt;/a&gt;
  707. &lt;/blockquote&gt;
  708. &lt;script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"&gt;&lt;/script&gt;
  709.  
  710. &lt;/div&gt;
  711. &lt;p id="YtJuqZ"&gt;While defensively left a bit to be desired, I thought early on Rudy had some issues rebounding the ball effectively and getting some of the second chance opportunities that helped them leaps and bounds in the Phoenix series. Instead, it left the door open for Denver to capitalize on the aforementioned fastbreaks, and left smalls like Nickeil Alexander-Walker out to dry on the other end while the bigs worked to get back and match up.&lt;/p&gt;
  712.  &lt;figure class="e-image"&gt;
  713.        &lt;img alt="Minnesota Timberwolves v Denver Nuggets - Game Five" data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/nZ8ikHH4qRaaWLfJUOJ06bbKCtM=/400x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25448679/2152997350.jpg"&gt;
  714.      &lt;cite&gt;Photo by Matthew Stockman/Getty Images&lt;/cite&gt;
  715.  &lt;/figure&gt;
  716. &lt;h3 id="FcDYmW"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;KAT Back&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/h3&gt;
  717. &lt;p id="fssIrU"&gt;While proving futile in loss and posting a -17, Towns bounced back nicely on the offensive end and shot the ball well. I thought he did a pretty nice job in being the initial body on Jokic and had him playing more passive in spots. If there are any positives to take into a game 6 heading back to Minneapolis, it would be Towns’ re-emergence after a woeful game 4, and perhaps showing himself once again to be the reliable second option for Anthony Edwards when he himself inevitably bounces back from Tuesday.&lt;/p&gt;
  718. &lt;p id="VQgCL8"&gt;Towns finished the evening with 23 points on 10/19 shooting (52%).&lt;/p&gt;
  719. &lt;hr class="p-entry-hr" id="nF4Kya"&gt;
  720. &lt;h2 id="twrIhp"&gt;&lt;/h2&gt;
  721.  &lt;figure class="e-image"&gt;
  722.        &lt;img alt="DENVER NUGGETS VS MINNESOTA TIMBERWOLVES, NBA" data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/Bf6h6WMUor4cq0KpEfESyJvL_ms=/400x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25448685/2152476275.jpg"&gt;
  723.      &lt;cite&gt;Photo by AAron Ontiveroz/The Denver Post&lt;/cite&gt;
  724.  &lt;/figure&gt;
  725. &lt;h2 id="xjbl5x"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Two Words: Help Wanted&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/h2&gt;
  726. &lt;p id="sKTkyS"&gt;The Timberwolves are 23-7 when Naz Reid scores 15 or more points this season. It’s one of the main reasons he took home the NBA’s Sixth Man of the Year award. The importance of his offensive pop cannot be understated.&lt;/p&gt;
  727. &lt;p id="0d7cjl"&gt;It’s why the Wolves had been so proficient in games one and two. His versatility off the dribble presents matchup issues for Denver. Not only has that been less visible over the last three games, it’s been downright missing. After pouring in 16 and 14 points in games one and two respectively, he’s combined for just 25 total points over the last three games, and shot 2/8 from deep.&lt;/p&gt;
  728. &lt;p id="e9z5l2"&gt;Anthony Edwards had a rough game. A lot might be made of it, but it shouldn’t. Denver put two on the ball anytime it touched his hands. &lt;/p&gt;
  729. &lt;p id="FPjM8H"&gt;Moreover, the key to beating that in Game 6 when the Nuggets inevitably do the same thing will be swinging it around and hitting shots. It’s a non-negotiable for Naz to be a part of the latter. Without him, you might as well stamp the passports to Cancun now (I wish it didn’t have to come to this).&lt;/p&gt;
  730. &lt;hr class="p-entry-hr" id="av9ksY"&gt;
  731. &lt;h2 id="JSPRZv"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Rotation&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/h2&gt;
  732.  &lt;figure class="e-image"&gt;
  733.        &lt;img alt=" " data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/XQ-Td2aP9__4RkcTlbtogt3vVYw=/400x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25448693/Screenshot_2024_05_15_at_1.08.55_AM.png"&gt;
  734.      &lt;figcaption&gt;https://www.pbpstats.com/live/nba/0042300235/game-flow&lt;/figcaption&gt;
  735.  &lt;/figure&gt;
  736. &lt;hr class="p-entry-hr" id="1H96iE"&gt;
  737. &lt;h2 id="dJqJki"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Up Next&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/h2&gt;
  738. &lt;p id="Q861ws"&gt;With Denver now leading 3-2 and Minnesota facing elimination, these two teams will travel back to Minneapolis ahead of Game 6, which is Thursday at 7:30 PM CT. Fans can watch the game on ESPN.&lt;/p&gt;
  739. &lt;hr class="p-entry-hr" id="UVjBl3"&gt;
  740. &lt;h2 id="qiTY7o"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Highlights&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/h2&gt;
  741. &lt;div id="CtKozk"&gt;&lt;div style="left: 0; width: 100%; height: 0; position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.25%;"&gt;&lt;iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/_wloMt3OLqo?rel=0" style="top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute; border: 0;" allowfullscreen="" scrolling="no" allow="accelerometer; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share;"&gt;&lt;/iframe&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  742.  
  743. </content>
  744.    <link rel="alternate" type="text/html" href="https://www.canishoopus.com/timberwolves-scores-results/2024/5/15/24157088/wolves-vs-nuggets-final-score-game-5-recap-nikola-jokic-rudy-gobert-anthony-edwards-jamal-murray"/>
  745.    <id>https://www.canishoopus.com/timberwolves-scores-results/2024/5/15/24157088/wolves-vs-nuggets-final-score-game-5-recap-nikola-jokic-rudy-gobert-anthony-edwards-jamal-murray</id>
  746.    <author>
  747.      <name>Andrew Carlson</name>
  748.    </author>
  749.  </entry>
  750.  <entry>
  751.    <published>2024-05-14T14:57:41-05:00</published>
  752.    <updated>2024-05-14T14:57:41-05:00</updated>
  753.    <title>Canis Hoopus Roundtable: 2024 Minnesota Lynx Season Preview </title>
  754.    <content type="html">  
  755.  
  756.    &lt;figure&gt;
  757.      &lt;img alt="Seattle Storm v Minnesota Lynx" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/KWzz9mUkkR5DfNVg-5WMESRQfa8=/0x0:2915x1943/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/73347330/1259142603.0.jpg" /&gt;
  758.        &lt;figcaption&gt;Photo by David Berding/Getty Images&lt;/figcaption&gt;
  759.    &lt;/figure&gt;
  760.  
  761.  &lt;p&gt;&lt;em&gt;Ahead of the start of the 2024 WNBA season, the Canis Hoopus team makes some predictions for the year and what we could expect from the Minnesota Lynx.&lt;/em&gt;  &lt;/p&gt; &lt;p id="B9rFqK"&gt;The time has come for the start of another &lt;a href="https://www.swishappeal.com/"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;WNBA&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/a&gt; season! &lt;/p&gt;
  762. &lt;p id="WME4Mj"&gt;The 2024 campaign is officially here, with play in the league tipping off May 14 with four games on opening night. Included in that slate is the Minnesota Lynx, who tip off the new year with a road game against the Seattle Storm at 9 PM CT at Climate Pledge Arena in Seattle on Tuesday night.&lt;/p&gt;
  763. &lt;p id="XIX66C"&gt;After returning to the postseason in 2023 and ending the year sixth in the league standings with a record of 19-21, Minnesota hopes to build off that successful season by taking another step this summer.&lt;/p&gt;
  764. &lt;p id="xR7yPl"&gt;With the new season upon us, the staff at Canis Hoopus got together to preview the year and predict what might happen for the Lynx in 2024. &lt;/p&gt;
  765. &lt;hr class="p-entry-hr" id="jMjr2H"&gt;
  766.  &lt;figure class="e-image"&gt;
  767.        &lt;img alt="WNBA: SEP 17 Playoffs First Round Minnesota Lynx at Connecticut Sun" data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/9iOvkUUuHhAOhcQ32yZXAFvIE9M=/400x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25447853/1676001061.jpg"&gt;
  768.  &lt;/figure&gt;
  769. &lt;h3 id="VnhQuo"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Season Outcome&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/h3&gt;
  770. &lt;p id="vqlJtC"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Mitchell Hansen: &lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  771. &lt;p id="LKNHMV"&gt;&lt;a href="https://www.canishoopus.com/2023/5/19/23723169/canis-hoopus-roundtable-2023-minnesota-lynx-season-preview-napheesa-collier-cheryl-reeve-wnba"&gt;A season ago, I predicted&lt;/a&gt; the Lynx would end up 16-24 overall and have their season end in the first round of the playoffs. That ended up being the case to some extent, with Minnesota ending just below .500, ultimately returning to the postseason and losing to Connecticut in the first round of the playoffs. &lt;/p&gt;
  772. &lt;p id="dJ6QDm"&gt;This year, I believe the Lynx will build onto that, even with the level of talent among all 12 teams improving. Minnesota’s additions this offseason via free agency and in the draft will help build depth to the team, something that will be key down the stretch of the year and as they deal with any injuries throughout the summer. Those additions, mainly the free agent signings, will also boost the veteran leadership and experience on the team. Those players have done this before, they have played in important games, and I think that will only help the Lynx in 2024. &lt;/p&gt;
  773. &lt;blockquote&gt;&lt;p id="XBmBDM"&gt;“I think the expectation is to build on last season. I think a lot of people were sort of unsure what to expect from the Minnesota Lynx. ... What we learned about last season, through our evolution, we had to get through challenging time to get where we got to,” Lynx Head Coach and President of Basketball Operations Cheryl Reeve said on Media Day about last season. “The expectation this season is to build on that. We do have high expectations.”&lt;/p&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;
  774. &lt;p id="Pyjz4x"&gt;This year, I believe the Lynx will end up being a top-five team, improving upon last year while finishing above .500. I also predict that Minnesota will not only reach the same point in the postseason that it did a season ago, but will reach the second round. &lt;/p&gt;
  775. &lt;blockquote&gt;&lt;p id="BmVXGs"&gt;“We know when we get the preseason rankings ... we’re pretty sure it’s not going to blow anybody away,” Reeve said. “But that’s been our life for a while now. We are going to continue to surprise people.”&lt;/p&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;
  776. &lt;p id="O7ttCY"&gt;&lt;em&gt;Prediction: 24-16; Fifth-place finish and second round of the playoffs&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  777. &lt;p id="FOZHQ9"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Jack Borman: &lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  778. &lt;p id="EaaEa4"&gt;My biggest takeaway from the Lynx’s 2023 season was that the team had a rock solid foundation, but just didn’t have enough firepower to seriously compete with the Las Vegas Aces, New York Liberty or Connecticut Sun. So what did General Manager Clare Duwelius and the Lynx front office do? They added some serious offensive talent in Courtney Williams, Natisha Hiedeman and Alissa Pili, and an underrated defensive player in Alanna Smith, who will also offer the Lynx some more offensive versatility. &lt;/p&gt;
  779. &lt;aside id="r9JffI"&gt;&lt;div data-anthem-component="readmore" data-anthem-component-data='{"stories":[{"title":"5 Things to Watch Ahead of Lynx Season-Opening Series vs. Storm","url":"https://www.canishoopus.com/2024/5/11/24154149/minnesota-lynx-seattle-storm-preview-starting-time-tv-schedule-roster-napheesa-collier-cheryl-reeve"}]}'&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/aside&gt;&lt;p id="12CnzI"&gt;With Diamond Miller and Dorka Juhász a year wiser after playing quite a bit as rookies, Kayla McBride and Bridget Carleton back after stellar winter seasons overseas, and Napheesa Collier returning with a jump shot that looks better than ever, it’s hard not to believe the Lynx will take a meaningful step forward further into the top half of the league.&lt;/p&gt;
  780. &lt;p id="4eml6j"&gt;&lt;em&gt;Prediction: 26-14; Fourth-place finish and second round of the playoffs&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  781. &lt;p id="EGVSoA"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Leo Sun: &lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  782. &lt;p id="cdAb6O"&gt;Earlier this month, ESPN released their &lt;a href="https://www.espn.com/wnba/story/_/id/40092221/wnba-2024-preseason-power-rankings-las-vegas-aces-no-1"&gt;2024 preseason power rankings&lt;/a&gt; and slotted the Lynx down at number nine. Their main justification was less about Minnesota regressing, but more about the rest of the league progressing such as the Seattle Storm, Phoenix Mercury, and Indiana Fever. Though that may be true, the Lynx have certainly gotten better heading into this season as well. Remember, just a year ago &lt;a href="https://www.espn.com/wnba/story/_/id/37559127/wnba-power-rankings-preseason-2023-las-vegas-aces-new-top"&gt;ESPN ranked Minnesota seventh&lt;/a&gt; before the Lynx proved them wrong to finish tied for fifth. Even I wrongly shorted Coach Reeve’s squad, predicting a 14-26 finish and missing the playoffs. I’m predicting the Lynx to outperform both ESPN and my own expectations again. The energy and international development will surprise the world.&lt;/p&gt;
  783. &lt;p id="uTwPIK"&gt;&lt;em&gt;Prediction: 22-18; Fifth-place finish and second round of the playoffs&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  784. &lt;p id="fnJS6F"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Benny Hughes:&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  785. &lt;p id="4Kkkbs"&gt;With the amount of talent being infused into the &lt;a href="https://www.swishappeal.com"&gt;WNBA&lt;/a&gt; this season it should create a electrifying new level of parity across the league. Excitement about the W has never been higher and it should make for great storylines throughout the year. As for the Lynx, there was a lot of shuffling of the roster in the offseason but if Minnesota did one thing with their acquisitions, they gained great depth. With multiple high impact new players incoming from trades, free agency and the draft, Coach Reeve will have a lot of levers to pull this season when it comes to the rotation. That is always a luxury. Even with this, I think that the Lynx fall right around where they were last season in a slightly positive record while making the postseason as a six seed yet again. Although I think that this year, they pull off an upset in the first round.&lt;/p&gt;
  786. &lt;p id="ewspfa"&gt;&lt;em&gt;Prediction: 21-19; Sixth-place finish and second round of the playoffs&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  787. &lt;hr class="p-entry-hr" id="30zWCe"&gt;
  788.  &lt;figure class="e-image"&gt;
  789.        &lt;img alt="Minnesota Lynx v Washington Mystics" data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/GDRUfEpt_ksLea_yNqCMgK-mwGU=/400x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25439680/2151478223.jpg"&gt;
  790.      &lt;cite&gt;Photo by Stephen Gosling/NBAE via Getty Images&lt;/cite&gt;
  791.  &lt;/figure&gt;
  792. &lt;h3 id="Ltvru9"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Best Offseason Addition&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/h3&gt;
  793. &lt;p id="hhtTvs"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;MH: &lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  794. &lt;p id="7zpGiX"&gt;Of the additions the Lynx made this offseason, which includes around a handful of new faces, I believe Courtney Williams will be the best addition by the end of the year. That doesn’t take anything away or downplay the role that other additions will play this year, I think the other offseason acquisitions, Smith and Hiedeman, will also play big roles on this team, but I think Williams’ skillset, personality and veteran leadership will go a long way in 2024. &lt;/p&gt;
  795. &lt;aside id="d8Sjqd"&gt;&lt;div data-anthem-component="readmore" data-anthem-component-data='{"stories":[{"title":"What Should Lynx Fans Know About Ex-Sky Standouts Courtney Williams and Alanna Smith?","url":"https://www.canishoopus.com/2024/3/12/24098970/minnesota-lynx-courtney-williams-alanna-smith-2024-wnba-free-agency-chicago-sky"}]}'&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/aside&gt;&lt;p id="PDFLrn"&gt;During the offseason, Williams was right at the top of my wishlist for Minnesota behind Natasha Cloud, and it’s great to see that the Lynx were able to bring her onto a team that has looked for a steady presence at point guard for at least the last handful of seasons. After what we saw from Williams in 2023, her first full season primarily at point guard, I think she feels even more comfortable this year in taking that starting role over and running with it in Minnesota. Williams fits this team perfect in the way they do things on both ends of the court. She has the ability to set up her teammates and open things up for others, but can also take over offensively if needed.&lt;/p&gt;
  796. &lt;p id="yUabcP"&gt;I think Williams will have a breakout year for the Lynx in 2024, and she will end up becoming a fan favorite with her personality, fire and leadership she displays in partnership with her on-court skillset.&lt;/p&gt;
  797. &lt;p id="5q4m8J"&gt;&lt;em&gt;Prediction: Courtney Williams&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  798. &lt;p id="Ikkkxn"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;JB:&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  799. &lt;p id="aJ0mfz"&gt;Williams is certainly 1A here, but I’ll go with Hiedeman as my 1B. The Lynx desperately needed better guard play and both Williams and Hiedeman are better organizers and better fits for this roster than any of the three ball-handlers Minnesota played last season. Hiedeman has a ton of playoff experience from her time as a member of the Sun, is a trusted operator in the pick-and-roll, and should provide the Lynx another shooter that can space the floor in blended lineups with the starters and bench. Hiedeman may be a more well-rounded player than Tiffany Mitchell, Lindsay Allen or Rachel Banham, which will afford Reeve more lineup flexibility on both ends of the floor — an important attribute especially come playoff time. She is also a high-energy vocal presence and respected veteran, which are crucial qualities in a locker room with young players.&lt;/p&gt;
  800. &lt;p id="HUVm5O"&gt;&lt;em&gt;Prediction: Natisha Hiedeman&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  801. &lt;p id="2OvqXf"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;LS:&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  802. &lt;p id="hPc0ZG"&gt;Similar to above, I think C-Dub will have the biggest obvious impact on and off the floor, given the playing time and role she’s going to have. I’ve long been fan of hers. That said, I’m going to swerve and go with our old friend, Ceci. After flirting with a return to Minnesota in 2020, the pandemic through things in a loop and Zandalasini has remained thriving overseas for the past handful of years. I believe her experience and perimeter shooting will be invaluable to a team that Coach Reeve hopes will be near top of the ranks in 3-point shooting.&lt;/p&gt;
  803. &lt;p id="jy8p2I"&gt;&lt;em&gt;Prediction: Cecilia Zandalasini&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  804. &lt;aside id="uBFKJ2"&gt;&lt;div data-anthem-component="readmore" data-anthem-component-data='{"stories":[{"title":"What to Expect From Cecilia Zandalasini if She Returns to Lynx in 2024","url":"https://www.canishoopus.com/2024/2/3/24059454/wnba-free-agency-2024-cecilia-zandalasini-minnesota-lynx-virtus-segafredo-bologna-italy"}]}'&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/aside&gt;&lt;p id="IodPcy"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;BH:&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  805. &lt;p id="RHxSWb"&gt;I am going to echo Mitchell and go with the one who will have the biggest role of all the acquisitions in the offseason: Courtney Williams. The South Florida product is expected to be the starting point guard and bring her scoring/passing blend to stabilize the 1 position for the Lynx. She has averaged double digits in scoring each of her last seven seasons in the league and boasted a 44.3% 3-point shooting percentage last year with Chicago. On top of the on the court production, she is a great veteran to have around the younger players in Dorka Juhász and Diamond Miller. I think that she will do wonders for the young sophomore duo’s development.&lt;/p&gt;
  806. &lt;p id="JcdrwM"&gt;&lt;em&gt;Prediction: Courtney Williams&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  807. &lt;hr class="p-entry-hr" id="LOFBBV"&gt;
  808.  &lt;figure class="e-image"&gt;
  809.        &lt;img alt="Chicago Sky v Minnesota Lynx" data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/wFlscANLUVZTXGEUZEGlLOWrnV4=/400x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25440682/2150777595.jpg"&gt;
  810.      &lt;cite&gt;Photo by David Sherman/NBAE via Getty Images&lt;/cite&gt;
  811.  &lt;/figure&gt;
  812. &lt;h3 id="glYi1U"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Biggest Surprise Player&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/h3&gt;
  813. &lt;p id="UJhnHv"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;MH: &lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  814. &lt;p id="tNUFmD"&gt;I strongly believe, outside of Williams, that Smith will have one of the biggest impacts on the Lynx in 2024 and might surprise people by year’s end. Smith enjoyed the best season of her WNBA career with Chicago in 2023, impacting the game in many ways outside of just scoring and/or rebounding the ball. &lt;/p&gt;
  815. &lt;p id="vaserP"&gt;That “do it all” trait is something that will be very valuable for the Lynx to go along with her versatility and ability to run the floor well. At 28, Smith not only understands what she needs to do to be successful with a few years of experience, but she has plenty of playing days left in her to continue to grow with the Lynx. &lt;/p&gt;
  816. &lt;p id="nMUONj"&gt;We might look back on this signing and think it was one of the most underrated signings of the offseason, not only for Minnesota but perhaps league-wide. I think Smith will fit in perfectly with the Lynx in 2024 and beyond. &lt;/p&gt;
  817. &lt;p id="gE6WgH"&gt;&lt;em&gt;Prediction: Alanna Smith&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  818. &lt;aside id="BqrwbE"&gt;&lt;div data-anthem-component="readmore" data-anthem-component-data='{"stories":[{"title":"What Will Free Agency Addition Alanna Smith Bring to the Lynx?","url":"https://www.canishoopus.com/2024/1/29/24052405/2024-wnba-free-agency-alanna-smith-signs-minnesota-lynx-film-room"}]}'&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/aside&gt;&lt;p id="P7CO4j"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;JB:&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  819. &lt;p id="4uFsbE"&gt;After struggling with consistency during the 2023 season, Bridget Carleton is in line for a nice bounce back in 2024 on the heels of a great showing overseas for Uni Györ, averaging 17 points per game and shooting 40.0% from beyond the arc on seven attempts per game. Carleton made five of her seven 3-pointers in the preseason and has looked very comfortable in a more spaced-out Lynx offense that will unlock more 3-point shooting opportunities for the Canadian National Team star. She should slot in seventh in the rotation (behind Hiedeman off the bench) and could slide down to eighth when Dorka Juhász returns from Italy in the next two weeks. But Carleton will be a heavily relied upon bench player this season who fits in nicely around Collier, McBride, Williams, Miller and Co.&lt;/p&gt;
  820. &lt;p id="588oNa"&gt;&lt;em&gt;Prediction: Bridget Carleton&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  821. &lt;p id="ieWFVv"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;LS:&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  822. &lt;p id="p8p6lu"&gt;The sophomore bump will remind the league that Diamond is a budding star. After dealing with a number of injuries for the first time in her young career, Miller had an up-and-down season with plenty of flashes of brilliance. That’s typical of any rookie campaign. Diamond now has a whole year of experience under her belt and a full offseason to get back to full health. With Minnesota not having the services of Shepard or Milić this year, I’m expecting increased production with increased playing time.&lt;/p&gt;
  823. &lt;p id="GHd8Ip"&gt;&lt;em&gt;Prediction: Diamond Miller&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  824. &lt;p id="LYXBd3"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;BH:&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  825. &lt;p id="WrYbtl"&gt;Alanna Smith signed a two-year deal with the Lynx in January after spending last season with Chicago where she averaged a career high in nearly every statistical category. With the additions of Smith and Pili to go with Juhász and Collier it gives Minnesota a lot of options in how they want to line up in the front court. With the change of scenery and how the Lynx run their offense I believe that Smith will set a new career-high in 3-point percentage as she will have the open opportunities in the offensive flow. The Australian native averaged 9.2 points and 6.6 rebounds per game last season. That blend of scoring and rebounding will be great to pair with Phee in the frontcourt and her ability to function alongside Collier will be a pleasant surprise to Lynx fans.&lt;/p&gt;
  826. &lt;p id="3pmrGT"&gt;&lt;em&gt;Prediction: Alanna Smith&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  827. &lt;hr class="p-entry-hr" id="LMbyNJ"&gt;
  828.  &lt;figure class="e-image"&gt;
  829.        &lt;img alt="Minnesota Lynx v Washington Mystics" data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/Mqf-K32KwC984M25qsqTge7RYJw=/400x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25444495/2151476713.jpg"&gt;
  830.      &lt;cite&gt;Photo by Stephen Gosling/NBAE via Getty Images&lt;/cite&gt;
  831.  &lt;/figure&gt;
  832. &lt;h3 id="cGaMwt"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Best Role Player&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/h3&gt;
  833. &lt;p id="d58PV2"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;MH: &lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  834. &lt;p id="M3xyZA"&gt;I’m going to cheat a little bit here. I couldn’t decide on just one player to be crowned as the best role player by year’s end, but I’m going with two: Natisha Hiedeman and Dorka Juhász.&lt;/p&gt;
  835. &lt;p id="m5Ow6T"&gt;Starting with Hiedeman, I think she is a talent that could even slide into the starting lineup on teams in the WNBA, but will fit in perfectly coming off the bench for the Lynx behind Williams. Cheryl Reeve said during the preseason that Hiedeman “is entering the prime of her career” and will “be a big part” in the team’s effort from 3 and defensively, all while being a key piece to the Lynx’s second unit. Hiedeman will provide a nice spark off the bench and I think she will be one of the top role players on the team in 2024. &lt;/p&gt;
  836. &lt;p id="RHzt1d"&gt;For Juhász, she will continue to improve upon an impressive rookie season that ended with her being a regular in the starting lineup. With the addition of Smith to the starting lineup, I believe Juhász will start the season or will spend most of the season coming off the bench, though she is capable of being a starter. Juhász will be a valuable piece to the Lynx in whatever role she has — either as a starter or a bench player — and I wouldn’t be surprised one bit if she takes yet another step in improving this summer. &lt;/p&gt;
  837. &lt;p id="EEfT34"&gt;&lt;em&gt;Prediction: Natisha Hiedeman or Dorka Juhász&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  838. &lt;p id="klZboF"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;JB:&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  839. &lt;p id="aPghn8"&gt;I’ll go with Alanna Smith here. The Tasmania, Australia native is a unique player who at 6-foot-4 can do just about everything on the floor. She can play in pick-and-roll, crash the offensive glass, cut, space to the corners, play in the dribble hand-off game, is a good passer out of the post, and can put it on the deck and score on the drive. Defensively, she’s a great playmaker who rotates very well on the back side, can guard multiple positions, and really battles on the defensive glass. While Juhász is a terrific rim protector who excels in drop coverage, Smith moves very well in space and is going to be willing to play at the level of the screen and even switch onto smaller players. Because of this, Minnesota will be able to play Smith, Collier and Juhász together against bigger teams along with two of Williams, McBride and Miller — a nice luxury to go to late in games. &lt;/p&gt;
  840. &lt;p id="yl732a"&gt;&lt;em&gt;Prediction: Alanna Smith&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  841. &lt;p id="w7y4Y9"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;LS:&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  842. &lt;p id="bvhjhX"&gt;Not many players are as much of a star in their role on this team than Bridget Carleton. In what some would label as a “down year” statistically, Carl never slumped her shoulders and drooped her head. The ask from Coach Reeve could vary from night-to-night, sometimes being asked to come in and provide an offensive spark, then suddenly be asked to tussle with bigs in the paint, but she would always come in and deliver. As mentioned above, there will be more minutes to spread around with the frontcourt absences, so I expect Carleton to  thrive even more this season.&lt;/p&gt;
  843. &lt;p id="TygS0b"&gt;&lt;em&gt;Prediction: Bridget Carleton&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  844. &lt;p id="r1CZ21"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;BH:&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  845. &lt;p id="9iXMJp"&gt;Minnesota acquired Hiedeman in a trade that sent Tiffany Mitchell and a draft pick to Connecticut. The Sun were one of my favorite teams outside the Lynx to watch last season and she provides a little bit of everything on the court. This was on full display in Minnesota’s last preseason game where she filled the stat sheet with eight points, four rebounds, six assists and two steals. The five-year vet will serve as a great connector for Minnesota off the bench and I think she will be Coach Reeve’s safety blanket along with Courtney Williams when things are getting out of control. She also shoots 37% from 3 and can provide great shooting from the outside.&lt;/p&gt;
  846. &lt;p id="1NkBOP"&gt;&lt;em&gt;Prediction: Natisha Hiedeman&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  847. &lt;hr class="p-entry-hr" id="SLHKmv"&gt;
  848.  &lt;figure class="e-image"&gt;
  849.        &lt;img alt="2024 Minnesota Lynx Media Day" data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/ML5QO80lzwpdvbc4gf63H37j1Lo=/400x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25439685/2150586749.jpg"&gt;
  850.      &lt;cite&gt;Photo by David Sherman/NBAE via Getty Images&lt;/cite&gt;
  851.  &lt;/figure&gt;
  852. &lt;h3 id="BRwLau"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Most Valuable Player&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/h3&gt;
  853. &lt;p id="S4n1N9"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;MH: &lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  854. &lt;p id="0UOsKK"&gt;I think this one is pretty obvious. The success of the Minnesota Lynx rides on the play of Napheesa Collier. She has been the focal point of this team and the face of the franchise now the last few seasons, and she will continue to be just that in 2024 with the offense running through her. Every move Minnesota has made over the last few years has had Collier in mind, surrounding her with talent that play well into her skillset. That, along with her increased level of play that landed her in the MVP conversation in 2023, will put her right back in MVP talks this year. &lt;/p&gt;
  855. &lt;p id="dmLV65"&gt;Collier will not only be the MVP of the Lynx in 2024, but in my mind she already starts the year as an MVP candidate league-wide. Look for Collier to continue to lead the Lynx in 2024 and build on an impressive season that she had a summer ago. &lt;/p&gt;
  856. &lt;p id="HD9JBz"&gt;&lt;em&gt;Prediction: Napheesa Collier&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  857. &lt;p id="Ujf0h4"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;JB:&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  858. &lt;p id="j98loP"&gt;Do I need to say anything other than Napheesa Collier? She finished fourth in MVP voting last season and was a easy selection for First Team All-WNBA leading a Lynx team to the playoffs when no one thought she could entering the season. Now, she’ll have significantly better spacing around her, more room to operate in, and her looks should come even easier than they did last season, when she averaged a career-high 21.5 points on 48.5/29.8/84.0 FG/3PT/FT shooting splits. That line should be her floor in 2024 and she’ll be in the thick of the MVP conversation once again if she stays healthy. &lt;/p&gt;
  859. &lt;p id="xqWm8Q"&gt;&lt;em&gt;Prediction: &lt;/em&gt;Napheesa Collier&lt;/p&gt;
  860. &lt;p id="RCcztc"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;LS:&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  861. &lt;p id="2YQvvP"&gt;In my prediction last year, I said no other player other than Phee would be the team MVP unless “something surprisingly right or horribly wrong has happened.” Neither did, so Napheesa Collier only ended up with All-WNBA first team, All-Defensive second team, and All-Star honors, as well as finishing fourth in LEAGUE MVP voting. Collier’s arrow is pointing straight up and I’m expecting an even better season from her.&lt;/p&gt;
  862. &lt;p id="aH05vC"&gt;&lt;em&gt;Prediction: Napheesa Collier&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  863. &lt;p id="dGwndt"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;BH:&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  864. &lt;p id="Q0gHNi"&gt;This one is a no-brainer. Phee had a career year last season and proved herself to be a two-way force in the league for years to come. Her resume continues to get longer and more impressive as she continues to be the feature piece on this Minnesota squad. Pencil her in to be right up there with the elite players in the league and enjoy the dominance that is sure to come.&lt;/p&gt;
  865. &lt;p id="iMxHAr"&gt;&lt;em&gt;Prediction: Napheesa Collier&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  866. &lt;hr class="p-entry-hr" id="Y9vHJX"&gt;
  867.  &lt;figure class="e-image"&gt;
  868.        &lt;img alt="Chicago Sky v Minnesota Lynx" data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/XiP78fFmCtrEcQ9Xo2hiz6tD9D4=/400x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25444504/2150774574.jpg"&gt;
  869.      &lt;cite&gt;Photo by David Sherman/NBAE via Getty Images&lt;/cite&gt;
  870.  &lt;/figure&gt;
  871. &lt;h3 id="SDmxbA"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Bold Prediction&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/h3&gt;
  872. &lt;p id="QDkb6I"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;MH: &lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  873. &lt;p id="l34IqM"&gt;As mentioned earlier, I think Williams will be the best offseason addition for Minnesota and she will end up having a career year with the Lynx. A season ago, her first season primarily at point guard with the Sky, Williams averaged 10.4 points, 6.3 assists, 6.0 rebounds and 1.0 steals over 30.1 minutes in all 40 regular season games, shooting 43.7% from the field and 44.3% from deep. Williams seems to have an increased sense of drive with a team she knows values her and wants her, and the skillset of talent around her will set her up for success as much as she will set up them. I expect Williams to not only have a similar year to what we saw from her in Chicago last year, but she will improve en route to a career year. &lt;/p&gt;
  874. &lt;p id="Dnkv5b"&gt;When it comes to defense, that was an area of weakness for the team in 2023, carrying the 10th-ranked defensive rating in the league. Defense was an area of focus this offseason and it will continue to be an area of focus throughout the 2024 campaign, and the additions along with that focus on improvement will result in the team moving into the top half in the WNBA in defensive rating. Over the years, the Lynx have prided themselves on defense, and they will get back to doing that again in 2024. &lt;/p&gt;
  875. &lt;p id="LEminI"&gt;&lt;em&gt;Prediction: Courtney Williams will have a career year and Minnesota will finishing in the top half of the WNBA in defense&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  876. &lt;p id="Tr7maV"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;JB:&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  877. &lt;p id="HQ1DtO"&gt;Last season, the Lynx finished sixth in the standings, but finished 10th in net rating (-5.9), a clear sign that they banded together and found ways to win even though they weren’t playing their best basketball. But entering 2024, the Lynx should be significantly better on both ends of the floor. They have the size, length, and athleticism necessary to play a diverse rotation of defensive schemes, and can put together lineups with significantly better shooting and scoring upside than last season, too. Most importantly, the pieces all fit together very nicely on paper, and project to do so on the court, too. A 2-0 preseason record doesn’t hurt, either.&lt;/p&gt;
  878. &lt;p id="Frr8eP"&gt;Led by one of the best players in the W in Collier, a pair of Grade A Robins in Williams and McBride, rock solid two-way role players in Smith, Hiedeman and Carleton, and two young players with high upside that took major steps forward in their rookie seasons, the Lynx have the tools to be one of the most efficient teams on both ends of the floor this season. &lt;/p&gt;
  879. &lt;p id="5cA8tn"&gt;&lt;em&gt;Prediction: Lynx finish top-six in offense and defense and maintain a positive net rating.&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  880. &lt;p id="ec4nOs"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;LS:&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  881. &lt;p id="VTuBLt"&gt;I missed on last season’s prediction of Milić becoming the full-time starter (She started 3 of 40 games). That said, it wasn’t a complete whiff, as she was the &lt;em&gt;most&lt;/em&gt; available player on the entire roster a year ago (Team-high 39 games played). I’m going in a different direction this year. Reeve openly shared her &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/M_Hansen13/status/1785714811294150668"&gt;goal of being a top four 3-point shooting team&lt;/a&gt; in 2024. The additions of Williams, Hiedeman, and (potentially) Zandalasini will certainly help. But if preseason is any indication, Phee’s jumper is looking as good as it did in her sophomore season where she shot 40.8% from deep. Through the two games she has gone four for six so I fully expect her to improve on her 29.8% mark from 2023 by a significant margin. Hot shooting is my hot take.&lt;/p&gt;
  882. &lt;p id="Awoai7"&gt;&lt;em&gt;Prediction: Napheesa Collier shoots over 40% from beyond the arc&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  883. &lt;div id="FsWUxP"&gt;
  884. &lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-dnt="true" align="center"&gt;
  885. &lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;PHEE FOR THREEE &lt;a href="https://t.co/X0OkGtOdFZ"&gt;pic.twitter.com/X0OkGtOdFZ&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Minnesota Lynx (@minnesotalynx) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/minnesotalynx/status/1786567246497636492?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;May 4, 2024&lt;/a&gt;
  886. &lt;/blockquote&gt;
  887. &lt;script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"&gt;&lt;/script&gt;
  888.  
  889. &lt;/div&gt;
  890. &lt;p id="zqGKA5"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;BH:&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  891. &lt;p id="FmqXSZ"&gt;With the roster turnover that happened during the offseason and the influx of talent in the Twin Cities, there was a lot of shooting that came with it. Minnesota is replacing Lindsay Allen, Tiffany Mitchell and Jess Shepherd with Courtney Williams, Natisha Hiedman, Alanna Smith and Alissa Pili. While Allen, Mitchell and Shepherd all had plenty of skills, shooting was not one of them. Replacing that lack of shooting with the players the Lynx targeted in the offseason should lead to much more success from downtown. That ability mixed with the system that Minnesota is attempting to install should lead to a huge spike in 3-point percentage team wide. After being next to last in the WNBA last season, I think Minnesota takes a massive leap into the top three this season.&lt;/p&gt;
  892. &lt;p id="Kh7RIy"&gt;&lt;em&gt;Prediction: The Lynx are top three in the WNBA in 3-point percentage as a team&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  893.  
  894. </content>
  895.    <link rel="alternate" type="text/html" href="https://www.canishoopus.com/2024/5/14/24152492/minnesota-lynx-2024-wnba-season-preview-napheesa-collier-chery-reeve-alissa-pili-courtney-williams"/>
  896.    <id>https://www.canishoopus.com/2024/5/14/24152492/minnesota-lynx-2024-wnba-season-preview-napheesa-collier-chery-reeve-alissa-pili-courtney-williams</id>
  897.    <author>
  898.      <name>Mitchell Hansen</name>
  899.      <name>Jack Borman</name>
  900.      <name>Leo Sun</name>
  901.      <name>Benny Hughes</name>
  902.    </author>
  903.  </entry>
  904.  <entry>
  905.    <published>2024-05-14T13:18:14-05:00</published>
  906.    <updated>2024-05-14T13:18:14-05:00</updated>
  907.    <title>Playoff Game Preview #9: Wolves at Nuggets</title>
  908.    <content type="html">  
  909.  
  910.    &lt;figure&gt;
  911.      &lt;img alt="2024 NBA Playoffs - Denver Nuggets v Minnesota Timberwolves" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/7RFDPhkdZhIbgyw3ybIJjh5-Wp4=/0x0:8640x5760/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/73345273/2152126668.0.jpg" /&gt;
  912.        &lt;figcaption&gt;Photo by Garrett Ellwood/NBAE via Getty Images&lt;/figcaption&gt;
  913.    &lt;/figure&gt;
  914.  
  915.  &lt;p&gt;After losing both games in Minnesota, Anthony Edwards and the Timberwolves look to retake the series lead against Nikola Jokić and the Denver Nuggets&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p id="1DfLrs"&gt;After winning their first six games of the 2024 &lt;a href="https://www.sbnation.com/nba-playoffs"&gt;NBA Playoffs&lt;/a&gt;, Anthony Edwards and the &lt;a href="https://www.canishoopus.com"&gt;Minnesota Timberwolves&lt;/a&gt; have dropped the past two games at Target Center to Nikola Jokić, Jamal Murray, and the Denver Nuggets, tying the series at 2-2.&lt;/p&gt;
  916. &lt;p id="jTxJCg"&gt;Now, the series shifts back to Denver for Game 5 as both teams look to take two of the next three games to advance to the Western Conference Finals.&lt;/p&gt;
  917. &lt;div class="c-float-right"&gt;&lt;div id="Y6SHRR"&gt;&lt;div data-anthem-component="aside:12299189"&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  918. &lt;p id="NAYroi"&gt;This Timberwolves team has done a fantastic job responding to adversity all season as they did not lose three consecutive games all season. This will be their toughest test yet as avoiding a three games losing streak will require again winning a road playoff game against the defending champions.&lt;/p&gt;
  919. &lt;p id="TseJCS"&gt;After losing the first two games at home, the Nuggets showed why they are the champs by taking both games in Minneapolis. If the Timberwolves want to win a championship of their own, they will now also need to respond before it is too late.&lt;/p&gt;
  920. &lt;hr class="p-entry-hr" id="Bx1Ak8"&gt;
  921. &lt;h2 id="iDdu4t"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Game Info&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/h2&gt;
  922. &lt;ul&gt;
  923. &lt;li id="tEJzff"&gt;
  924. &lt;strong&gt;Who:&lt;/strong&gt; #3 Minnesota Timberwolves (2-2) vs. #2 Denver Nuggets (2-2)&lt;/li&gt;
  925. &lt;li id="7MfWZV"&gt;
  926. &lt;strong&gt;When:&lt;/strong&gt; Tuesday, May 14 at 9:30 PM CT&lt;/li&gt;
  927. &lt;li id="mZOl6b"&gt;
  928. &lt;strong&gt;Where:&lt;/strong&gt; Ball Arena — Denver, CO&lt;/li&gt;
  929. &lt;li id="2XmqXC"&gt;
  930. &lt;strong&gt;National TV:&lt;/strong&gt; TNT (Kevin Harlan, Reggie Miller, Jamal Crawford, Allie LaForce)&lt;/li&gt;
  931. &lt;li id="AuFbqc"&gt;
  932. &lt;strong&gt;Radio:&lt;/strong&gt; KFAN FM 100.3, Wolves App&lt;/li&gt;
  933. &lt;li id="cNJiZ6"&gt;
  934. &lt;strong&gt;Line:&lt;/strong&gt; Nuggets -4.5 | &lt;strong&gt;Total:&lt;/strong&gt; 206 (courtesy of &lt;a href="https://sportsbook.draftkings.com/teams/basketball/nba/minnesota-timberwolves"&gt;DraftKings Sportsbook&lt;/a&gt;)&lt;/li&gt;
  935. &lt;/ul&gt;
  936. &lt;hr class="p-entry-hr" id="UNKbE4"&gt;
  937. &lt;h2 id="GBsO8D"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Injury Report&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/h2&gt;
  938. &lt;p id="bK10wi"&gt;&lt;em&gt;Updated as of Tuesday, May 14 at 9:10 PM CT&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  939. &lt;h3 id="o7dLrN"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Minnesota&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/h3&gt;
  940. &lt;p id="DS4lk1"&gt;&lt;em&gt;&lt;strong&gt;OUT:&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  941. &lt;ul&gt;&lt;li id="vy7Ful"&gt;&lt;em&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Mike Conley (right achilles soreness)&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/li&gt;&lt;/ul&gt;
  942. &lt;h3 id="7ZvAHH"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Denver&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/h3&gt;
  943. &lt;p id="920Z7S"&gt;QUESTIONABLE:&lt;/p&gt;
  944. &lt;ul&gt;&lt;li id="8QtufL"&gt;Jamal Murray (left calf strain)&lt;/li&gt;&lt;/ul&gt;
  945. &lt;p id="O1E2F5"&gt;OUT:&lt;/p&gt;
  946. &lt;ul&gt;&lt;li id="woNfQr"&gt;Vlatko Čančar (left torn ACL surgery)&lt;/li&gt;&lt;/ul&gt;
  947. &lt;hr class="p-entry-hr" id="2PdeXr"&gt;
  948. &lt;h2 id="3Tgswt"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;What To Watch For&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/h2&gt;
  949.  &lt;figure class="e-image"&gt;
  950.        &lt;img alt="Denver Nuggets v Minnesota Timberwolves - Game Four" data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/bWE1v4AwcUt5UXPwMtE61a5OZlA=/400x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25445882/2152661920.jpg"&gt;
  951.      &lt;cite&gt;Photo by David Berding/Getty Images&lt;/cite&gt;
  952.  &lt;/figure&gt;
  953. &lt;h3 id="92Bs11"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Timberwolves’ Struggling Offense&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/h3&gt;
  954. &lt;p id="T2fUJG"&gt;Anthony Edwards has been sensational in these playoffs and Game 4 was no exception as he scored 44 points on efficient splits of 16-25 from the floor and 5-8 from beyond the arc.&lt;/p&gt;
  955. &lt;p id="5ZyxAr"&gt;Unfortunately for the Timberwolves, Ant was the only player that was able to get into any offensive rhythm as the other seven Timberwolves players were unable to score effectively as they combined to shoot 23-57 on field goals including 6-20 on 3-pointers.&lt;/p&gt;
  956. &lt;p id="v89BrU"&gt;Karl-Anthony Towns had an especially bad game missing 13 of his 18 shots, struggling to score on his post touches and drives through double teams. Without Towns’ scoring help, the Wolves offense was unable to find enough offensive creation to keep up with Denver’s championship-level play.&lt;/p&gt;
  957. &lt;p id="fT3Yyp"&gt;The Wolves found it incredibly difficult to play without Edwards on the floor as despite the superstar guard only sitting on the bench for three minutes the entire game, the Wolves found a way to lose those minutes by 13 points, an incredibly costly number in a game they lost by only eight.&lt;/p&gt;
  958. &lt;p id="mbsS48"&gt;The Timberwolves offense had been fantastic through the first six games of the playoffs, punishing teams that do not have the defensive firepower to defend by Edwards and Towns.&lt;/p&gt;
  959. &lt;p id="hu7xON"&gt;That is still the case in this series with the Nuggets, who don’t have a great defensive option for Ant, but the Wolves will need to find the flow they had in the first two games of this series if they have any hope of taking another game at mile high.&lt;/p&gt;
  960.  &lt;figure class="e-image"&gt;
  961.        &lt;img alt="NBA: Playoffs-Denver Nuggets at Minnesota Timberwolves" data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/qd4Cs8NEhmWQv1Qq6JBM0vzKwRc=/400x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25445876/usa_today_23258008.jpg"&gt;
  962.      &lt;cite&gt;Bruce Kluckhohn-USA TODAY Sports&lt;/cite&gt;
  963.  &lt;/figure&gt;
  964. &lt;h3 id="q0b816"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Wolves’ Pick-and-Roll Coverage&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/h3&gt;
  965. &lt;p id="Ggtcas"&gt;After completely shutting down the Nuggets offense through the first two games of this series, the defending champion Nuggets, possibly for the first time this postseason, showed why they are champions, picking apart the top-rated Wolves defense in seemingly every possible way.&lt;/p&gt;
  966. &lt;p id="rC2hBX"&gt;One of the driving factors of Denver’s offensive implosion was the pick-and-roll two-man game between Jokić and Jamal Murray. For years, the pair have played off each other brilliantly, scoring almost every time they need a bucket.&lt;/p&gt;
  967. &lt;aside id="8qiZSP"&gt;&lt;div data-anthem-component="readmore" data-anthem-component-data='{"stories":[{"title":"Nuggets 115, Wolves 107: Jokić Dominates, Evens Series Despite 44 From Ant ","url":"https://www.canishoopus.com/timberwolves-scores-results/2024/5/12/24154797/wolves-vs-nuggets-final-score-recap-anthony-edwards-nikola-jokic-jamal-murray-karl-anthony-towns"}]}'&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/aside&gt;&lt;p id="uJ3WFC"&gt;In the first two games of this series, the Timberwolves had done well limiting this action by not allowing short-roll pass to Jokić, while playing hounding defense on Murray, not allowing either player to get to their spots on the court.&lt;/p&gt;
  968. &lt;p id="vkznwq"&gt;That was not the case this previous weekend in Minneapolis as Jokić and Murray were able to get anywhere they wanted on the court. Murray knocked down numerous tough shots, while also feeding Jokić with great short-roll passes leading to easy floaters and kick-out 3-pointers.&lt;/p&gt;
  969. &lt;p id="87D2P0"&gt;Similar to the offense, the Timberwolves will need to find the defensive level they had over the first six games of this playoff run, otherwise, Game 5 might have a similar outcome to the previous two games.&lt;/p&gt;
  970.  &lt;figure class="e-image"&gt;
  971.        &lt;img alt="NBA: Playoffs-Denver Nuggets at Minnesota Timberwolves" data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/cw39aBGdhtYuwWZRaOz5cKRTZqg=/400x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25445877/usa_today_23258905.jpg"&gt;
  972.      &lt;cite&gt;Bruce Kluckhohn-USA TODAY Sports&lt;/cite&gt;
  973.  &lt;/figure&gt;
  974. &lt;h3 id="PCcUuz"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Aaron Gordon Shooting Surge&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/h3&gt;
  975. &lt;p id="AOzWO7"&gt;Since the Nuggets traded for him at the 2021 &lt;a href="http://www.sbnation.com/nba-trade-rumors"&gt;NBA Trade Deadline&lt;/a&gt;, Aaron Gordon has been an outstanding player and a perfect fit on this Nuggets team. He can defend almost any player the Nuggets need him to guard along with having great offensive chemistry with Jokić.&lt;/p&gt;
  976. &lt;p id="OGx4en"&gt;The one small flaw in his game is that Gordon is not a great 3-point shooter. For his career, he has made only 32% of his 3-point shots in the regular season and 31% in the playoffs before this series. This regular season, he had been even worse, finishing the year at 29% from deep. He followed that up with a 1/10 showing in the first round.&lt;/p&gt;
  977. &lt;p id="juhLx9"&gt;The Timberwolves team has found success on defense guarding Gordon with Rudy Gobert as this allows Gobert to sag off Gordon to protect the paint and help defend Jokić. The trade-off as this leaves Gordon open for open 3-point shots.&lt;/p&gt;
  978. &lt;p id="pXfsqY"&gt;Gordon has made the Wolves pay for leaving him open as he has made 8 of his 12 3-point shots in this series including two in his brilliant Game 4 performance where he scored 27 points.&lt;/p&gt;
  979. &lt;p id="TAHYxG"&gt;The question for Game 5, and the rest of the series, is whether or not this level of shooting is sustainable for Gordon. If it is, the Timberwolves, and possibly every other remaining team, or going to find it hard to defeat this Nuggets team.&lt;/p&gt;
  980.  &lt;figure class="e-image"&gt;
  981.        &lt;img alt="NBA: Playoffs-Denver Nuggets at Minnesota Timberwolves" data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/xR3VIBv7yzs9aheuMTEBG91Q3ac=/400x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25445874/usa_today_23258913.jpg"&gt;
  982.      &lt;cite&gt;Bruce Kluckhohn-USA TODAY Sports&lt;/cite&gt;
  983.  &lt;/figure&gt;
  984. &lt;h3 id="HD589e"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Bench Scoring&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/h3&gt;
  985. &lt;p id="OFzgFM"&gt;Coming into the series, one of the areas the Wolves appeared to have any advantage over the Nuggets was bench depth. While the Nuggets’ starting five is as good or better than any other team, their bench has not provided nearly as much value as they often struggle in the minutes Nikola Jokić is on the bench.&lt;/p&gt;
  986. &lt;p id="Hstkyu"&gt;On the flip side, the Timberwolves have relied on their bench players to spark runs and create quality play when the starters need a rest. Led by Sixth Man of the Year Naz Reid, the depth of the Timberwolves roster has become an invaluable part of this Wolves team.&lt;/p&gt;
  987. &lt;p id="c1XnGh"&gt;In Game 4, the Nuggets bench thoroughly outplayed Minnesota, as they would score 27 points compared to just 13 for the Wolves.&lt;/p&gt;
  988. &lt;p id="yCCGVx"&gt;The Timberwolves bench struggled to find any positive impact. Naz Reid scored 11 points, but only took six shots and had many mistakes on defense. Nickeil Alexander-Walker missed six of his seven shots and did not have nearly the same defensive impact as he had earlier in the series.&lt;/p&gt;
  989. &lt;p id="YCQIda"&gt;One adjustment the Timberwolves could make is no longer playing Kyle Anderson as the Timberwolves lost the six minutes Slow-Mo played by 18. The likely options to replace Anderson would be Monté Morris, Jordan McLaughlin, or to reduce the rotation size to just seven players.&lt;/p&gt;
  990. &lt;p id="AntXQE"&gt;Meanwhile, the Nuggets bench of Christian Braun, Justin Holiday, and Reggie Jackson shot the lights out, making 8 of their 14 shots including going 6-9 on 3-pointers. &lt;/p&gt;
  991. &lt;div id="dCH6ln"&gt;
  992. &lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-dnt="true" align="center"&gt;
  993. &lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Gordon, Braun, Holiday, and Jackson have combined for 8-11 from 3.&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;In the regular season they combined to average 3.4 made 3s per game and together shot 35% from 3.&lt;/p&gt;— Tyler Metcalf (@tmetcalf11) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/tmetcalf11/status/1789840322039627990?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;May 13, 2024&lt;/a&gt;
  994. &lt;/blockquote&gt;
  995. &lt;script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"&gt;&lt;/script&gt;
  996.  
  997. &lt;/div&gt;
  998. &lt;p id="OWHlRe"&gt;It’s a similar story to the one with Aaron Gordon as whether or not this shooting performance is sustainable from the trio coming off the Denver bench will play a large role heading down the final stretch of this series.&lt;/p&gt;
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