You’d be unwise to assume the Timberwolves would lose a potential Game 7 on Saturday in Denver, because just when you count Minnesota out, the team tends to pull a rabbit out of its hat.
But the odds certainly wouldn’t be in the Wolves’ favor in such a venture. Minnesota was 11.5-point underdogs Monday in Denver, a game the Nuggets won by 12. A similar spread would likely be offered to gamblers for Game 7.
The Wolves’ best chance to win this series is Thursday night at Target Center, for a variety of reasons. Chief among them: Minnesota’s roster.
Anthony Edwards is the team’s superstar and bringer of bravado. The Wolves believe they can beat any team on the planet when at their best, and their superstar guard is a major reason why. He’s unavailable for the remainder of the this series.
Donte DiVincenzo is an indefatigable source of hustle and aggression who has flipped numerous games this season with strings of energy plays. He won’t be available, either.
Still, what remains is plenty talented. Julius Randle, Jaden McDaniels, Rudy Gobert and Co. can certainly beat Denver one more time. But the Wolves may need a boost to get over the finish line.
Because they don’t possess the best player in the series. While Nikola Jokic doesn’t look to be 100%, he’s still the best offensive basketball player on the planet. And he received ample support from his teammates in Game 5 as Cam Johnson, Spencer Jones and Christian Braun were all high-impact role players after subdued performances in Games 2-4.
Part of their success had to do with Minnesota’s 25 turnovers, which generated confidence-inducing easy looks for the home team. But the Denver crowd played a role, too. It was lively and supportive, and the basketball adage that role players perform better at home seemed to apply.
It certainly did in Game 4, as Ayo Dosunmu had the game of a lifetime at Target Center after Edwards (knee) and DiVincenzo (Achilles) went down with injuries, and Mike Conley had one of his most effective performances in months. Jaden McDaniels, too, was excellent while playing 22 second-half minutes.
McDaniels’ impact was muted in Game 5, partially by foul trouble, but perhaps, too, by the constant razzing he received from the Bell Arena crowd — although he’d never admit as much.
It will be the Nuggets who are the targets of the crowd’s ire Thursday.
Recently, Naz Reid said the Wolves have “the best sixth man in the league, no doubt about it” when referring to Minnesota’s home crowd.
“We want people to come in and bring the energy, bring the belief, the aura,” Wolves center Rudy Gobert said. “We want them to have a good time. As an organization, as a city and as a player, these are the moments that you dream about, that you want to be a part of. So, just got to enjoy the moment.”
Denver looked rattled in Games 3 and 4 as the roof nearly busted off the building in downtown Minneapolis. A repeat performance from the Wolves’ faithful may be required to get Minnesota across this series’ finish line. Because while Minnesota has proven it can win a Game 7 in Denver, that challenge will be infinitely harder given its current roster deficiencies.
It would be difficult for fans to stomach the local team losing a series it led 3-1 to a fierce rival, largely on account of unfortunate injury luck. Thursday is their best chance to do something about it, though the Wolves know that advantage is only one piece of the puzzle.
“It’s a basketball game. At the end of the day, it’s on us to bring it,” Gobert said. “The crowd and all that can only give us what they can give us to an extent, right? It’s on us to just come in and be ourselves, be in the moment.”
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