His voice cracked. He became choked up. Timberwolves coach Chris Finch struggled to put into words how he felt about Donte DiVincenzo’s season-ending injury in Game 4 against Denver on Saturday.
DiVincenzo attempted to chase down the rebound off his own missed shot fewer than two minutes into the game. But as he attempted to get going, he looked back at where he started his movement in seeming disbelief of the non-contact injury before falling to the floor.
He shook off Jaden McDaniels’ attempt to lift the guard to his feet and immediately waved trainers over.
“You could just see the look in his eye when it happened,” Finch said. “You kind of knew.”
DiVincenzo tore his Achilles tendon in the opening minutes in Minneapolis.
“I feel completely devastated for Donte,” Finch said. “He’s the heart and soul of so many things that we do.”
It was a cruel twist of fate for a man who was just one of 18 NBA players to play in all 82 regular season games this season. He left his soul on the floor in each of those affairs. Minnesota’s effort was inconsistent this season, but DiVincenzo’s was night. He was the example of intensity his teammates could aspire to match.
“Donte is probably the heart (of our team),” Wolves forward Naz Reid said. “People don’t really notice it, but he plays so hard.”
They started to seem to pay attention in these playoffs. After leading the Wolves in net rating throughout the regular season, DiVincenzo paced Minnesota in plus-minus in each of the club’s first three playoff games. It’s hard to miss the one guy who’s constantly flying all over the floor in a time of year where effort doesn’t go unappreciated.
If there was a winning play to be made, DiVincenzo would deliver.
“He literally put his body on the floor for this team,” Wolves guard Ayo Dosunmu said.
DiVincenzo noted after Game 3 that playoff basketball is “something you dream of as a kid.” And he was making the most of his latest opportunity, right up until disaster struck.
“When you go to war with somebody every night and you watch somebody compete the way Donte competes, prepares himself. … He’s just the ultimate competitor,” said Wolves forward Julius Randle, who was also DiVincenzo’s teammate in New York. “To see that happen to him was tough. It’s tough. It was just hard to watch. Somebody that’s been through some serious injuries myself, I understand the road he has coming up, but I know he’ll be fine. I know he’ll battle through it and he’ll come back better for it.
“Especially at this point in the season, it’s tough to see that happen.”
As trainers helped DiVincenzo off the floor, the guard made his way up to his head coach, who embraced the 29 year old. Yes, DiVincenzo’s absence hurts Minnesota’s prospects of making a deep playoff push. While Anthony Edwards could potentially return later this postseason, DiVincenzo’s season is over. His 2026-27 campaign is in jeopardy. There are major financial implications possibly at play with the injury for DiVincenzo, who has just one more year remaining on his contract with the Wolves.
But the tender moment between coach and player was about far more than any of that.
“We just love him,” Finch said. “From the moment he’s gotten here, he’s kind of bounced around a little bit. I think he came here with some scar tissue, but he’s our guy. We love him.
“From day one, I knew he had that type of moxie and toughness that I love in a player. You can see that everywhere he’s ever been. So we’re going to really miss him. It’s really hard.”
In Game 4 rally to victory, wounded Wolves show they still have plenty of bite
Anthony Edwards helped off the court in Game 4 on Saturday