The Minnesota Timberwolves came into this game with the 1-0 lead. Tonight they were trying to make it a 2-0 lead The Suns were going to come back with some proper adjustments where the Wolves can see what they need to do different.
The Minnesota Timberwolves and the fanbase heard all the talk about the Phoenix Suns beating them all during the regular season. The regular season is in the past and now we’re on to a new season in the playoffs now.
The Minnesota Timberwolves and Phoenix Suns were going back and forth to start the game off. This was a huge difference today for the Timberwolves as they limited the turnovers and executed the game plan to perfection. The one player that they couldn’t contain early in this game was Kevin Durant as he was hitting some tough shots over defenders like McDaniels, Edwards, and Towns. The Phoenix Suns were staying close in this game because of the play from Kevin Durant as he looked unguardable from everywhere on the court.
The Minnesota Timberwolves made the proper halftime adjustments and idk what was said to Anthony Edwards but he came out like a man on a mission. Anthony Edwards was going toe to toe with his favorite player Kevin Durant in Game 1 of the NBA Playoffs and he was letting him hear it. Both shared a smile and chest bump moment but you can see the respect from a mile away. Anthony Edwards had a 3rd quarter to remember as he had 18 of his 33 points in that quarter. Anthony Edwards was hitting the fadeaway, getting to the rim, and hitting the 3 pointer. It was special to watch as the Ant Man was loose and the Suns had no answer for him. When Anthony Edwards gets it going like that it’s impossible to stop him and he continued to let the Suns know that they’re coming.
Karl-Anthony Towns was able to add in 19 points in this one and Nickeil Alexander Walker was able to come in with +28 tonight in his minutes finishing with 18 points, 4 rebounds, and 2 assists. When the other guys step up tonight like they did it can be a king series for the Phoenix Suns. Rudy Gobert was dominant inside the paint with a playoff double double with 14 points and 16 rebounds. His defense inside and outside the paint today was huge for the success of this team.
The Phoenix Suns are down (0-1) in this best of 7 series right now but look for them to try and get back on track in Game 2 on Tuesday. If the Wolves have a repeat of todays showing it could be a quick series and the Suns fans don’t want to see that.
Photo Credit: (AP Photo/Abbie Parr)
The NBA playoffs are here and the playoff seeding is now set in stone. Eight NBA Teams from the Western Conference will fight for their right to reach the NBA finals this season.
No. 1 OKC Thunder Vs No. 8 New Orleans Pelicans
The Oklahoma City Thunder finished the season with the number one seed in the Western Conference as it came down to the last day of the NBA season. The Thunder are way ahead of schedule as they didn’t make the playoffs last season and this season they’re at the top of the conference. Huge shoutout to Sam Presti as he’s been able to make the great draft picks and he has added pieces like Gordon Hayward for veteran leadership when it’s needed. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander has been the MVP in my eyes this season as he’s carried this OKC team throughout and has been able to have a career season with 30 PPG, 5.5 REB, 6.2 AST per game. The Thunder are the favorites in this mathcup against the Pelicans as Zion Williamson’s health will be a huge factor in this one as he got hurt in the play-in against the Lakers. The Thunder have the quickness and they have the youthful legs to out run the Pelicans in this series. If Brandon Ingram and CJ McCollum can score 25+ per game this will give the Pelicans a chance to be close in this series. If Zion comes back this could be subject to change but SGA is on a mission this season and he’s one of the toughest to guard in the NBA. I don’t see any scernerio where Shai doesn’t average at least 35 points per game in this series because no one on the Pelicans can slow him down and that will open up things for Jalen Williams, Chet Holmgren, and Josh Giddey.
Series Prediction: Thunder win the series in six games (4-2)
No 2. Denver Nuggets vs No. 7 LA Lakers
The rematch of the Western Conference Finals from last year where the Denver Nuggets got rid of the Lakers in quick fashion. The Lakers have heard all the talk and what’s happened in the past but this is the playoffs now which is a new season. The Lakers are finally getting healthy as Gabe Vincent just returned and if Jared Vanderbilt can come back that will help as well. LeBron has been special all season and I expect for him to show up in a big way against the Nuggets as this will be looked at to me as a legacy series. LeBron can’t and won’t let the Lakers get swept and if that’s going to happen he needs Anthony Davis to be a monster in the paint against Nikola Jokic. Anthony Davis has to really step up against the Nuggets because LeBron can’t do this all by himself. If Anthony Davis gives the Lakers that double-double average with DLO and Reaves adding in the Lakers should be right where they need to be. The Nuggets are the defending champions and they will have the best player on the court with Nikola Jokic. If Joker controls the pace of the games in this series it’s going to be extrememly tough for the Lakers. The Lakers will need to control Jamal Murray and Michael Porter Jr in order to make this win happen. It’s going to be interesting to see how the Lakers play vs the champs. The Lakers are coming in hot and they have been waiting for the revenge and the Lakers also know that LeBron’s championship window is slightly closing. I think the Lakers have the better team and they can do the unthinkable. The Lakers just need to limit Nikola Jokic’s impact on the games and if they do that they will be in charge but you can’t let him average a triple double in the series because it could get ugly.
Series Prediction: Lakers win in six games (4-2)
No. 3 Minnesota Timberwolves Vs No. 6 Phoenix Suns
The Minnesota Timberwolves led the West in the standings for majority of the year and showed that they can hang with anyone in the league. The only thing that they didn’t do this season was defeat the Phoenix Suns. It was a tough matchup during the season but I’m looking forward to the adjustments that Coach Finch will make in this series. The Timberwolves have a great team during play and on paper so they can get it done. The Timberwolves Karl Anthony-Towns is getting back into the groove of things after his knee injury. KAT had some time to get ready for this matchup and even Anthony Edwards said that they need KAT to be the MVP of this series. Anthony Edwards is the ultimate teammate and we know he will be trying to get his teammates involved but it’s also going to take him to be the man. Anthony Edwards has to make the right decisions in this series when he’s doubled so they can make the Suns pay. Anthony Edwards can get in takeover mode and if that happens the Suns can be in trouble too. Naz Reid is going to be the X-Factor for me in this series as I want to see him show the world what Minnesota has already knew and that’s the fact he can beat any mismatch thrown at him. The Timberwolves have the defensive anchor in Rudy Gobert to add that defense and if the Wolves can stay home and trust that defense that includes Jaden McDaniels they will be right where they need to be. This is going to be a tough series against the Suns but the Wolves can get it done. The Suns will look to continue to take advantage of the Mike Conley matchup during this series as Bradley Beal was able to shoot over Mike during the season but the Wolves will need to slow down KD, Booker, and Beal if they want to get the series win. Looking forward to this series and seeing what the Suns do without the bigs inside if Nurk gets in foul trouble. This is going to be a dogfight of a series so it can go either way but I’m going with the home court advantage in Minnesota.
Series Prediction: Timberwolves win in seven games (4-3).
No 4. LA Clippers Vs No. 5 Dallas Mavericks
The Clippers are built for this moment and the addition of James Harden/Westbrook this year will come in clutch during the postseason. Paul George and Kawhi Leonard have had a little trouble with this matchup in the past but the Clippers went and got Harden/Westbrook to help in those clutch moments. Those fou have a lot to prove as a unit and this will be the series they can do just that. Norman Powell has been amazing off the bench as well and he will be huge in this series as well from an offensive standpoint. The Mavericks have been hot this last month and Kyrie/Luka look to be clicking on all levels but so have the Clippers as they have finally gelled it all together. I’m looking for this to be a great series but the Clippers defense will show up big time in this one as they have what it takes to make it to the WCF but it will depend on the play and consistency. In the first round I see no issues getting past the Mavericks with the players on their roster that have already proven to be clutch in the postseason.
Series Prediction: Clippers win in six games (4-2)
The NBA playoffs are here and the playoff seeding is now set in stone. Eight NBA Teams from the eastern conference will fight for their right to reach the NBA finals this season.
No. 1 Boston Celtics Vs No. 8 Miami Heat
The Boston Celtics are yet again the number one seed in an uncompetitive Eastern Conference and were clearly the best team in the East. They are a much different team than last season and have a lot of experience and veteran presence heading into the playoffs. They will have to rely on Jayson Tatum and their defense to win this series and it will be smooth sailing. As for the Miami Heat they come off a blowout win against the Chicago Bulls in the Play In tournament, they will likely be tired and fatigued in this series and they’ll be without Jimmy Butler who is out with an MCL injury. It’s unfortunate that the Heat are without their superstar and are not at full strength.
Series Prediction: Celtics win the series in five games (4-1)
No 2. New York Knicks vs No. 7 Philadelphia 76ers
The Philadelphia 76ers have been without Joel Embiid most of the season and now that they have him at full strength, this team might be the dark horse in the Eastern Conference. The Knicks have had themselves quite a season securing the number three seed and Jalen Brunson leading the way. If the Knicks want to win this series they’ll have to limit Embiid and his ability to score in the paint. The 76ers are a lot bigger and physical compared to the Knicks but that doesn’t mean the Knicks can’t hold their own. This series will be a tough battle between the two and I believe it will come down Six games.
Series Prediction: 76ers win in six games (4-2)
No. 3 Milwaukee Bucks Vs No. 6 Indiana Pacers
The Milwaukee Bucks struggled heavily towards the end of the season and are a completely different team from last year. The Bucks may be without Giannis Antetokounmpo for a few games so that’s a significant factor in the series. The Bucks defense is not all there and will have to rely on their offense to score points. As for the Indiana Pacers they are a young team that has played very well this season led by Tyrese Hailburton. The Pacers will have to take advantage of Giannis not playing the first few games, they’ll have to limit Damian Lillard’s scoring abilities to win and rely heavily on their offense to keep them in prime position to steal games one and two.
Series Prediction: Indiana Pacers win in seven games (4-3).
No 4. Cleveland Cavaliers Vs No. 5 Orlando Magic
The Orlando Magic have been an underrated team this year sneaking their way into the playoff picture at number 5. The team is led by Paolo Banchero and this talented young team. But the Magic are more of a defensive team than a high scoring offensive team so keeping up with the Cavaliers will be a challenge. The Cleveland Cavaliers have the advantage in this series as they have the veteran experience and necessary depth to win this series. Garland and Mitchell will have to lead this Cavaliers team to victory in this series and a lot of the pressure will fall in their hands.
Series Prediction: Cavaliers win in five games (4-1).
The WNBA Draft came and went but one thing that will not leave us is the impact that all these women will have on the game. This 2024 Draft was stacked from Caitlin Clark, Angel Reese, and Kamilla Cardoso just to name a few. The Minnesota Lynx traded the 7th pick yesterday to move back one spot to go to the 8th pick. With the 8th pick in the WNBA Draft the Minnesota Lynx selected Alissa Pili who’s one of the best scorers in the whole country. Pili can score inside and outside the paint with ease. Pili has been a beast in the paint and she will bring a lot of interior toughness to this Lynx team that already has some great players. Alissa will be a great asset to the Lynx and you can tell she’s a hard worker and ready to get into this training camp to be around her new teammates. Alissa will be a great addition and she will open things up for McBride, Collier, and Miller when it comes to perimeter game/spacing. In college Alissa Pili averaged 21.4 PPG which was 13th in the whole country and 6.6 REB. The Lynx can use another front court player and this is exactly what the doctor ordered for the team with Dorka still progressing into a great two way player as well. Both Pili and Dorka will help each other out in the front court. I’m looking forward to see how Coach Reeve utilizies Alissa Pili in the rotation as she could be the steal of the draft at #8.
The Minnesota Lynx also drafted Kiki Jefferson with the 31st pick in the draft and Kiki averaged 12.3 PPG at Louisville. Kiki will bring some depth to the rotation with the Lynx losing Rachel/Lindsey/Tiffany so this was a great pickup of value extremely late in the draft. The future is bright in Minnesota and I’m excited to see what happens during training camp.
The Minnesota Timberwolves came into tonight fighting to stay in 1st place in the Western Conference. What the Wolves didn’t know is that they would be fighting against the 15 win Washington Wizards in this game tonight.
From the tip-off Washington came out on fire hitting everything they put up. Kispert, Poole, and Avdija were making some tough shots to start this game out and they were contested with hands from the Timberwolves defenders. The Timberwolves started out slow tonight and the fast paced Washington Wizards took full advantage of it as they were winning the rebound/assist category in that 1st half.
The two players that made it tough on the Timberwolves defense all night for the Wizards was Jordan Poole & Corey Kispert. We know that Jordan Poole can make some amazing shots but the shots he was hitting in that 1st half just didn’t make any sense. Poole was able to showcase his shooting ability with his bright green light as he finished with 24 points and 6 assists. Corey Kispert was making some tough buckets too and finished with 25 points.
After that halftime adjustment from Coach Finch the Timberwolves cracked down on things and started playing their style of basketball. Naz Reid got ejected early in this game as he hit Johnny Davis with an elbow to the head that didn’t look like it was on purpose. Once Naz got ejected Anthony Edwards turned his game up to another level and was unstoppable.
The great thing about this huge performance is that Anthony Edwards still finished with 7 assists showing that he can share the rock with his teammates. Anthony Edwards had the mid range fadeaway working, attacking the rim working, and his 3 point jumper all clicking tonight. Edwards put on a shooting display and was able to put the team on his back all the way to his 51 points which are a career high.
Rudy Gobert was dominant as well tonight finishing with 19 points and 16 rebounds but the huge X-Factor tonight was Nickeil Alexander-Walker. NAW was able to make some big shots in the 1st half to keep the Timberwolves in this one and his play on both sides of the floor was clutch for Minnesota. It sucks that it had to happen when Naz got ejected but this is a huge confidence booster for NAW leading into the playoffs as he was able to help the Wolves in a major way with 23 points off the bench while creating for his teammates.
The Minnesota Timberwolves have a back to back as they will be heading to Denver for a showdown with the Nuggets to see who will get that 1st seed in the Western Conference. It should be a classic especially after this huge performance from Anthony Edwards.
(Photo by Stephen Maturen/Getty Images)