The Dallas Mavericks could not complete their first playoff sweep since 2011 after dropping Game 4 to the Timberwolves last night. Karl-Anthony Towns came under fire for his poor performances through the first three games of the series, but he bounced back in Game 4 to help the Wolves win. As a result, Kyrie Irving defended him from the haters who had been attacking him for a week.
“Despite the unfair criticism that he’s received, he’s a great player. I respect him. I know my teammates respect him… That’s what great players do. They figure it out.”
Towns put up 25 points in Game 4. Unfortunately, he averaged 15.0 points and 8.3 rebounds, shooting 3-22 from three across the first three games while shooting 27.8% from the field. His haters had a point at the time, but he’s bounced back admirably.
Irving likely was referring to the harshly worded hit pieces that came out against Towns after the Wolves lost Game 3, showing the reactionary nature of sports media.
Towns has kept the Timberwolves alive in this series, as it’s 3-1 and headed back to Minnesota where the Mavericks will be eager to close it out and give their players a week’s rest before the NBA Finals.
Can The Timberwolves Make History?
Everyone is already hyping the Timberwolves up to become the first team to overcome a 3-0 series deficit after their gritty Game 4 win on the road. Everyone knows the Mavericks have two Hall of Famers in their prime, Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving, but a variety of factors are leading people to believe that the Wolves will make history.
Nobody expected Minnesota to fight back from 3-2 to eliminate the Nuggets, but they did exactly that. While overcoming a 3-2 series as the road team is challenging, it’s not comparable to overturning a 3-0 deficit. The Nuggets might have been conventionally more intimidating, but the Wolves matched up perfectly with them, which they don’t with Dallas.
The Mavericks’ postseason plus-minus leader, rookie Dereck Lively II suffered a sprained neck after being kneed by Towns in Game 3 and missed Game 4. His absence was felt as the Mavericks didn’t have the interior versatility they required in the non-Daniel Gafford minutes. If Lively misses another game, the Wolves could push this series to six.
Finally, Luka Doncic is currently playing through injury. The Slovenian guard has been dealing with ankle and knee injuries throughout the postseason but has played through it for his franchise. He’s questionable for Game 5, but he is expected to play regardless.
With these factors working against the Mavericks, it does seem like a very well-built Wolves squad could have the composure to make history. But if Doncic and Kyrie are one of the greatest backcourts in NBA history, as many have discussed over the last week, there is no way they can allow a team to come back from 3-0 to eliminate them from the Conference Finals.
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