The Minnesota Timberwolves are moving onto the Western Conference Finals after eliminating the Denver Nuggets with a 98-90 Game 7 win. Anthony Edwards’ struggled in the game but came alive in the second half to lead the team to the win. He trash-talked Nuggets’ guard Jamal Murray after the game.
“I had Jamal in handcuffs!”
Timberwolves’ Anthony Edwards: “I had Jamal in handcuffs.” pic.twitter.com/0SuTyaeA83
— Ben Golliver (@BenGolliver) May 20, 2024
Edwards put up just 16 points, with 12 of them coming in the second half of the win. His performance in the second half led the Wolves to overcome a 20-point deficit and walk away with the win. Karl-Anthony Towns and Jaden McDaniels led the team in scoring with 23 points apiece.
Edwards didn’t lock Murray up in this game, as the Nuggets’ guard put up 35 points. But Ant did do a sensational job on Murray over the series, restricting him to averages 18.4 points, 4.1 rebounds, and 4.4 assists over seven games.
Jamal Murray is an elite guard but he can’t hold a candle to the guard duo that the Timberwolves will face in the second round, as having Kyrie Irving and Luka Doncic in handcuffs will be a much harder proposition.
This Was A Long Road For The Timberwolves
The Timberwolves have advanced to only the second Conference Finals in their franchise’s history. The last time they made it this far was exactly 20 years ago with Kevin Garnett leading the franchise.
Karl-Anthomny Towns has been in Minnesota since being drafted in the 2015 NBA Draft with the No. 1 pick. Until Edwards’ arrival, he had seen only one playoff appearance. When a media member tried ruminating on the nine years of failures that brought the Wolves to this stage, Anthony Edwards sent a clear message to focus on this season.
“F**k them 9 years! This year.”
Anthony Edwards: "Man, fu*k them 9 years."
KAT: "Man, fu*k 'em' right.”
Anthony Edwards and Karl-Anthony Towns post-game interviews are great. 😂😂
(via @cjzero)
— Hoop Central (@TheHoopCentral) May 20, 2024
Edwards showered his teammate Rudy Gobert as well for stepping up offensively when the team needed it, hitting a morale-breaking turnaround jumper that got his teammates excited.
“When Rudy hit the turnaround, I was like, ‘Yeah, we probably got ‘em.’ I know that will kill you, that would kill everything. Big shoutout to Big Ru, Big Ru hit that turnaround.”
Anthony Edwards:
“When Rudy hit the turnaround, I was like, ‘yeah, we probably got ‘em.’” 😂
(via @WolvesClips)
— Hoop Central (@TheHoopCentral) May 20, 2024
Edwards is having a sensational playoff run, averaging 28.9 points, 6.2 rebounds, and 5.9 assists over this run. He will hope to keep his offense cooking when they take on the Mavericks in the next round. Dallas’ has proven their defense can hold even the best offenses to under 100 points, as the Clippers and Thunder found out in Rounds 1 and 2.
Even with Dallas’ defensive improvements, the Timberwolves are the kind of defense that will hold a team like the Nuggets to under 90 points. If Luka and Kyrie aren’t on fire, the Wolves could smother the Mavs into some season-lows offensively.
The fact that either Luka Doncic or Anthony Edwards will be headed to the NBA Finals is fascinating, as these are both young faces of the NBA with a chance to solidify their status as future MVPs in this run.
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