Timberwolves-Warors: 5 snack bars when Minnesota returns to the Westfinals

No excuse.

Nobody asked the Minnesota Timberwolves to do something, and the defeated Golden State Warriors were not expecting any after the after -season with Star Stephen Curry's goal in street clothing for the last four games. All losses.

The left Simstring strain that Curry suffered in the second quarter of game 1 changed the dynamics of its Western Conference semi -final to half a dozen species. Only a few teams can lose their No. 1 offensive weapon – and one of the strongest weapons in the NBA history, even at the age of 37 – and not significantly soaked.

The simplest of Golden State Minnesota 30-20, when Curry skipped, led his season. The rest of the path, the wolves they exceeded by 46 points.

This is crucial, as is the 4: 1 outline of the game warriors of the games. Curry could have scored 46 points in the minutes he had missed? Naturally. But Minnesota would also have changed some strategies and so on. These playoff series are like square equations, variables have stacked on another on another.

“Injuries are part of the playoffs,” said Steve Kerr, coach of Golden State. “There is no point in living about it. I don't want to take anything away from what Minnesota has just achieved.”

The wolves are back to the west championship round, the best off-season in franchise history. They were beaten by Dallas last year after playing the game 7 of defending champion Denver.

When you go back, believe that you are better prepared for experience.

“Were you a team of the Western Conference Finals or were you a team that has just reached the Western Conference final?” Minnesota coach Chris Finch said and expressed the team's challenge to himself to go to the Playoffs 2025.

“An enormous loss for Golden State, enormous loss for the series. I am sure that it would have been very different, Steph would have played. But our boys took care of the business.”

Here are five snack stalls from the win of the wolves 121-110 on Wednesday evening in the Target Center when you are waiting for the winner of the Oklahoma City-Denver series.

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1. Wolves celebrate “Playoff Julius”

The ups and downs of Julius Randle's first season in Minnesota and a stained, rather lean playoff resume gave no idea about the version of Randle, which appeared in this series. Or, to be honest, Randles continues excellent after season adventure.

The experienced striker, who was acquired together with Donte Divincenzo on the edge of the training camp in the surprising trade, who sent Karl athony cities to New York, was Minnesota's best player to beat the Warriors. His goal (both promptly and in quantity), central back rash, his ability to initiate crimes and get Anthony Edwards off the ball, and his defense were essential ingredients.

In the first four games in the series, Randle had achieved an average of 24.3 points, 6.3 rebounds and 8.0 assists. In The Clincher he scored 21, had eight boards and five templates and shot 9: 12, often flashing a smile on his large, expressive face.

Randle scored over 20 points in eight of the 10 games of the wolves in this post. He and Divincenzo can exhale and know that the wolves are not worse than in the last spring with cities. But that's a half empty view. Randle was excellent.

“The way he controlled the pace, how he pushed the pace,” said Edwards and started his own list of Randle Superlatives. “Even his defense went to another level. The way he communicates with us. His attention to detail is incredible.”

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2. No magic of 'played Jimmy'

Butler came into the series with an injured gluture muscles, a rest that fell on the floor in game 2 of the first round against Houston. He should be sick on Monday in game 4.

But it was no need to offer him excuses because Butler had none.

“Good enough to take part,” he said late Wednesday.

Butler, who got out of Miami in February, has embedded the Golden State with new facets – its methodological pace, his death, his free throws – with new facets and gave the fading dynasty fresh hope for this run. With Curry he served as a counter -punch, every man benefited from the other playing style.

What the 35-year-old Butler couldn't do was wearing it. The alpha, which heated the NBA final 2020 and 2023, never rose from the sidekick equipment after curry was injured. No curry as a deep threat meant less space for all other warriors.

Oh, Butler scored an average of 20.2 points in the five games. But he shot 43% and was under water in plus minus. Golden State was exceeded with 37 points when the veteran striker was on the square. Overall, it was in the minutes in which he was sitting.

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3. Mike does it for Mike

In the advance of last year for the West Finale, Timberwolves Point Guard Mike Conley was not shy to push his teammates further for him.

“I told the boys that it is selfish to do so for me, man,” said Conley, admitting what was a partial challenge, part and completely sincerely.

In his 17TH The season and 36 years old at that time, Conley was able to hear the clock. But in game 5 and now a year older, the quietly spoken veteran heard his own PEP lecture. Now he goes back to the West Finale.

Conley had broken down modest 6.0 points and 4.3 templates when he shot a frosty 7-to-28 player through four games. This time he achieved 16 and sank four 3 points in order to join the starting line-up of the potent double figure scorers.

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4. Lies, damn lies and statistics

The old saying about how numbers can be misleading seemed to be in the game on Wednesday. Kerr picked up the various areas in which Golden State Minnesota had improved, the focus that he had stressed out to his boys: possessions, field attempts, 3-point attempts, bounce off, forced sales and so on.

The Warriors have won all of these categories and yet lost due to double -digit numbers due to a status that did not control their defense. The wolves shot as if they were throwing apples into a laundry tub and making 62.8% of their shots and 41.9% of their 3s. Even Minnesota's terrible 21 changeover-die for her fourth most frequent seasonal could not give away enough of the game so that Golden State is closer than eleven in the last quarter.

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5. Steph Watch steps back

We will never know whether Curry could return to game 6. The likelihood that he benefits from another three full rehabilitation days remains pure speculation. He can recover in the low season because he looks at and allows his leg.

And we're probably better off. Ok, some Golden State fans will not agree, but did you really want the future Hall of Fam to risk an even more serious injury by using his teammates too early?

The NBA has already settled Bostons Jayson Tatum and Milwaukees Damian Lillard through Achilles' tears in this off -season. Cleveland had several players when it was bounced down by Indiana from Indiana. The last thing Curry, the Warriors or the league needed on the whole was that Curry suffered something catastrophic like Kevin Durant (Achilles) when he played against Toronto in the final in 2019.

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Steve Aschburner has written about the NBA since 1980. You can send it by email Herefind His archive here And Follow him on X.

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