After having orbited Kevin Durant's Phoenix Suns in the first round, the Minnesota Timberwolves came to twist the arm of the reigning champion, in his room, at the end of a standoff which heralded a breathtaking series between the 2nd (Denver ) and 3rd (Minnesota) in the regular season in the West.
The Wolves attacked hard to lead 14-2, before Denver came back to lead 25-23 at the end of the first quarter.
The two teams then went blow for blow in an intense duel, marked by the defense of the Wolves, the flights of Edwards, and the magic tricks of the Serbian Nikola Jokic (32 points, 8 rebounds, 9 assists).
“Trust”
In 42 minutes of play, Anthony Edwards continued to attack the circle, while showing himself skillful from afar (3 out of 7) and effective in defense, displaying at only 22 years of age the qualities of a leader of a team capable of aiming for the title.
Often compared to the legend Michael Jordan, “Ant man” notably made Aaron Gordon dance during a series of dribbles for an important mid-range shot during the 4th quarter.
“My teammates trust me in all positions during key moments of matches. I try to fight for them,” Edwards commented on broadcaster TNT.
The 4th quarter also saw the Wolves bench make the difference with Naz Reid. The tall American (2.06 m) justified his award as “best NBA substitute” with 14 points (out of 16) at the end of the match, between long shots and a spectacular one-handed dunk over Jokic.
French pivot Rudy Gobert, essential in defense, most often against Aaron Gordon, contributed to his team's success with 6 points and 13 rebounds.
Wolves coach Chris Finch, who had knee surgery on Wednesday after a ruptured right patellar tendon, was seated on the bench, near his crutches, to help his training.
Minnesota, which has only one conference final in its 35 years of existence, is clearly bidding for the title.
The Nuggets will have to react on Monday during a new home match if they do not want to complicate their quest for a double.
“It's a very talented team. They weren't first in the West for a majority of the season by chance. We can be better in many aspects and we will have to be,” said the Nuggets coach. Michael Malone.
