Minnesota Tim discusses the Minnesota Timberwolves' recent success in the NBA playoffs, particularly their impressive performance against the Golden State Warriors. He highlights the significance of their advancement to the Western Conference finals for the second consecutive year, emphasizing the historical context and the importance of player performances. He also addresses the need for the team to prepare for tougher challenges ahead and the expectations of fans, advocating for a focus on championship aspirations rather than mere playoff appearances.
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Speaker 1 (00:06):
The Minnesota Timberwolves gentlemen sweep the Golden State Warriors and
advance to the Western Conference Finals in back to back years.
And what a time to be a Minnesota sports fan.
The Twins on a ten game win streak, the Timberwolves
(00:31):
gentlemen sweeping the Warriors, the Viking schedule coming out, and
having primetime game after primetime game. Look out world, because
Minnesota sports fandom is coming at you. But today we're
going to talk about the Timberwolves sweep in five games
(00:55):
against the Golden State Warriors. But first I need to
tell you about Five Star Bass Solutions of Minneapolis, because
while I have your attention, you will not want to
miss this episode. By the way, because I am very
fired up about certain narratives and thoughts. After the Timberwolves
(01:16):
beat the Warriors, Five Star Bass Solutions will come into
your house, give you a free consultation. I'll offer you
affordable payment plans and can remodel your entire bathroom in
twenty four to forty eight hours. It took them forty
(01:38):
eight hours to completely redo our bathroom, and we had
our bathroom back in days. I'm talking about the whole enchilada,
the floors, the tub, the surround, the double sink we got,
and the vanity. Plus they took up our mold. They
took care of our mold problem. I talked to other businesses. Yeah,
you're gonna have to outsource that. We can't do that
(01:59):
for you. Huh. I want it all done all at
the same time. I don't want this to be an
eight week long project. Five Star Bess Solutions of Minneapolis
came into our bathroom and remodeled our entire bathroom in
forty eight hours. That's their promise to you. They'll enter
your bathroom, They'll give you a free consultation, free quotes,
(02:24):
affordable payment plans, and give you your bathroom of your dreams,
like it's a snap of your fingers. No longer wait
six to eight weeks for a bathroom project to get done,
where you're climbing into your tiny basement bathroom waiting for
people to take deuces and pisses. Have your bathroom back
in moments in days. Five Star Bass Solutions of Minneapolis.
(02:49):
Contact them today to get your free consultation. All right.
Timberwolves win one ten and Gentlemen sweep the Warriors after
Stephan Curry goes down with a hamstring strain. My biggest
takeaway from Game five is that the Timberwolves did not
(03:15):
mess around. They did not play with their food. Halftime
sixty two forty seven, entering the fourth quarter up by twenty.
Sure the Warriors made a late run to cut it
to nine. It sound like it was a five point game,
and sure, a nine point lead can evaporate like a
(03:38):
mist in the wind. But the Timberwolves, I really had
no doubt that they were going to win that game.
The Timberwolves did not mess around or play with their food,
and they took care of business on home court, which
was vital because the Warriors were trying to even have
(04:04):
a slim chance of bringing Curry back on Sunday four.
Game six, and you could kind of see the Warriors
bench mob getting excited, getting amped, Curry standing up at
dream because even he wanted the chance to step in
on Game six and advance the series to a game seven.
(04:29):
The Timberwolves did not mess around, and that was really
important for many reasons. When you end the series two,
you get a little rest before the Western Conference Finals start. Three,
you don't have to worry about Stephan Curry. The Timberwolves
only averaged forty seven point two points per game in
(04:52):
the paint this season, ranking twentieth in the NBA. To
close out the Warriors, Minnesota outscored them seventy two to
fifty in the paint. In Game five, they shot sixty
two point eight percent from the field, the third best
by any team in a series clinching win in the
shot clock era. Plus, it's cool for the fans to
(05:17):
experience winning a series on the Target Center floor because
last year the Timberwolves to advance to the Western Conference
Finals beat the Nuggets in Denver in Game seven, swept
the Phoenix Suns, which meant they won Game four in Phoenix.
(05:39):
This is the Timberwolves' first series clinching win in forever.
So it's cool that they gave their fans bang for
their buck, because you're talking about Target Center floor seats
that have to at least cost one thousand dollars in
(06:00):
a series clinching game against the Warriors to advance to
the WCF. And it's cool because the Timberwolves seventy two
points of the paint was tied for third most by
any team in a playoff game over the last twenty
(06:20):
five seasons, and this stat's come from Davic Minimon of ESPN.
I saw this tweet as well. This came from opis
where did this come from? I want to make sure
I got my sources. I want to give credit where
credit is due, because Timberwolves reporters were retweeting this guy
(06:44):
opt to stats opt to stats on x one hundred
and thirty one thousand followers the official Twitter page for
stats Performance. This is what they said. The Timberwolves are
the first Minnesota based Major League Baseball, NBA, NFL, or
NHL team to be among the final four teams remaining
(07:08):
in the playoffs two years in a row since the
North Stars did so in nineteen eighty and nineteen eighty one.
So the Timberwolves consistency of advancing to the Western Conference
finals two straight years has not been done in Minnesota
by one of the major sports teams since nineteen eighty one.
(07:33):
This is historical stuff that the Timberwolves are putting together,
and what's so fascinating about it is that it took
ninety percent of the season for the team to figure
it out and they snuck into the sixth seed. The
(07:54):
Timberwolves had to beat the Brooklyn Nets and the Utah
Jazz during their final two games of the season to
be in the position that they are in right now,
because if they lose either one of those games, they're
in a play in which means they're forced to either
(08:16):
play the Rockets or the Oklahoma City Thunder. That's tough.
So the Timberwolves took care of business. That's my big takeaway. Offensively,
Julius Randall twenty nine points, eight rebounds, five assists, five turnovers.
(08:36):
The turnovers was our problem. But besides that, Anthony Edwards
twenty two points, twelve assists. He had seven turnovers, but
he did a fascinating job, a great job of involving
teammates and distributing the ball in great places for his
(08:57):
teammates to make plays as simple as Dally dunks, as
simple as dumpoffs to go Bear and McDaniels and Julius Randall.
Mike Conley sixteen points, five for seven, four for six
from the three point line. He joined the party. Eight assists,
six rebounds, Rudy Gobert eight rebounds, seventeen points, McDaniels fourteen points,
(09:20):
six of fourteen. This was all around the greatest playoff
performance from the Timberwolves, starting five. This year, everyone in
double digits. Everybody was efficient, nobody missed more than nine shots.
McDaniels was six of fourteen, go Bear eight of nine,
(09:42):
Comedy's five of seven, Edwards eight of fifteen, Randal thirteen
for eighteen, and the bench. De Vincenzo played his best
playoff game thirteen points for him, five of seven, two rebound,
six assists for sty. This was all around a great
(10:02):
team win for the Timberwolves to advance because the Warriors,
they're itching to get back to Golden State to just
get the slim chance of Curry playing. The Timberwolves are
racing against the clock, and they won, and they won.
(10:23):
As far as other takeaways from this game, this was
a big win because I think about last year, this
was a big win. What a great takeaway. Wow, you
can't get that kind of knowledge anywhere else than the
Minnesota tim podcast. Last year. To advance to the Western
(10:44):
Conference Finals, the Wolves played an emotional series against the
Denver Nuggets up to zero, two to two, down to
three to two, win at Target Center, three to three.
Going to for your down double digits early, you come
back and stop on their throats in the second half
(11:04):
and have an emotional win where go Beart's hitting fadeaways
and Anthony Edwards is clinching it in the corner. And
then they had to face Dallas two days later, exhausted,
and Edwards was burnt emotionally and physically. He was not
himself against the Mavericks last year. Cat wasn't himself. The
(11:28):
Wolves were atrocious against Dallas last year. And you can
place a lot of that on the amount of rest
and recovery time and the emotional toll the series was
against the Denver Nuggets. So the fact that they get
more rest to face off against a thunder squad that's
(11:54):
hungry and ready to prove themselves, or a Denver Nuggets
squad that has Nikola Jolkic probably the best basketball player
in the world right now, that's huge. Reset your body
emotionally and physically, give yourself time to prepare, because, unlike
(12:15):
stan Van Gundy who says, oh is the rust in
Game one, the tim will just weren't ready. They're used
to playing back. I don't buy that bullshit. I don't
buy that. Give your body time, give your body a
ready rust. Really, five days you're still practicing, You're still
in the gym every day, you're still preparing more. Rest
(12:38):
is always a good thing. Maybe there's a half of
a first quarter of getting your body ready and up
to speed again and facing the competition. But I would
rather have this situation of winning in five games your
body is physically and emotionally ready to face off in
(13:00):
the Western Conference Finals, then going seven, having one day break,
and then all you're in the fire again. So that's
why this was a big win. I do wonder and
this is a big question as the Wolves get ready
(13:21):
to prepare for their next series against the Thunder or Nuggets.
I would guess the Thunder. But so far this playoffs,
how much have the Wolves been challenged because they won
(13:44):
in five versus the Lakers. However, they did have clutch
time wins. They win in five against Golden State no
Stephan Curry, and against the Lakers, I loved that matchup
because they did not have the big to defend Edwards
at the rim and Luca as slow as heck and
(14:08):
could not stop anybody and Lebrown's forty. So I love
that matchup against the Lakers. But here's what the Timberwolves
need to be ready for. They need to be ready
to take their game to another level in the Western
Conference Finals, because whether it's the Thunder or the Nuggets,
those two teams are going to be a much greater
(14:29):
challenge than the Warriors or the Lakers. And this is
to get to the NBA Finals. This will not be
as easy a cakewalk as the Warriors or the Lakers.
An you think about the Warriors series, Curry goes down
in Game one. That allows the entire Wolves roster to shift,
(14:55):
so Jade and McDaniels, the Timberwolves' best defender, doesn't have
to guard Curry anymore. He can guard Jimmy Butler and
give his NBA basketball life make that havoc. To go
into the Thunder and Nuggets series, they need to be
(15:16):
ready because the performance in Game five, although it was
series clinching, the Timberwolves combined to have twenty turnovers. That
is not going to get it done against the Thunder
(15:39):
or Nuggets. The Timberwolves need to be sharper. Their intensity
needs to go to another level. What we saw in
Game one versus the Warriors is exactly the kind of
thing I'm talking about. The Wolves steamroll the Lakers win
(16:00):
in five, and then the Warriors were hungrier, more battle
tested and more physical than the Timberwolves were in Game one,
and that's why the Wolves could not overcome a Stephen
Curry injury and beat the Warriors. So the question that
(16:27):
I have is will the team be ready to take
their game to another level physically, emotionally, and mentally to
beat the Thunder or the Nuggets because they need to.
Their performances, although they were great against the Warriors and Lakers,
(16:50):
will not be enough to advance to the NBA Finals
because the Thunder and the Nuggets are another animal. They
need to be cleaner, they need to be sharper, they
need to be more ready, they need to be smarter
because the matchups against the Warriors and the Lakers is
(17:14):
as great as a playoff matchup that the team could
ask for. And I'm not gonna apologize for the Timberwolves
advancing to the Western Conference Finals. I'm not going to
say it's a joke because they beat who they had
to be. They played who was ever around the schedule,
beat him in five in advance. It's not like we
(17:35):
need to apologize because their playoff schedule was lighter or
easier than some other matchups. So I'm not apologizing for
anything but they need to be ready for a tougher challenge.
It's not going to be as easy as their wins
were against the Warriors and Lakers, because we're talking about
(18:02):
the NBA Finals and the last thing I want to
say about the Timberwolves advancing to the Western Conference Finals
for the second year in a row and the first
time it's been done in Minnesota since nineteen eighty one
and nineteen eighty. Right now, there's a appreciation from the
(18:30):
fan base, as there should be. I'm appreciating the run,
but I'm almost getting a sense of because the Timberwolves
were so bad for so long, and boy were they bad,
I'm almost getting a sense of, you know what, if
(18:50):
they lose the Western Conference Finals again, it's okay because
they've been so bad for so long. Let's just appreciate
the moment. Remember the years of Chase Uttinger and Luke
Rittenhauer and Alexi Schwed and Al Jefferson and Craig the
Rhinos Smith and Corey Brewer, Johnny Flynn. I'm almost getting
(19:14):
a sense of, you know what, they've made it this far.
Let's just appreciate the moment. Because the NBA lottery was
just a few days ago, and that was the only
thing Timberwolves fans could cling their hopes to for like
twenty years. And I want to push back against that thought,
(19:35):
because this is not a time to sulk and get
in your feelings and feel like, you know what, we've
made it this far. Let's just be happy and appreciate
the moment. No, this is a team that has the
chance to be historical, and if they lose the Western
Conference Finals, we should be pissed. Not too often do
(19:59):
you get a chance where a team is this good
and the finals has been this open, and Edwards is
finally clicking, and the team around Edwards, especially Julius Randall,
is playing at his best ever. It's not a time
(20:20):
to appreciate where the Timberwolves are and where they came from.
It's a time to stop on the throat and appreciate
greatness and go to the NBA Finals and win the
whole fricking thing. So I'm pushing back against this idea
that we should be satisfied and appreciate where the Timberwlves
(20:41):
are because I think we as fans should have this
same satisfaction as players. If the Timberwolves lose the Western
Conference Finals for the second straight year. Soon the narrative
is going to shift from appreciating where we are and
(21:04):
what they've done too well, why can't they advance to
the NBA Finals? What's holding them back? Why can't Edwards
take that next step? So don't get all up in
your feelings about where they are and what they've accomplished,
because someday soon, if the Timberwlves don't advance to the finals,
(21:26):
people are gonna wonder what's wrong is it Chris Finch
holding the team back? Why can't Edwards get over this hurdle?
Just like Jordan couldn't get past the Pistons for a
few years, people are gonna talk about the Timbrels. Why
can't they get past the Western Conference finals? What is
it about the Western Conference? What is it about the roster,
(21:47):
the coach, the team, the ownership group. Why can't they
do it? So I am not in my feelings about
this run, about appreciating the moment. Oh I'm so happy,
Oh it's so oh cool. No, if the Timberwolves lose
versus the Thunder or Nuggets, this season will come and
(22:11):
go like a fart in the wind. Nobody will give
a damn about what the Temberwolves accomplished this season. If
they lose in the Western Conference Finals, it's just going
to be another mark on the radar that said, you know,
you were not good enough to get to the finals.
You were not good enough to overcome the best team
(22:32):
in the Western Conference. And the players feel the same way.
The players after this win were very consistent in their messaging.
Anthony Edwards, there is no satisfaction. We just got here.
We haven't done anything yet, so no, we're not satisfied.
(22:53):
Go bear. That's exactly how it feels. Stomach is not
in full not at all. McDaniels. It feels good, but
there's really nothing to celebrate yet. And Chris Finch was
miked up during Game five and what he was saying
about to Anthony Edwards speaks volumes to me, a lot
(23:19):
of game left. There's a lot of game left. They're
not gonna stop. They gotta keep playing. They're gotta keep
chasing everybound and keep pushing. You gotta play, man, you
gotta play all the way through, all the way to
the end. I love that from Chris Finch because he
knows the history of the Wolves organization. He knows how
(23:40):
bad they've been in the past. And his message to
Edwards does not appreciate the moment, because think about where
we were four years ago when you were just a
young player in the league. Think about where the Timberwolves
were seven years ago when you were in college. Just
to appreciate the moment. If the Wars come back and win,
so not appreciate it. We can appreciate it, but let's
(24:03):
also have a hunger for more. And sometimes I feel
like we mix the two. Sometimes I think we appreciate
it to the point where we sulk in it, and
then we're just kind of grateful too much, and then
we're not thirsty or hungry as much as we should
be of demanding more. So I'm very passionate about that,
(24:25):
because really, who gives a shit about a Western Conference
Finals appearance? Really cool, you made it this far. If
you lose just means you fell short of reaching the
NBA finals. And if you lose the NBA Finals, who
(24:47):
really gives a crap about that? Either it means you
fell short of winning the NBA Finals. My eyes and
sights are set on winning the whole damn thing, So
you can, I appreciate it, but make sure that your
appreciation does not overshadow the amount of hunger and thirst
(25:08):
you have for more because it's been so long since
a championship, and sometimes as Minnesota sports fans, I think
we forget that, hey, we can win the championship. Our
satisfaction does not need to rest and being a competitive
(25:31):
playoff team that advances past round one or round two.
Our satisfaction should rest in winning championships. And that's how
the players are feeling, and I love their comments in
game and postgame. Thank you for watching this show and
(25:51):
listening if that's your choice. The term roles advance at
the Western Conference Finals, big deal, win the whole darn thing.
Thanks for watching five Star Bass Solusions of Minneapolis. Check
them out and everybody, hope you have a great day,
and thank you for going on this podcasting journey with me.
(26:13):
I didn't realize that the Minnesota Gopher thing. I was
so passionate that that thing fell down.
The Minnesota Timberwolves gentlemen sweep the Golden State Warriors and
advance to the Western Conference Finals in back to back years.
And what a time to be a Minnesota sports fan.
The Twins on a ten game win streak, the Timberwolves
(00:31):
gentlemen sweeping the Warriors, the Viking schedule coming out, and
having primetime game after primetime game. Look out world, because
Minnesota sports fandom is coming at you. But today we're
going to talk about the Timberwolves sweep in five games
(00:55):
against the Golden State Warriors. But first I need to
tell you about Five Star Bass Solutions of Minneapolis, because
while I have your attention, you will not want to
miss this episode. By the way, because I am very
fired up about certain narratives and thoughts. After the Timberwolves
(01:16):
beat the Warriors, Five Star Bass Solutions will come into
your house, give you a free consultation. I'll offer you
affordable payment plans and can remodel your entire bathroom in
twenty four to forty eight hours. It took them forty
(01:38):
eight hours to completely redo our bathroom, and we had
our bathroom back in days. I'm talking about the whole enchilada,
the floors, the tub, the surround, the double sink we got,
and the vanity. Plus they took up our mold. They
took care of our mold problem. I talked to other businesses. Yeah,
you're gonna have to outsource that. We can't do that
(01:59):
for you. Huh. I want it all done all at
the same time. I don't want this to be an
eight week long project. Five Star Bess Solutions of Minneapolis
came into our bathroom and remodeled our entire bathroom in
forty eight hours. That's their promise to you. They'll enter
your bathroom, They'll give you a free consultation, free quotes,
(02:24):
affordable payment plans, and give you your bathroom of your dreams,
like it's a snap of your fingers. No longer wait
six to eight weeks for a bathroom project to get done,
where you're climbing into your tiny basement bathroom waiting for
people to take deuces and pisses. Have your bathroom back
in moments in days. Five Star Bass Solutions of Minneapolis.
(02:49):
Contact them today to get your free consultation. All right.
Timberwolves win one ten and Gentlemen sweep the Warriors after
Stephan Curry goes down with a hamstring strain. My biggest
takeaway from Game five is that the Timberwolves did not
(03:15):
mess around. They did not play with their food. Halftime
sixty two forty seven, entering the fourth quarter up by twenty.
Sure the Warriors made a late run to cut it
to nine. It sound like it was a five point game,
and sure, a nine point lead can evaporate like a
(03:38):
mist in the wind. But the Timberwolves, I really had
no doubt that they were going to win that game.
The Timberwolves did not mess around or play with their food,
and they took care of business on home court, which
was vital because the Warriors were trying to even have
(04:04):
a slim chance of bringing Curry back on Sunday four.
Game six, and you could kind of see the Warriors
bench mob getting excited, getting amped, Curry standing up at
dream because even he wanted the chance to step in
on Game six and advance the series to a game seven.
(04:29):
The Timberwolves did not mess around, and that was really
important for many reasons. When you end the series two,
you get a little rest before the Western Conference Finals start. Three,
you don't have to worry about Stephan Curry. The Timberwolves
only averaged forty seven point two points per game in
(04:52):
the paint this season, ranking twentieth in the NBA. To
close out the Warriors, Minnesota outscored them seventy two to
fifty in the paint. In Game five, they shot sixty
two point eight percent from the field, the third best
by any team in a series clinching win in the
shot clock era. Plus, it's cool for the fans to
(05:17):
experience winning a series on the Target Center floor because
last year the Timberwolves to advance to the Western Conference
Finals beat the Nuggets in Denver in Game seven, swept
the Phoenix Suns, which meant they won Game four in Phoenix.
(05:39):
This is the Timberwolves' first series clinching win in forever.
So it's cool that they gave their fans bang for
their buck, because you're talking about Target Center floor seats
that have to at least cost one thousand dollars in
(06:00):
a series clinching game against the Warriors to advance to
the WCF. And it's cool because the Timberwolves seventy two
points of the paint was tied for third most by
any team in a playoff game over the last twenty
(06:20):
five seasons, and this stat's come from Davic Minimon of ESPN.
I saw this tweet as well. This came from opis
where did this come from? I want to make sure
I got my sources. I want to give credit where
credit is due, because Timberwolves reporters were retweeting this guy
(06:44):
opt to stats opt to stats on x one hundred
and thirty one thousand followers the official Twitter page for
stats Performance. This is what they said. The Timberwolves are
the first Minnesota based Major League Baseball, NBA, NFL, or
NHL team to be among the final four teams remaining
(07:08):
in the playoffs two years in a row since the
North Stars did so in nineteen eighty and nineteen eighty one.
So the Timberwolves consistency of advancing to the Western Conference
finals two straight years has not been done in Minnesota
by one of the major sports teams since nineteen eighty one.
(07:33):
This is historical stuff that the Timberwolves are putting together,
and what's so fascinating about it is that it took
ninety percent of the season for the team to figure
it out and they snuck into the sixth seed. The
(07:54):
Timberwolves had to beat the Brooklyn Nets and the Utah
Jazz during their final two games of the season to
be in the position that they are in right now,
because if they lose either one of those games, they're
in a play in which means they're forced to either
(08:16):
play the Rockets or the Oklahoma City Thunder. That's tough.
So the Timberwolves took care of business. That's my big takeaway. Offensively,
Julius Randall twenty nine points, eight rebounds, five assists, five turnovers.
(08:36):
The turnovers was our problem. But besides that, Anthony Edwards
twenty two points, twelve assists. He had seven turnovers, but
he did a fascinating job, a great job of involving
teammates and distributing the ball in great places for his
(08:57):
teammates to make plays as simple as Dally dunks, as
simple as dumpoffs to go Bear and McDaniels and Julius Randall.
Mike Conley sixteen points, five for seven, four for six
from the three point line. He joined the party. Eight assists,
six rebounds, Rudy Gobert eight rebounds, seventeen points, McDaniels fourteen points,
(09:20):
six of fourteen. This was all around the greatest playoff
performance from the Timberwolves, starting five. This year, everyone in
double digits. Everybody was efficient, nobody missed more than nine shots.
McDaniels was six of fourteen, go Bear eight of nine,
(09:42):
Comedy's five of seven, Edwards eight of fifteen, Randal thirteen
for eighteen, and the bench. De Vincenzo played his best
playoff game thirteen points for him, five of seven, two rebound,
six assists for sty. This was all around a great
(10:02):
team win for the Timberwolves to advance because the Warriors,
they're itching to get back to Golden State to just
get the slim chance of Curry playing. The Timberwolves are
racing against the clock, and they won, and they won.
(10:23):
As far as other takeaways from this game, this was
a big win because I think about last year, this
was a big win. What a great takeaway. Wow, you
can't get that kind of knowledge anywhere else than the
Minnesota tim podcast. Last year. To advance to the Western
(10:44):
Conference Finals, the Wolves played an emotional series against the
Denver Nuggets up to zero, two to two, down to
three to two, win at Target Center, three to three.
Going to for your down double digits early, you come
back and stop on their throats in the second half
(11:04):
and have an emotional win where go Beart's hitting fadeaways
and Anthony Edwards is clinching it in the corner. And
then they had to face Dallas two days later, exhausted,
and Edwards was burnt emotionally and physically. He was not
himself against the Mavericks last year. Cat wasn't himself. The
(11:28):
Wolves were atrocious against Dallas last year. And you can
place a lot of that on the amount of rest
and recovery time and the emotional toll the series was
against the Denver Nuggets. So the fact that they get
more rest to face off against a thunder squad that's
(11:54):
hungry and ready to prove themselves, or a Denver Nuggets
squad that has Nikola Jolkic probably the best basketball player
in the world right now, that's huge. Reset your body
emotionally and physically, give yourself time to prepare, because, unlike
(12:15):
stan Van Gundy who says, oh is the rust in
Game one, the tim will just weren't ready. They're used
to playing back. I don't buy that bullshit. I don't
buy that. Give your body time, give your body a
ready rust. Really, five days you're still practicing, You're still
in the gym every day, you're still preparing more. Rest
(12:38):
is always a good thing. Maybe there's a half of
a first quarter of getting your body ready and up
to speed again and facing the competition. But I would
rather have this situation of winning in five games your
body is physically and emotionally ready to face off in
(13:00):
the Western Conference Finals, then going seven, having one day break,
and then all you're in the fire again. So that's
why this was a big win. I do wonder and
this is a big question as the Wolves get ready
(13:21):
to prepare for their next series against the Thunder or Nuggets.
I would guess the Thunder. But so far this playoffs,
how much have the Wolves been challenged because they won
(13:44):
in five versus the Lakers. However, they did have clutch
time wins. They win in five against Golden State no
Stephan Curry, and against the Lakers, I loved that matchup
because they did not have the big to defend Edwards
at the rim and Luca as slow as heck and
(14:08):
could not stop anybody and Lebrown's forty. So I love
that matchup against the Lakers. But here's what the Timberwolves
need to be ready for. They need to be ready
to take their game to another level in the Western
Conference Finals, because whether it's the Thunder or the Nuggets,
those two teams are going to be a much greater
(14:29):
challenge than the Warriors or the Lakers. And this is
to get to the NBA Finals. This will not be
as easy a cakewalk as the Warriors or the Lakers.
An you think about the Warriors series, Curry goes down
in Game one. That allows the entire Wolves roster to shift,
(14:55):
so Jade and McDaniels, the Timberwolves' best defender, doesn't have
to guard Curry anymore. He can guard Jimmy Butler and
give his NBA basketball life make that havoc. To go
into the Thunder and Nuggets series, they need to be
(15:16):
ready because the performance in Game five, although it was
series clinching, the Timberwolves combined to have twenty turnovers. That
is not going to get it done against the Thunder
(15:39):
or Nuggets. The Timberwolves need to be sharper. Their intensity
needs to go to another level. What we saw in
Game one versus the Warriors is exactly the kind of
thing I'm talking about. The Wolves steamroll the Lakers win
(16:00):
in five, and then the Warriors were hungrier, more battle
tested and more physical than the Timberwolves were in Game one,
and that's why the Wolves could not overcome a Stephen
Curry injury and beat the Warriors. So the question that
(16:27):
I have is will the team be ready to take
their game to another level physically, emotionally, and mentally to
beat the Thunder or the Nuggets because they need to.
Their performances, although they were great against the Warriors and Lakers,
(16:50):
will not be enough to advance to the NBA Finals
because the Thunder and the Nuggets are another animal. They
need to be cleaner, they need to be sharper, they
need to be more ready, they need to be smarter
because the matchups against the Warriors and the Lakers is
(17:14):
as great as a playoff matchup that the team could
ask for. And I'm not gonna apologize for the Timberwolves
advancing to the Western Conference Finals. I'm not going to
say it's a joke because they beat who they had
to be. They played who was ever around the schedule,
beat him in five in advance. It's not like we
(17:35):
need to apologize because their playoff schedule was lighter or
easier than some other matchups. So I'm not apologizing for
anything but they need to be ready for a tougher challenge.
It's not going to be as easy as their wins
were against the Warriors and Lakers, because we're talking about
(18:02):
the NBA Finals and the last thing I want to
say about the Timberwolves advancing to the Western Conference Finals
for the second year in a row and the first
time it's been done in Minnesota since nineteen eighty one
and nineteen eighty. Right now, there's a appreciation from the
(18:30):
fan base, as there should be. I'm appreciating the run,
but I'm almost getting a sense of because the Timberwolves
were so bad for so long, and boy were they bad,
I'm almost getting a sense of, you know what, if
(18:50):
they lose the Western Conference Finals again, it's okay because
they've been so bad for so long. Let's just appreciate
the moment. Remember the years of Chase Uttinger and Luke
Rittenhauer and Alexi Schwed and Al Jefferson and Craig the
Rhinos Smith and Corey Brewer, Johnny Flynn. I'm almost getting
(19:14):
a sense of, you know what, they've made it this far.
Let's just appreciate the moment. Because the NBA lottery was
just a few days ago, and that was the only
thing Timberwolves fans could cling their hopes to for like
twenty years. And I want to push back against that thought,
(19:35):
because this is not a time to sulk and get
in your feelings and feel like, you know what, we've
made it this far. Let's just be happy and appreciate
the moment. No, this is a team that has the
chance to be historical, and if they lose the Western
Conference Finals, we should be pissed. Not too often do
(19:59):
you get a chance where a team is this good
and the finals has been this open, and Edwards is
finally clicking, and the team around Edwards, especially Julius Randall,
is playing at his best ever. It's not a time
(20:20):
to appreciate where the Timberwolves are and where they came from.
It's a time to stop on the throat and appreciate
greatness and go to the NBA Finals and win the
whole fricking thing. So I'm pushing back against this idea
that we should be satisfied and appreciate where the Timberwlves
(20:41):
are because I think we as fans should have this
same satisfaction as players. If the Timberwolves lose the Western
Conference Finals for the second straight year. Soon the narrative
is going to shift from appreciating where we are and
(21:04):
what they've done too well, why can't they advance to
the NBA Finals? What's holding them back? Why can't Edwards
take that next step? So don't get all up in
your feelings about where they are and what they've accomplished,
because someday soon, if the Timberwlves don't advance to the finals,
(21:26):
people are gonna wonder what's wrong is it Chris Finch
holding the team back? Why can't Edwards get over this hurdle?
Just like Jordan couldn't get past the Pistons for a
few years, people are gonna talk about the Timbrels. Why
can't they get past the Western Conference finals? What is
it about the Western Conference? What is it about the roster,
(21:47):
the coach, the team, the ownership group. Why can't they
do it? So I am not in my feelings about
this run, about appreciating the moment. Oh I'm so happy,
Oh it's so oh cool. No, if the Timberwolves lose
versus the Thunder or Nuggets, this season will come and
(22:11):
go like a fart in the wind. Nobody will give
a damn about what the Temberwolves accomplished this season. If
they lose in the Western Conference Finals, it's just going
to be another mark on the radar that said, you know,
you were not good enough to get to the finals.
You were not good enough to overcome the best team
(22:32):
in the Western Conference. And the players feel the same way.
The players after this win were very consistent in their messaging.
Anthony Edwards, there is no satisfaction. We just got here.
We haven't done anything yet, so no, we're not satisfied.
(22:53):
Go bear. That's exactly how it feels. Stomach is not
in full not at all. McDaniels. It feels good, but
there's really nothing to celebrate yet. And Chris Finch was
miked up during Game five and what he was saying
about to Anthony Edwards speaks volumes to me, a lot
(23:19):
of game left. There's a lot of game left. They're
not gonna stop. They gotta keep playing. They're gotta keep
chasing everybound and keep pushing. You gotta play, man, you
gotta play all the way through, all the way to
the end. I love that from Chris Finch because he
knows the history of the Wolves organization. He knows how
(23:40):
bad they've been in the past. And his message to
Edwards does not appreciate the moment, because think about where
we were four years ago when you were just a
young player in the league. Think about where the Timberwolves
were seven years ago when you were in college. Just
to appreciate the moment. If the Wars come back and win,
so not appreciate it. We can appreciate it, but let's
(24:03):
also have a hunger for more. And sometimes I feel
like we mix the two. Sometimes I think we appreciate
it to the point where we sulk in it, and
then we're just kind of grateful too much, and then
we're not thirsty or hungry as much as we should
be of demanding more. So I'm very passionate about that,
(24:25):
because really, who gives a shit about a Western Conference
Finals appearance? Really cool, you made it this far. If
you lose just means you fell short of reaching the
NBA finals. And if you lose the NBA Finals, who
(24:47):
really gives a crap about that? Either it means you
fell short of winning the NBA Finals. My eyes and
sights are set on winning the whole damn thing, So
you can, I appreciate it, but make sure that your
appreciation does not overshadow the amount of hunger and thirst
(25:08):
you have for more because it's been so long since
a championship, and sometimes as Minnesota sports fans, I think
we forget that, hey, we can win the championship. Our
satisfaction does not need to rest and being a competitive
(25:31):
playoff team that advances past round one or round two.
Our satisfaction should rest in winning championships. And that's how
the players are feeling, and I love their comments in
game and postgame. Thank you for watching this show and
(25:51):
listening if that's your choice. The term roles advance at
the Western Conference Finals, big deal, win the whole darn thing.
Thanks for watching five Star Bass Solusions of Minneapolis. Check
them out and everybody, hope you have a great day,
and thank you for going on this podcasting journey with me.
(26:13):
I didn't realize that the Minnesota Gopher thing. I was
so passionate that that thing fell down.
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