The Timberwolves Punch Back In A Big Way By Blowing Out The Warriors To Capture Game 2 And Even The Series

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You have to imagine that following Game 1, the Wolves had to feel like they blew a prime opportunity. While seeing Steph go down with his strained hamstring sucks, it also opened a door for the Wolves to punch first and start the series off strong. Unfortunately, that's not exactly how things went. Ant had a tough debut game, the team shot 5-29 from deep while finishing with 39/17% splits with 16 TOs as the Wolves struggled to even break 90 (88). 

That made Thursday's Game 2 pretty massive. Just like we saw with OKC (and did not see with the Celtics), the Wolves came out firing right away and never really let up. They responded how you expect a high seed to respond at home following a bad loss. They got back to normal, and given that GS doesn't have Steph, it was imperative that MIN avoid the 0-2 hole. Trust me, that is not where you want to be. 

And when I saw they started right away, I mean it. A 13-0 lead just 5 minutes in, their lead got to as high as 18 in the first quarter. The crazy part is Ant started 2-6, so it wasn't even that. The Wolves just looked like themselves as a collective. They took care of the ball, stopped missing every 3PA they took and then made life hell for the shorthanded Warriors on the other end

It wasn't all lollipops and rainbows though. We almost had another disaster on our hands when for a moment, it looked like Anthony Edwards really fucked up his ankle

It's always a tense time when something like this happens, because you never know who on Twitter to trust. Everyone is an MD, and their diagnosis is always the worst-case scenario. Personally, I only choose to believe the ones that tell me the best possible news to help calm me down, but the way Ant was carried off the court without putting any weight on his ankle, I don't know how you couldn't be shitting your pants as a Wolves fan. Thankfully, it was more of a "getting stepped on" situation as opposed to a rolled ankle, so once he was deemed questionable to return, I think you heard all of MIN collectively exhale. He looked mostly fine in the second half for the most part, and thank God because these playoffs have been too good to lose another player like Ant for any period of time. I know Warriors fans probably don't want to hear it, but it's true. Injuries suck.

Credit the Warriors though, for a while in that 3rd quarter, they did fight back and try and make it close

but at the end of the day, the Wolves were too much. They basically had the exact opposite of their Game 1 performance at a time when they needed it mos. A solid night with 50/43% splits, only 12 TOs and 5 different players in double figures. This time around, they had no problem breaking 90. That, was more of GS's issue (93), which is understandable when you're without the greatest shooter to ever live and nobody really steps up to fill that missing production.

The Wolves on the other hand got great showings from pretty much all their main guys, and even though Ant didn't go all that crazy. He didn't have to which is something you have to love to see as a Wolves fan. A balanced attack is always nice when you add it to a solid 20 points from Ant on efficient shooting and a +21 in his minutes while doing a little bit of everything else. This was a much better response after his coach got on him after Game 1, which I would say was pretty predictable. You knew he'd come ready to play and he delivered. Much better energy and effort, better reads, better defense etc.

If you take GS out of the picture for a second, this game was a great example of what makes the Wolves such a tough playoff matchup. That 17% shooting from deep in Game 1? That's not who they are. A night like tonight is much more like what they are capable of on any given night. They are a team that mixes high volume 3s with elite defense while having size on the perimeter and point of attack, and at his best their best player can be the best guy in any matchup on any given night. That's a dangerous combination, and why a team with that type of profile tends to make deep runs. 

Defensively, they can switch, they can play big, they can play small, and when Conley isn't on the floor there really isn't a weak link to attack. Add in elite back line help from the frontcourt, and that's a tough puzzle to solve when they're all locked in and playing with the right amount of force.

If you're the Warriors, this ass whooping is mostly whatever. They did their job and went into the Twin Cities and got the split. The goal now is to find a way to at least split at home to buy you the days until Game 6 and a potential Steph return. That really should be their only goal right now. Just win 1 more game, and a Steph return is on the table, which changes everything (you hope). 

So here we go. While the two series in the East are on life support, the two in the West are looking like we're in for the long haul. OKC punched back in a big way in their Game 2 last night, Wolves punched back in theirs tonight. There's certainly a lot of basketball yet to be played, and I for one cannot wait to watch it.