It happened! The Minnesota Timberwolves reach the second round of the NBA playoffs for the first time since 2004. Led by Anthony Edwards and Karl Anthony-Town, the Timberwolves complete the series sweep against the Phoenix Suns with a 122-116 win at Footprint Center.
This win marks the first playoff series win for the Timberwolves since Big Ticket Kevin Garnett led them to the Western Conference finals a decade ago.
However, it was a bittersweet win for the young Wolves, as they finished the game without their head coach, Chris Finch, who left the game after a sideline collision with his own floor general, Mike Conley, in the dying minutes of the game. Reports state that Finch suffered a torn patellar tendon in his right knee. Talk about a freak accident.
The series win didn’t just serve as a franchise milestone for Minnesota; it also let the entire basketball world witness the passing of the torch onto Edwards, who outshined and outplayed everyone on the court, including veteran stars Kevin Durant, Devin Booker, and Bradley Beal.
In their series-clinching game, Ant tallied 40 points, nine rebounds, and six assists behind 13-of-23 shooting from the field and 7-of-13 shooting from deep while dishing out a couple of NBA 2024 highlights ever so often.
On the other side of the court, the Phoenix Suns organisation is left to ask, “What now?” The Suns gave most, if not all, their draft assets in the foreseeable future, facing a $51,903,347 luxury tax bill and another year on the ageing Kevin Durant.
After getting swept in the first round after moving mountains to assemble their team, it’s safe to say that the Suns had a disastrous and disappointing season.
Jalen Brunson explodes for 47 points
It’s always good for the sport of basketball when the Knicks are playing well. And boy, the city of New York has a special group this year.
Just a few days ago, the Knicks drew first blood, and now, they’ve have forced Joel Embiid and the 76ers to the brink of elimination after Jalen Brunson dropped 47 points in Philadelphia. Brunson now holds the franchise record in playoff points after his magnum opus at Wells Fargo Center.
The Sixers, led by Embiid and Maxey, were hot off the gates, garnering a double-digit lead after the first quarter, but it wasn’t long until Brunson and the Knicks got back into the game and gave the Sixers a proper dog fight.
It was a back-and-forth match all throughout, but the grit of Thib’s men coupled with the brilliance of Jalen Brunson got them out of the hostile Wells Fargo Center in one piece, with a 3-1 series lead to boot.
The Sixers are now on the brink of elimination and will need three straight wins to preserve their season. Easier said than done, especially with how the Knicks have been playing, and it doesn’t help that the series will go back to MSG for Game 5.
Ailing Bucks fall to a 3-1 hole
The Bucks were without their All-Stars, Giannis Antetokounmpo and Damian Lillard, coming into Game 4 of their first-round series against the Indiana Pacers.
This SBOTOP writer expected a big game from Bucks staple Khris Middleton while their 1-2 combo was on the sidelines. In all fairness, Middleton posted a respectable 25 & 10, but it just wasn’t enough to keep up with the fast-paced Pacers squad.
The Pacers took advantage of the Bucks’ injuries and balled out. Six Pacers players scored double-digit points, but it was Myles Turner who carried most of the offencive load with a game-high 29 while U.S. Olympic team member Tyrese Haliburton posted a cool 24-4-4 to take a commanding 3-1 series lead.
The chances of Lillard or Giannis playing in Game 5 are bleak, but the basketball world should expect nothing short of a spirited effort from the veteran Bucks team, who, in the early parts of the season, were considered the only threat to Boston in the East.
Jamal Murray listed as questionable with a left calf strain
The Denver Nuggets are looking to eliminate LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers at Ball Arena tomorrow, but their floor general, Jamal Murray, has yet to confirm his availability for the do-or-die game for the Lakers as he tends to a left calf strain.
Murray has dealt with a plethora of injuries throughout the season, forcing him to miss out on some individual awards and All-Star selections. Nuggets fans were surely hoping that their star point guard would be healthy all throughout the postseason, as Denver would need Murray to be on the floor in order to successfully defend their title.
Even though Murray’s availability for game five is still up in the air, the NBA 2024 betting odds still suggest that the Nuggets will be able to close out the series in Denver.
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