While the Timberwolves were sitting at home in Minnesota, having wrapped up their first-round series in a relatively stress-free five games, the Warriors were in the midst of an epic battle. After taking a 3-1 series lead, the young, physical Houston Rockets put the pieces together to mount a comeback.
It started in Houston, a blowout in Game 5 that earned them a trip back to the Bay. A close Game 6 followed, but the Rockets prevailed with a dominant fourth quarter, led by veteran guard Fred VanVleet. Yet in Game 7, Stephen Curry and Co. eliminated the Rockets for the fifth time in the past ten years. Midseason addition (and former Timberwolf) Jimmy Butler helped lead the Warriors in holding off the second-seeded Rockets, earning their shot at Minnesota and Anthony Edwards.
Both teams knocked off higher seeds. This will be the rare second-round series where the sixth seed, Minnesota, will have home-court advantage. But will it be enough? Let’s explore this exciting second-round series.
Warriors vs. Timberwolves: Series Preview
Head to Head
The Warriors took three out of the four meetings, including the final three straight after Minnesota won the first game. However, none of these games featured Butler, and all occurred before the Wolves started to find their rhythm after the All-Star Break. The matchup has plenty of juice, though, with Curry and Edwards, teammates at the Paris Olympics over the summer, battling for three-point supremacy. Rudy Gobert and Draymond Green have history, too, punctuated by a brawl last season. And of course, Minnesota fans will relish the opportunity to boo their favorite villain, Butler, who left the Wolves unceremoniously. The storylines are there, it’s now down to players to write the endings.
X-Factors
On the Minnesota roster, one name stands out as the biggest swing factor in this series: Jaden McDaniels. He dominated in two of the four wins against LA, and his worst game coincided with the lone loss. He’ll be tasked with slowing Curry. If he can stay out of foul trouble while getting to his midrange shot, he could decide who prevails.
For the Warriors, it’s one of their streakiest shooters, Buddy Hield. In Game 7 against Houston, when Curry could barely hit a shot in the first half, Hield paced the team with a spectacular 22 points, finishing with 33 for the game and nine made threes. He helped them build a double-digit halftime lead that the Rockets could not overcome. Golden State has a great opportunity to advance if Hield can consistently knock down shots when all the attention is on Curry and Butler.
Playoff Experience
The Warriors have been the most successful franchise in the league over the past ten seasons, winning four championships. Curry and Green still remain from those dominant squads and have combined for 318 playoff games. They no doubt will have the experience advantage, but their age might be an issue. After defeating the Rockets on Sunday night, they will play in Minnesota just 48 hours later. However, they carry nearly a decade of dominance, and will be up for the challenge.
On the other side, Minnesota is coming off a Western Conference Finals run, but with two new additions to the squad. Julius Randle and Donte DiVincenzo were acquired in the Karl-Anthony Towns trade right before the season, and are each experienced playoff contributors as well. The Wolves’ top eight in minutes played have a combined 348 games of playoff experience. While this is far less than the Warriors, Edwards is building a reputation for taking down legends. In the past two seasons, he has sent LeBron James, Luka Doncic, Nikola Jokic, and Kevin Durant packing. He would love to add Curry and Butler to that list, and with the youth and rest advantage, there’s no reason Minnesota can’t make a second straight Western Conference Finals.
Featured image: © Brad Rempel-Imagn Images
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