On April 21, Beijing time, the first round of the NBA playoffs officially started, and in the game that had ended, the Cavaliers held their home court and defeated the Magic 97-83, leading the series 1-0. Next is the Suns away to challenge the Timberwolves, the Suns 3-0 Timberwolves in the regular season, but the defensive intensity of the playoffs and the regular season is completely different, the Timberwolves have DPOY Gobert, and the All-Star interior Towns, the inside and outside strength is more balanced, the Suns want to take away the victory from Minnesota, they must make a fuss from the outside, Durant and Booker, Beal need to maintain stable firepower support.
In the first quarter, the two teams were almost evenly matched on both offensive and defensive ends, and the Suns temporarily led by one point at 28-27. In the second quarter, the Timberwolves fought back, led by Edwards and Towns, to go on a 34-23 run in a single quarter, and the Timberwolves led by 10 points at halftime. Durant scored 18 points in two quarters, but Booker struggled, scoring just seven points on 3-of-9 shooting and three fouls. The Timberwolves grabbed 27 rebounds in the first half, almost twice as many as the Suns, which is also an important reason why the Timberwolves can gradually occupy an absolute advantage.
In the third quarter, the margin continued to widen, and the Timberwolves played another 31-21, winning by 10 points in a single quarter, and the difference came to 20 points after three quarters. Edwards scored 18 points in the quarter, training Durant in a row, and KD lost in the matchup with Huazi. In the fourth quarter, the two teams played half a quarter, and the difference was still more than 20 points, and the Suns had not given up, but the game time was getting less and less, and it was almost impossible to reverse, and in the end, the Suns lost 95-120 to the Timberwolves away, which was a big surprise.
The Suns' Durant scored 31 points, 7 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 steal and 1 block, KD really tried his best, and his shooting percentage was also very high, and he was the only player on the team who played normally. Booker didn't perform well, only 18 points, 2 rebounds and 5 assists on 5-of-16 shooting, Beal had 15 points, 2 rebounds, 6 assists and 3 steals, and Nurkic had 9 points and 4 rebounds. Allen has 4 points and 5 rebounds, 0 of 3 three-pointers, and can only score on free throws, he just signed a four-year, $70 million contract with the Suns, but the first game of the playoffs was revealed, and under the high-intensity defense, he could not maintain the same shooting rate as in the regular season, and he was also an overrated player.
Edwards of the Timberwolves scored 33 points, 9 rebounds and 6 assists, which was more amazing than Durant's play, and he is also a superstar in the future league, Conley had 4 points, 3 rebounds and 7 assists, Gobert 14 points, 16 rebounds and 2 assists, Towns 19 points, 7 rebounds and 4 assists, Walker off the bench became a wonder soldier and scored 18 points, and Reed also scored 12 points.
After the Suns suffered a heavy defeat to the Timberwolves, they fell behind 0-1 in the first-round series. Due to the Suns' 3-0 Timberwolves in the regular season, the outside world is optimistic about the Suns and showing their real championship-winning strength, but they didn't expect the game to be upset, and the Suns lost miserably in the first game and suffered a black start to the playoffs. The Timberwolves are the big dark horses in the regular season, with a 56-26 record of 3rd in the West, and now, the Wolves do have a certain competitiveness, Towns and Gobert have outstanding rebounding ability on the inside, and Edwards supports the outside offense, and the inside and outside strength is very balanced. After defending the first home court, the Timberwolves are like a rainbow, aiming for the top 4 in the West, and the next game may be a life-and-death battle for the Suns, if they continue to lose on the road, the 0-2 score will make the Suns players feel desperate, and the season will basically end early, and it will be difficult to return to the home court.