There are many stars in the NBA league who have been called "soft eggs", such as Nowitzki, a German tank that had not won the championship that year, and King Novitsky was once ridiculed by fans as a "soft egg". However, Nowitzki led the Mavericks (now the Mavericks) to defeat the Heat's Big Three single-handedly, upset the championship, and vindicated himself. In the current NBA league, Embiid, Randle and Towns were once called "soft eggs" by fans. Especially now Embiid, as a big center, plays a "guard" style of play, does not grab rebounds in the restricted area, does not focus on inside scoring, but likes to float outside like a guard to shoot three-pointers. 28+10！ 27+12！ The whole league was questioned, and they all said that he was too soft, and the super champion Xiu Nirvana was reborn.
Although Embiid won the regular season MVP in 2023, he has been questioned in the NBA, especially in the playoffs, Embiid plays too soft, inefficient offensive scoring, does not want to grab rebounds inside, and likes to shoot three-pointers on the outside, which directly leads to the 76ers' interior scoring and rebounding statistics being completely destroyed by opponents. Embiid was also labeled by fans as a "guard" for this year's playoffs, this year's playoffs, Embiid shot only 44.4% from the field, 33.3% from three-point range, and averaged 4.2 turnovers per game (the second most in the league), he did not score points inside, but shot three points from the outside, so he shot 2 of 9 three-pointers in a single game, 2 of 8 shots, 1 of 6 shots, and 5 shots...... Very outrageous.
In the small-ball era of the active league, center interior players have no problem shooting three-pointers, but the premise is that you have to be accurate. Like Timberwolves' Towns, his three-point shooting in this year's playoffs is very accurate. NBA statistics show that in this year's playoffs, Towns averaged 20.8 points + 9.0 rebounds + 2.3 assists per game, shooting 57.2% from the field, 53.8% from three-point range, and 84.6% from the free throw line. NBA reporters reported that Towns had a 70.2 percent true shooting percentage in this year's playoffs, the most in the league. Towns has played a great game in the playoffs this year, scoring efficiently, grabbing rebounds aggressively, and strong defensive confrontations, Gobert and Towns have two towers inside, causing huge defensive pressure on Jokic.
In this year's playoffs, Edwards is the Timberwolves' number one star, and Towns is the second leader. Being the boss of the team may be too difficult for Downs, but being a second-in-command is a perfect fit for Downs. Edwards drew a lot of defensive attention from opponents, and Downs played more easily, simpler, and more efficient on the offensive end. As a result, Downs scored 28 points + 10 rebounds + 3 assists + 1 steal + 1 block in a single game in the playoffs, and 27 points + 12 rebounds + 1 assist + 1 steal + 2 blocks in a single game.
Downs was often called a "soft egg" by fans before, but this year, Downs seems to have completely transformed. NBA reporters reported that in the regular season this season, Downs had a defensive efficiency of 109.1 (36th in the league), and in this year's playoffs, Downs had a defensive efficiency of 104.2 (26th in the league). Downs' defense is very strong now, reaching the strongest level in the league. Therefore, Gobert + Towns only had a 41% shooting rate for Jokic, and the Timberwolves and Nuggets G2, Gobert was absent because of the birth of the child, and throughout the game, Towns defended Jokic, and Jokic only had a shooting rate of 38.5% (Jokic had 12 turnovers in two playoff games, setting a series career high).
Now, fans are watching the Timberwolves rise super, watching Towns go from "softie" to super defensive giant. The whole league is questioned? They all say that he played too softly? Sorry, Towns has already proven himself in the playoffs, and he's a two-in-one, good offense and defense, not only scoring efficiently offensively, but also defending Jokic. In this year's playoffs, the Timberwolves have an offensive efficiency of 120.8 (the first in the league), and they have always been the best defense in the league, and this Timberwolves team has a real chance of winning the championship. The Timberwolves were able to take a 2-0 lead over the defending champion Nuggets, and that would certainly have to be a real hard power.