In the second round of G6, the Timberwolves defeated the Nuggets 115-70 at home, bringing the score to 3-3.
What is the concept of a 45-point win? That's the biggest point margin in this year's playoffs and the largest loss margin in Nuggets history, and 70 points is the lowest score in a single game in their playoff history.
In addition, 45 points is the largest margin of win against a defending champion in playoff history, and the second-largest margin of win against a team facing elimination, with the all-time record of 58 points set by the Lakers in 1956.
It was also the eighth-largest margin in playoff history, and the last time it was such a margin was back in 2015, when the Bulls beat the Bucks by 54 points in the first round, 120-66.
Back to the game, before Tianwang Mountain, Jokic showed a lot, 15 of 22 in the game, and scored 40 points, 7 rebounds, 13 assists and 0 turnovers with super efficiency, and then the Nuggets simmered slowly and collected the juice in a big fire, which made the Timberwolves experience the feeling of a Laker.
After G5, many fans and media believe that the Timberwolves are finished, because Jokic has shown his best form, and the Nuggets players have also adjusted their form back to championship mode.
For example, Dream Chaser said on the show: "This series is over, because the Nuggets now have all the momentum, and the Timberwolves no longer believe they can win, which means the series is over." ”
However, this G6, the Timberwolves, who fought to the death, immediately slapped him in the face, and slapped him hard.
From 2-9 down to 29-11, the Timberwolves played the Nuggets on a 27-2 run at the beginning of the game, including a wave of 22-0 offense, and by the end of the first quarter, the Timberwolves had a 17-point lead at 31-14.
The margin then widened until the end of the third quarter, when the Timberwolves had a 25-point lead at 86-61;
Entering the fourth quarter, the Nuggets' offense still did not improve, and it didn't take long for both sides to withdraw their main forces;
Interestingly, after entering garbage time, the Nuggets' offense still didn't, and the point difference continued to expand, reaching 50 points at one point, and for a moment, there should be many fans thinking of a certain 183 masked man.
There is no doubt that Edwards is the protagonist of this game.
In the whole game, Edwards played a total of 34 minutes, shooting 8 of 17, 4 of 9 three-pointers, 7 of 8 free throws, scoring 27 points, 4 rebounds, 4 assists and 3 steals, and he scored 14 points in the first quarter to help the Timberwolves set the tone for victory.
In the third quarter, Edwards also showed off an operation, facing Porter Jr., first worshiping Buddha and then breaking through the violent dunk, which is Durant's signature move, who used the same move to shake the letter brother.
It's worth noting that Edwards' plus/minus is +43, the fifth-highest single-game plus/minus in playoff history, followed by Butler & James Bane (+46) and Bullock (+44).
It needs to be said that before entering garbage time, the point difference at that time was 36 points, that is, such a big win, in non-garbage time when Edwards was not on the court, the Timberwolves also lost 7 points to the Nuggets, and the importance can be imagined.
There are three more moments worth noting:
One occurred in the second quarter, when the Timberwolves had a large lead, but were chased by the Nuggets to nearly 10 points, but Edwards told his teammates during a timeout: "That's what we said before, as soon as you take the lead, you relax, press the throttle tightly, and continue to him." ”
One occurred in the third quarter, after facing Porter Jr. Byei + violent dunk, the camera showed Edwards, who did not show a smile, when the Timberwolves led by 24 points.
The other one happened in garbage time, if nothing else, look at the picture below, don't look at the score, just look at the expressions of Edwards, Gobert, McDaniels, and guess who won the game?
It's hard to imagine that this is a 22-year-old young player who has never let up in the slightest in such a big lead, and can even unite his big brothers.
Interestingly, before entering garbage time, Edwards made a "tie-break" gesture towards the whole court, which would be the first tie-break Edwards experienced, and it was clear that he couldn't wait.
Of course, the Timberwolves can win so much, relying on Edwards alone, Conley's return, McDaniels' hand revival, and Towns Gobert's restrictions on Gordon & Jokic are the key to the Timberwolves' victory.
But, you have to say that the best player on this team is definitely Edwards, not only leading by example on the court, but also full of leadership qualities off the court - Edwards also encouraged his teammates when the Timberwolves lost before.
Listen to what McDaniels had to say about Edwards: "It's really fun to play with Edwards, he encourages me every day, he gives me a lot of confidence, he messages me every day that I have to play aggressively, he's a superstar, he can score and he believes we can score too, it's great to have him as a teammate. ”
He's only 22 years old, and some people have already compared him to Jordan, note, not just because of his looks, but that alone has proven how good he is, and he also has outstanding offensive skills, mental quality, and leadership ability - in case, we say, if the nuggets get past the Nuggets, this year, maybe it's really the year of Huazi.