As we all know, the Timberwolves have advanced to the Western Conference finals.
In the second round of the tie-break, the Timberwolves defeated the Nuggets when they were 15 points behind at halftime and 20 points at most in the third quarter, eliminating the opponent while completing the biggest reversal in the history of the tie-break.
Coincidentally, exactly 20 years ago today, the Timberwolves reached the Western Conference finals for the first time in team history under the leadership of Garnett, and it is even more coincidental that the birthday of the old wolf king was after this game.
There is no doubt that this is a significant victory.
Young Edwards and McDaniels, Towns and Gobert in their prime, will all have their first career Western Conference finals, and these four are also the absolute core of the Timberwolves' championship contention, and they are the protagonists when it comes to this Timberwolves team.
However, the 36-year-old Conley cannot be ignored.
In this tie-break, Conley played a total of 39 minutes, shooting 3-of-10, 3-of-5 three-pointers, 1-of-2 free throws, and scored 10 points, 8 rebounds, 4 assists and 2 steals.
Just looking at the data, it is not particularly outstanding, especially in the first half, Conley's performance can be described as spicy, shooting 1 of 7 and only scoring 3 points.
But in the second half, Conley came to the rescue, leaving a number of impressive shots in the fourth quarter.
Nine minutes ago, the two teams were tied at 72, Conley received a pass from Edwards before the end of the offensive round, and then defended against Murray, and hit a difficult three-point shot after a false shake, after this ball, the Timberwolves never let the Nuggets tie or overtake;
With three minutes left, the Timberwolves led 89-82, and then Conley cut off Murray directly near the halfway line, and Edwards hit a three-pointer in this round, bringing the difference to 10 points, which was also the most Timberwolves lead in the game;
Two minutes ago, Conley's dribble was almost broken, and then he competed with Pope and Jokic for the floor ball, and after the referee blew the jump ball, the 36-year-old and 1.85-meter-old Conley actually jumped to beat the 31-year-old and 1.96-meter-old Pope.
The crucial three-pointers, the falling to the ground and the jump ball to win the five-year-old Pope, who was 11 centimeters taller than him, were enough to prove that Conley wanted to win the win.
Interestingly, after the full game, Conley waved at the Nuggets home court, a moment he had been waiting for for four years.
Four years ago, in the 2020 playoffs, Conley was still in the Jazz, playing a tie-break with the Nuggets in the first round, and in the end, Conley missed a three-pointer, and now he has completed his revenge in the Timberwolves.
Zoom in to his entire career, Conley has played a total of four tie-breaks before, none of them won, what a painful thing it is to lose a tie-break, Conley has experienced four times in his career, and it was not until the fifth time that he tasted the beauty of victory.
And, Conley has played more than 10 playoff games since entering the league in 2007, and this year is only his second division final, and his last division final was back in 2013, when the Grizzlies beat the Thunder in the second round and then were swept by the Spurs in the Western Conference finals.
The past is gone, and this year is definitely Conley's chance to win the championship in his career.
So far in the playoffs, Conley has averaged 11.3 points, 4.2 rebounds, 6.5 assists, 1.1 steals per game, and only 1.5 turnovers, while shooting 40.5%/41.2%/80.0% from three, and 53.5% from the field.
As we said, Edwards + Madan + Towns + Gobert is the basic plate and future of the Timberwolves, but Conley is also the core that cannot be ignored, he was absent in the second round of G5, and the Timberwolves offense was disorganized, losing by 15 points.
In terms of data, so far in the playoffs, when Conley is on the court, the Timberwolves can outscore opponents by 12.7 points per 100 rounds, which is higher than Edwards, Madan and Towns, and his cumulative plus/minus is +96, ranking third on the team.
And, hear what Jokic had to say about Conley: "Conley is the most underrated player in the league and I love this guy. ”
Conley has a great career, but objectively speaking, it's not very brilliant, he is very similar to Lowry, both are championship quality puzzle pieces, the difference is that Lowry has made multiple All-Stars in the less competitive East, and he also won the championship with the Raptors, and returned to the Finals with the Heat last season.
Conley, on the other hand, is hardly mentioned in the more competitive West, the only All-Star in his career is a repression, he hasn't won a single division final, and he hasn't touched the floor of the finals.
Fortunately, now Conley has the opportunity to continue chasing his dreams, and he is also full of urgency about it, and before the playoffs began, Conley said to his teammates: "I don't think anyone wants to win more than me, and I selfishly tell my teammates, help me, brothers, help me, while my level is still there, just now, I don't have much time." ”
This year's playoffs are destined to have a new king, and the Timberwolves, who just defeated the defending champion, definitely have the potential to win the championship.