2024 NBA Playoffs - West 1st Round: #3 Minnesota Timberwolves vs. #6 Phoenix Suns (MIN SWEEPS 4-0)

[spanishninja]

Hey Wolves, if you are gonna beat us tonight, please do it in a blowout instead of like how the Knicks and Nuggets did last night lol.

[Astaluego]

This is the playoffs and KD is out there with that goofy grin clapping and cheering Antman on while he is getting destroyed. Not only is he beyond soft, but I also think he just doesn't care about winning anymore.

Nothing is more irritating than watching the Suns getting obliterated and seeing that crap. Like how can I get behind a team and a player like KD when he's out there fapping on court to Ant. It's absolutely not the time - especially considering all that's riding on this little window they've cornered themselves into.

Save the best buds act for the clubs in the offseason.

drawing his next destiny...will he ask for a trade from the Wolves??...Towns will go to play with his friend Booker

[Domejandro]

Hey Wolves, if you are gonna beat us tonight, please do it in a blowout instead of like how the Knicks and Nuggets did last night lol.

I would say "You guys should hope it goes down to the wire, because Minnesota is guaranteed to choke!" but I have heard from Phoenix Suns fans that your team also has a talent for fumbling easily winnable games.

[Domejandro]

Minny is the 17th best offense. They won't be close to this good all series.

We don't need to be this good on offense if our defense can hold Phoenix down like that for a few games.

We held Phoenix to a 99 Ortg, so it's not like we needed mindblowing offense to win that game. Our regular season offensive rating was 115.6. We could have played worse on offense than usual and still won this game.

Phoenix has the tools to overwhelm our defense. They proved that in the regular season. Wolves fans aren't comfortable or counting our victories.

You're citing our 17th best offense in the regular season but anything can happen in a series. All that matter is how well we score against Phoenix's defense- which is pretty mid- and how well they score against us (9th ranked +2.3 rOrtg vs. our 1st ranked -6.3 rDrtg). If we just play the offensive and defensive rating as the expectation (which is what your post suggests), the Minnesota will win because we're a +6.6 net rating team and Phoenix is a +3.1 net rating team. Obviously playoffs don't work like that and it's about matchups and what the team can do to get a team to play worse than expected.

I think another consideration is that Minnesota's offensive stats for the season took a pretty strong hit with Karl-Anthony Towns being out for six weeks. Going off of memory, I think they slid from twelfth to seventeenth, during that stretch. Minnesota's offense is actually pretty efficient, but their propensity for turnovers is pretty rough; if Phoenix can speed the game up and stagnate Minnesota's offense, they have a shot. If Minnesota takes care of the ball, their efficiency should stay relatively consistent.

That said, I definitely don't think any Minnesota fan will start feeling comfortable unless they win tonight.

[spanishninja]

Hey Wolves, if you are gonna beat us tonight, please do it in a blowout instead of like how the Knicks and Nuggets did last night lol.

I would say "You guys should hope it goes down to the wire, because Minnesota is guaranteed to choke!" but I have heard from Phoenix Suns fans that your team also has a talent for fumbling easily winnable games.

we're the worst!

[life_saver]

Minny is the 17th best offense. They won't be close to this good all series.

We don't need to be this good on offense if our defense can hold Phoenix down like that for a few games.

We held Phoenix to a 99 Ortg, so it's not like we needed mindblowing offense to win that game. Our regular season offensive rating was 115.6. We could have played worse on offense than usual and still won this game.

Phoenix has the tools to overwhelm our defense. They proved that in the regular season. Wolves fans aren't comfortable or counting our victories.

You're citing our 17th best offense in the regular season but anything can happen in a series. All that matter is how well we score against Phoenix's defense- which is pretty mid- and how well they score against us (9th ranked +2.3 rOrtg vs. our 1st ranked -6.3 rDrtg). If we just play the offensive and defensive rating as the expectation (which is what your post suggests), the Minnesota will win because we're a +6.6 net rating team and Phoenix is a +3.1 net rating team. Obviously playoffs don't work like that and it's about matchups and what the team can do to get a team to play worse than expected.

I think another consideration is that Minnesota's offensive stats for the season took a pretty strong hit with Karl-Anthony Towns being out for six weeks. Going off of memory, I think they slid from twelfth to seventeenth, during that stretch. Minnesota's offense is actually pretty efficient, but their propensity for turnovers is pretty rough; if Phoenix can speed the game up and stagnate Minnesota's offense, they have a shot. If Minnesota takes care of the ball, their efficiency should stay relatively consistent.

That said, I definitely don't think any Minnesota fan will start feeling comfortable unless they win tonight.

yeah..Wolves were top10 in EFG%, TS% in regular season..the main problem was turnovers where they were bottom10

[OldSchoolNoBull]

Phoenix needs more from their bench. In Game 1, Minnesota's starters outscored Phoenix's starters 79-77. But Minnesota's bench outscored Phoenix's bench 41-18. Eric Gordon in particular can't be a near-complete zero like he was in Game 1.

[cupcakesnake]

Minny is the 17th best offense. They won't be close to this good all series.

We don't need to be this good on offense if our defense can hold Phoenix down like that for a few games.

We held Phoenix to a 99 Ortg, so it's not like we needed mindblowing offense to win that game. Our regular season offensive rating was 115.6. We could have played worse on offense than usual and still won this game.

Phoenix has the tools to overwhelm our defense. They proved that in the regular season. Wolves fans aren't comfortable or counting our victories.

You're citing our 17th best offense in the regular season but anything can happen in a series. All that matter is how well we score against Phoenix's defense- which is pretty mid- and how well they score against us (9th ranked +2.3 rOrtg vs. our 1st ranked -6.3 rDrtg). If we just play the offensive and defensive rating as the expectation (which is what your post suggests), the Minnesota will win because we're a +6.6 net rating team and Phoenix is a +3.1 net rating team. Obviously playoffs don't work like that and it's about matchups and what the team can do to get a team to play worse than expected.

I think another consideration is that Minnesota's offensive stats for the season took a pretty strong hit with Karl-Anthony Towns being out for six weeks. Going off of memory, I think they slid from twelfth to seventeenth, during that stretch. Minnesota's offense is actually pretty efficient, but their propensity for turnovers is pretty rough; if Phoenix can speed the game up and stagnate Minnesota's offense, they have a shot. If Minnesota takes care of the ball, their efficiency should stay relatively consistent.

That said, I definitely don't think any Minnesota fan will start feeling comfortable unless they win tonight.

I think defense is just as good an opportunity for the Suns as offense. I was definitely nervous at times that Phoenix's defense was weirdly effective against us after watching that last game where we couldn't pass the ball or get anything going for Ant. Refs realy let Phoenix hit him around in game 1. Despite his driving aggression (especially in the first half), here's the full list of who attempted more free throws in that game: Durant, Booker, Grayson Allen in only 25 minutes, Nurkic, Towns, Gobert, and Jaden McDaniels. Refs let Phoenix play really physical, but it didn't work for them in game 1.

I'm firm on the "series doesn't start until someone loses at home" school of thought. We've seen too many series go from 2-0 to 2-2. I'll be extremely uncomfortable if we lose tonight, and not comfortable without a full 3-0 or 3-1 lead. But hey it's the playoffs, and that discomfort is part of the fun.

Our offensive rating was actually fine in those 18 games KAT was out. But in such a small sample, that's more about going off in a couple games. We had games against the Clippers, Wizards, and Raptors where we had an over 130 Ortg, and that b2b against the Jazz where we went off.

I think most of the time we get overly hung up on rankings, considering the difference between 12th and 17th is like a point and half per 100 possessions.

[Rubio9Guy]

Minny is the 17th best offense. They won't be close to this good all series.

We don't need to be this good on offense if our defense can hold Phoenix down like that for a few games.

We held Phoenix to a 99 Ortg, so it's not like we needed mindblowing offense to win that game. Our regular season offensive rating was 115.6. We could have played worse on offense than usual and still won this game.

Phoenix has the tools to overwhelm our defense. They proved that in the regular season. Wolves fans aren't comfortable or counting our victories.

You're citing our 17th best offense in the regular season but anything can happen in a series. All that matter is how well we score against Phoenix's defense- which is pretty mid- and how well they score against us (9th ranked +2.3 rOrtg vs. our 1st ranked -6.3 rDrtg). If we just play the offensive and defensive rating as the expectation (which is what your post suggests), the Minnesota will win because we're a +6.6 net rating team and Phoenix is a +3.1 net rating team. Obviously playoffs don't work like that and it's about matchups and what the team can do to get a team to play worse than expected.

I think another consideration is that Minnesota's offensive stats for the season took a pretty strong hit with Karl-Anthony Towns being out for six weeks. Going off of memory, I think they slid from twelfth to seventeenth, during that stretch. Minnesota's offense is actually pretty efficient, but their propensity for turnovers is pretty rough; if Phoenix can speed the game up and stagnate Minnesota's offense, they have a shot. If Minnesota takes care of the ball, their efficiency should stay relatively consistent.

That said, I definitely don't think any Minnesota fan will start feeling comfortable unless they win tonight.

I wasn't comfortable Saturday until 2 minutes left lol.

[spanishninja]

Phoenix needs more from their bench. In Game 1, Minnesota's starters outscored Phoenix's starters 79-77. But Minnesota's bench outscored Phoenix's bench 41-18. Eric Gordon in particular can't be a near-complete zero like he was in Game 1.

but he's soooooo good at being just that.

[durden_tyler]

Wolves -3 vs Suns in Game 2.

Shouldn't be a tough line after Minnesota's blowout opener but it is.

[chilluminati]

Chuck with the Diet Coke in the coffee mug

[azcatz11]

Wolves -3 vs Suns in Game 2.

Shouldn't be a tough line after Minnesota's blowout opener but it is.

Who do ya got?

[Mr_Mojo_Risin]

My league pass stream is not working / hasn't started yet, anyone else the same?

[BigDan245]

Will the road team win a game tonight?

[phanman]

Thank the schedule makers man. We got 3 good games tonight and the Bucks game doesnt start until 830!!

[Domejandro]

Can somebody walk me through on how to get team broadcasts instead of the TNT feed on Amazon Prime League Pass? Service grade reading level, I’m struggling big time. Thanks!

[jimmybones]

Minny fans, do they always play Prince before tipoff? Lol

[BRUNiNHO91]

My league pass stream is not working / hasn't started yet, anyone else the same?

Yea I’m not getting anything either.

[ChipotleWest]

Ant got in KD's face and called him an old a** m***** f***er.