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

[spanishninja]

Two weeks ago, was there still the “We Suck! Blow it all up!” narrative?

there still is one. it's just with the Suns now.

[CoP]

I took a screenshot of the survey results the day before Game 1. Based on the percentage of people who voted for each result and accounting for the games that each team would win for each result, RealGM's General Board said that the Suns had a 52.2% chance of winning the series




RealGM General Board Grade:

[Special_Puppy]

Still honestly insane that the Suns were the betting market favorites pre-series and they got swept and lost by an average of almost 15 points

[Chuck Everett]

I took a screenshot of the survey results the day before Game 1. Based on the percentage of people who voted for each result and accounting for the games that each team would win for each result, RealGM's General Board said that the Suns had a 52.2% chance of winning the series




RealGM General Board Grade:

I had Wolves in 7. This was a domination. The only adjustment the Suns had was to hopefully get all of Minnesota's bigs in foul trouble.

[Tor_Raps]

By the time the Suns actually rebuild and get bad, you would guess the Wizards will be on their way up.

Then you would guess wrong. Overanalyzing picks even two years in the future often turns out wildly hilarious, much less six years. At any rate, why can't both be bad? And even then, how many picks turn into actual players?

There are many paths out of the wilderness, though. Draft picks is the one that seems to inspire the most delusional hope.

We have the Brooklyn Nets to look at as an example of when a team has no control of their future after their aging core fizzles out. Durant isn't getting any younger and that team goes down with him.

[enigmatics]

Playoff Nurkic went just as bad as one might have expected.

The f- is with this obsession with Nurkic? lol

He was a bit player. They were designed to either win or lose on the backs of the fake and very moody Big 3.

[JMAC3]

Anyone have the matchup stats this series?

I am interested to see what Booker shot vs McDaniels or Edwards
and KD matchup stats.

Anyone have a good source for this?

[Shaka_Zulu]

Anyone have the matchup stats this series?

I am interested to see what Booker shot vs McDaniels or Edwards
and KD matchup stats.

Anyone have a good source for this?

I don't know about Ant one (or KD)


But here is McDaniels one:

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[Dennis Reynolds]

I can't be the only one who disagrees with the whole this is a bad matchup for Minnesota narrative.

I know things have not looked great for them in the regular season but the playoffs play very differently.

The Wolves have very good, athletic defenders to put on Durant, Booker and Beal and with Suns' bigs situation, this should be a series where Gobert doesn't have to worry about getting pulled to the perimeter and becoming a non factor. Going up against Suns' mediocre defense should help solve Minessota's offensive woes at least to some degree as well.

All this talk about the Suns' shell defense doesn't make sense to me either. It's not like much better defensive teams than the Suns are incapable of executing the same scheme on a (much) higher level so this sounds like an Anthony Edwards problem more so than a matchup problem if you ask me.

The real reason why the Wolves might lose this series is the same reason they aren't a considered a contender at the moment... they lack talent. I'm obviously talking about offensive talent because I have no idea where their points are coming from if Edwards doesn't step up his game in the playoffs once again and even if he does, he definitely isn't a real no.1 option on a contender at this point of his career nor does he have enough support at the moment as I've already said. I would really like to be proven wrong though.

What an intelligent and knowledgable poster, wish we had more guys like him on this board.

Jokes aside, I really didn't see any matchup issues whatsoever for Minnesota, this series was all about talent and execution from their side. I definitely didn't expect them to completely annihilate the Suns but I'm certainly not complaining.

It will be interesting to see how their offense stacks up against better defenses and whether Edwards keeps proving me wrong cause he certainly did look like a true no.1 option on a contender in this series.

[TimberKat]

Has Vogel always been such a big "midrange" coach? Just thinking about the teams he's had success with, AD and LeBron live there a lot, and those Pacers teams had guys like David West and Paul George.

I think that's one of the big things that did them in. In part without Grayson Allen for the series, Minnesota attempted 20 more 3-pointers in the series. For decades, Minnesota was way behind in the 3-point math, but Chris Finch turned that around. Phoenix has good (even great) three-point shooters in Durant, Booker and Beal but they just didn't take enough of them.

Vogel told his team he wanted 40 3 pointers in Game 3, would settle for 35. They had 15 midway through the 3rd. It's on the players.

But the Wolves defense is built to prevent three pointers. They were third in the NBA this season in 3 point defense, and they do that by sacrificing mid-rangers. And both KD and Booker excel at midrangers.

It’s hard to argue whether it’s the PHX coaches fault or the players, if they aren’t shooting three’s that are defended.

I don't think PHX are so bad that they need to blow up the team. Let's give some credit to the Wolves for how well they played.

Suns was on a 53 game season pace after the initial 14-15 start. Not having Allen really hurt them (as mentioned in above msg). In addition, they really need an avg PG or even just PatBev/Lowry, move Beal to the bench as the supersub focus on scoring. Replace Nurkic with a faster CT. So you have: CT, KD, Allen, Booker, PatBev starting; Beal, Okogie, Eubanks off the bench.

[jkvonny]

Suns mite win tonite, but the series is pretty much over.

May end up being 4-1 TWolves.

Narrator: "they didn't"

MIte.

But, didn't happen.

[Mk0]

[Dubnation]

:lol: That's MJ right there.

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[GopherIt!]

I took a screenshot of the survey results the day before Game 1. Based on the percentage of people who voted for each result and accounting for the games that each team would win for each result, RealGM's General Board said that the Suns had a 52.2% chance of winning the series




RealGM General Board Grade:

A lot of people, bookies, talking heads and fans (including some Wolves fans) overreacted to the season finale loss in MN. The Suns were even the betting favorite in Vegas. But yeah, 3% of RGM predicted the actual outcome. Crazy.

[Domejandro]

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[ChipotleWest]

Last year it was Nuggets vs. Wolves then Nuggets vs. Suns this year it was Wolves vs. Suns, and next will be Wolves vs. Nuggets. These 3 teams are having a round robin.