WCF Game 2: Dallas at Minnesota, 7:30 p.m.

[Note30]

I also don't understand why we didn't double Luka? Give up the two would been a tie game. We got a minor miracle to beat Denver and now need a major miracle to win this series.

Because their bigs were getting easy dunks all game.

I get that, but that is 2 pts instead of 3. A tie game instead of down 1. I don't know what their rotation supposed to be if JMcD came backup to Luka but chance for learning.

Anything could happen on an open pass, Dunk plus and one, rotation to open 3.

All the while the clock is ticking. They played it right.

[Neeva]

Wasted a Jaden game and now a Naz game…hopefully they can get it together for Sunday

Ant and kat need to get their heads out of their ass simple as that

[Domejandro]

Minnesota would be infinitely better if Karl-Anthony Towns hoisted ten threes a game. Hate that Minnesota doesn’t force him to chuck in favour of stagnant face-ups.

[FrenchMinnyFan]

If i was the coach, i would have double Luka immediately to make sure he did not get the ball and fouled another players if necessary With the pressure, he could have miss one FT and game was near over. Letting Luka get the ball behind the 3, guarding by Rudy who is not good at that is a big mistake.
Anyway, ANT and KAT being 5% better will had give us a win. I think at that stage of his career, KAT will never be able to take the next step.

[younggunsmn]

I blame the Finch for not running a trap pretty much all season.

Now when the team needs it in the playoffs against a team with 2 skilled guards and zero skilled forwards, players have no clue what they are doing.

The big in the pick and roll needs to be picked up IMMEDIATELY by the other frontcourt player when you double team.
That didn't happen tonight (KAT biggest culprit he was responsible for many of the open dunks).

The other big thing you need to do is keep the ball handler out of the middle of the floor and force him to the sideline.
That also rarely happened.

We sucked at the scheme we were trying to run, but we sucked even worse at the drop scheme we ran first half of game one.

Now we have to win 4 of 5 with at least 2 of those on the road, and I just don't see that happening.
Denver kicked our butts 3 straight in the same situation, and even they ran out of gas and couldn't finish.

We can't have nice things as Minnesota sports fans, ever it seems.
33 years this fall, four major sports, not even one finals appearance.

[TimberKat]

To be fair, this is why I explained to people that this series wouldn’t be a guarantee. Dallas is a rough matchup for Minnesota for a myriad of reasons.

Yes, I forgot who, but someone actually said DAL is more difficult than OKC. But we did loss two very close games and we could had been 2 and 0 and feeling cocky.

[FrenchMinnyFan]

Hope people don't blame ANT too much. Never forget he is a 22 years old kids and he will learn a lot from this season.

[Loaf_of_bread]

Hard to imagine there has ever been an all-nba, multi-time All Star (in his prime) benched in crunch time of the wcf.

I am a Towns hater, but you have to ride or die with him on the court.

Good chance he's gone now.

[Note30]

Minnesota would be infinitely better if Karl-Anthony Towns hoisted ten threes a game. Hate that Minnesota doesn’t force him to chuck in favour of stagnant face-ups.

I don't know why we keep playing him high post

[TimberKat]

Minnesota would be infinitely better if Karl-Anthony Towns hoisted ten threes a game. Hate that Minnesota doesn’t force him to chuck in favour of stagnant face-ups.

He try and is missing them. You need to design more play or maybe run some pick and pop with Gobert.

[Calinks]

Looks like we just ran into a team that can really exploit our problems. We aren't a scoring team so if its close and we need a bucket they have way more options. We have never figured out how to use Towns as effectively on offense as he was before the Rudy trade and that with his lack of offensive chemistry with Ant is hurting us badly too. Those two are the main reason we are losing they are not playing up the level we need them to.

If we could get an efficient 18-20 from Towns and a better game from Ant, we would have won these two games. They aren't stepping up, the staff hasn't found a good offensive flow between the two of them all season and we are paying for it now. It just might be one of those things that does us in.

We will learn from these games, try to get better as the series goes and then try to get better again in the off-season. It's the process. The same one every other team in the playoffs is or has gone through. Boston has come up short multiple times and got better, Dallas has come up short in recent years and has gotten better. We need to do the same and have been.

[younggunsmn]

Because their bigs were getting easy dunks all game.

I get that, but that is 2 pts instead of 3. A tie game instead of down 1. I don't know what their rotation supposed to be if JMcD came backup to Luka but chance for learning.

Anything could happen on an open pass, Dunk plus and one, rotation to open 3.

All the while the clock is ticking. They played it right.

You don't switch your slowfooted 7'2 center onto Luka Doncic at the top of the arc with the game on the line.
You just don't.
It's horrible, horrible, horrible, horrible, horrible, horrible basketball and the coaching staff NEVER would have wanted them to do that.

[Calinks]

Minnesota would be infinitely better if Karl-Anthony Towns hoisted ten threes a game. Hate that Minnesota doesn’t force him to chuck in favour of stagnant face-ups.

He try and is missing them. You need to design more play or maybe run some pick and pop with Gobert.

I wish we worked harder to get him use to that corner three role we talked about for so long. I feel like we never were able to find an effective role for him on offense this season.

[Note30]

I get that, but that is 2 pts instead of 3. A tie game instead of down 1. I don't know what their rotation supposed to be if JMcD came backup to Luka but chance for learning.

Anything could happen on an open pass, Dunk plus and one, rotation to open 3.

All the while the clock is ticking. They played it right.

You don't switch your slowfooted 7'2 center onto Luka Doncic at the top of the arc with the game on the line.
You just don't.
It's horrible, horrible, horrible, horrible, horrible, horrible basketball and the coaching staff NEVER would have wanted them to do that.

Yeah no doubt. But Jaden couldn't get over, and under was definitely a mistake, and Gobert wasn't going to hedge, soooo given he was in that situation that's the only play he could have made.

[Neeva]

To be fair, this is why I explained to people that this series wouldn’t be a guarantee. Dallas is a rough matchup for Minnesota for a myriad of reasons.

Yes, I forgot who, but someone actually said DAL is more difficult than OKC. But we did loss two very close games and we could had been 2 and 0 and feeling cocky.

OKC imo has better defense so if kat and ant shoot like **** the first two games wolves probably lose by 15-20’points both games.

[FrenchMinnyFan]

The duo KAT-ANT is real concern for the future. They seems to be good mate outside basket but don't show any real chemistry on the court. ANT need to improve as well to release the ball faster but i'm not worry, he will learn it.
Let's have fun for the 2 remaining games, try to avoid get swept and season will be a success.

[Neeva]

Hope people don't blame ANT too much. Never forget he is a 22 years old kids and he will learn a lot from this season.

He deserves it and it doesn’t light a fire in his ass to ball out in dallas he aint the superstar he thought he was.

[TimberKat]

I get that, but that is 2 pts instead of 3. A tie game instead of down 1. I don't know what their rotation supposed to be if JMcD came backup to Luka but chance for learning.

Anything could happen on an open pass, Dunk plus and one, rotation to open 3.

All the while the clock is ticking. They played it right.

You don't switch your slowfooted 7'2 center onto Luka Doncic at the top of the arc with the game on the line.
You just don't.
It's horrible, horrible, horrible, horrible, horrible, horrible basketball and the coaching staff NEVER would have wanted them to do that.

I watched that play 3 times. I think Lively pushed JMcD out so Gobert had no choice. JMcD has to fight thru it or somebody has to rotate over.

[LookToShoot]

I get that, but that is 2 pts instead of 3. A tie game instead of down 1. I don't know what their rotation supposed to be if JMcD came backup to Luka but chance for learning.

Anything could happen on an open pass, Dunk plus and one, rotation to open 3.

All the while the clock is ticking. They played it right.

You don't switch your slowfooted 7'2 center onto Luka Doncic at the top of the arc with the game on the line.
You just don't.
It's horrible, horrible, horrible, horrible, horrible, horrible basketball and the coaching staff NEVER would have wanted them to do that.

Poor situational awareness. But if you're going to switch, it can't be your big man left on Luka.

[younggunsmn]

Looks like we just ran into a team that can really exploit our problems. We aren't a scoring team so if its close and we need a bucket they have way more options. We have never figured out how to use Towns as effectively on offense as he was before the Rudy trade and that with his lack of offensive chemistry with Ant is hurting us badly too. Those two are the main reason we are losing they are not playing up the level we need them to.

If we could get an efficient 18-20 from Towns and a better game from Ant, we would have won these two games. They aren't stepping up, the staff hasn't found a good offensive flow between the two of them all season and we are paying for it now. It just might be one of those things that does us in.

We will learn from these games, try to get better as the series goes and then try to get better again in the off-season. It's the process. The same one every other team in the playoffs is or has gone through. Boston has come up short multiple times and got better, Dallas has come up short in recent years and has gotten better. We need to do the same and have been.

The problems have been there all season.
The offense has sucked all season.
KAT and ANT have had zero chemistry all season.

We steamrolled a team without a PG on the roster and zero depth in the first round.
We squeaked by Denver who were our perfect matchup schematically in the 2nd round.
We are just flat out choking this series away with horrible awful BBIQ and the stubborn refusal to make a single offensive schematic or rotation adjustment.
Our best offense tonight was Kyle Anderson catching the ball at the FT line and that is just downright sad.