2025 NBA PLAYOFFS West Semifinals: #6 Minnesota Timberwolves vs #7 Golden State Warriors (MIN WINS 4-1)

[bisme37]

Game 5: Wednesday May 14, 9:30pm ET on TNT





Continued from here: https://forums.realgm.com/boards/viewtopic.php?f=6&t=2458216

[bisme37]

The Warriors... foul on every possessions. I'm not complaining about this. They're a super high IQ team who know how to gain advantages. This has long been a part of their DNA. Draymond (and Iggy and Bogut back in the day) very much subscribe to Chuck Daly's: foul on every play because the refs wont call a foul on every play.

Draymond and Jimmy will add a bit of calculated extra something something to all their contests. Every Warrior fouls the **** out of Gobert any time he's in the paint (Podz recently admitted this). I think Draymond is a genius defender, but it's pretty rare to watch a replay of his defensive possessions and not find some extra curricular behavior. Also, if refs wanted, they could call a technical on Draymond basically every time they call a foul on him. We've all seen the special way he communicates with the officiating crew.

The Warriors have the free throw advantage in this series, despite Minnesota being the bigger, more athletic team that drives harder. I'm not complaining. We're young and dumb and don't quite grasp the subtle concepts of winning the foul game. We just charge in and complain there's no whistle.

But yeahhhhh it is absolutely ludicrous to claim a ref advantage for the Wolves. The Warriors have the ref advantage in every conceivable way. They deserve to have it because they've taken it. I hope my sweet Timberpups absorb some of their tricks.

I've championed one idea to ensure Anthony Edwards makes "the leap" next year...

- Foul baiting.

Give him a dedicated coach to teach him the tricks of the trade. The guy doesn't flop... but he sure does complain. Teach him to exaggerate contact a bit more and that's 3 or 4 more FTA per game. Last year, he worked on his three pointer... that added a couple of points. I don't think there's another thing he could work on that would make as much of a difference as becoming the next great free throw merchant.

Might take away some of what makes him so fun to watch... but winning = popularity, too.

If you can't foul bait, you're vulnerable in the playoffs against overly physical defenses. Look at Jokic against OKC right now. He's famous for drawing fouls and not flopping, but he's able to look at how OKC is guarding him and knows he has to punish them for that defensive style or he'll get zero easy baskets. Jokic is out there flopping like a fish right now, because OKC amps the physicality up to 100 and tries to make you and the refs live with it.

Golden State has similar defensive principles. They want to swarm and push the boundaries of physicality. Ant can raise his arms at the refs all day, and he's not wrong, but in these situations you have to force the refs to blow the whistle because your opponent has made the refs indecisive.

We never like it when someone uses foul baiting as a main source of scoring. Embiid and Harden have been unbearable at times. Embiid falling down repeatedly in a regular season game against a lottery team, or Harden intentionally hooking every defender on his drives, even at the expense of making a real layup attempts... is no fun for fans to watch. If you can't draw fouls at a high level, certain opponents can and will take advantage of that in the playoffs.

(I'm just importing your convo to the new thread since I rudely interrupted you haha)

[funkatron101]

I thought the Warriors were going to take the last game and I will be happy to be wrong again.

[Sealab2024]

Warriors are toast and they know it. It's not even really about them anymore. If Minny is hitting shots warriors cannot beat them. If Minny is cold the warriors can keep it close but without Steph even if GS can keep it close the wolves will always be able to get better shots than Golden State in crunch time.

[Castle Black]

Read on Twitter

[Revived]

If you’re a TWolves fan, aren’t you curious at all to see if your team can beat the Warriors with Curry playing? Like come on, lose tonight and then let’s find out if they can beat Warriors with Steph back.

I think Minnesota still would beat them but let’s avoid all doubt.

[funkatron101]

If you’re a TWolves fan, aren’t you curious at all to see if your team can beat the Warriors with Curry playing? Like come on, lose tonight and then let’s find out if they can beat Warriors with Steph back.

No.

Minnesota sports is plagued with bad luck. No point in tempting fate. Win however you can, whenever you can. Move on to the next challenge.

[Sealab2024]

If you’re a TWolves fan, aren’t you curious at all to see if your team can beat the Warriors with Curry playing? Like come on, lose tonight and then let’s find out if they can beat Warriors with Steph back.

No.

Minnesota sports is plagued with bad luck. No point in tempting fate. Win however you can, whenever you can. Move on to the next challenge.

Bingo. This is for every Wolves team KG drug to the playoffs only to get Shaq and Kobe in the first round. For the fans who saw Sam Cassel go down in the WCF. For every time we got Christian laetner instead of Alonzo Mourning or Shaq.

[jack612]

If you’re a TWolves fan, aren’t you curious at all to see if your team can beat the Warriors with Curry playing? Like come on, lose tonight and then let’s find out if they can beat Warriors with Steph back.

I think Minnesota still would beat them but let’s avoid all doubt.

I think they would too but honestly, I don't really care. I want them to advance.

[UcanUwill]

Thats brutal photo of Jimmy IMO. Also, make him look a bit like Baron Davis I think.

Warriors is easily my least favorite team in the play offs, I want them to lose, but I am rooting for OKC, so for their sake, I think I will cheer for series extention. Its probably over tho.

[cgf]

Just 5 more wins and we’re getting Knicks - Wolves

[cgf]

If you’re a TWolves fan, aren’t you curious at all to see if your team can beat the Warriors with Curry playing? Like come on, lose tonight and then let’s find out if they can beat Warriors with Steph back.

I think Minnesota still would beat them but let’s avoid all doubt.

Why would they be? Of course they can beat these warriors with Steph. Whether or not they can beat OKC is a much more interesting question.

[nazario]

Idk how to import quotes from the previous thread, but here goes an attempt at at least passably quoting:

Cupcakesnake wrote: "I disagree with the unfavorable comparison to Houston. In the regular season, their defense was only 0.7 points per 100 better than ours. They had a more consistent season, but we were much better over the final 30 games. I actually like our defense a little more. We have just as many high level perimeter defenders (FVV, Amen, Brooks, Eason vs. McDaniels, Naw, Ant, Clark, TSJ) but we are a much stronger rim protection team. Houston can be relentless with the terror twins and very craft FVV, but they a Jalen Green sized hole, and Sengun doesn't have great vertical size. Randle is our hole. He's good on the ball, but inattentive and low effort when he's off the ball."

Oh, i don't disagree that as a whole Minnesotas defense might be as good as Houston, with Gobert roaming the paint. But in the case of the Warriors i'm fairly confident that they would have an easier time against the Wolves defense, with Curry in it. Mcdaniels and Naw are really the only the good offballl perimeter defenders they are using in this round. Ant is a good onball one, but he like most other players with a heavy load on the offense are prone to lapses when the action is occuring offball. Mcdaniels has never really been all that effective defending Curry, but can now focus more on the stationary Butler.

All in all, Minnesota seem more suited to defending more stationary teams than the Warriors with Curry in it, like Lebron and Luka in the last round. Where they can square up.

[ShootersShoot]

Sad series for us warriors fans. Only thing I am looking forward to this game is kuminga building up his value and hopefully podz gets some confidence back.

[Black Jack]

Curry should NOT come back, we can still contend next year if the FO finally gets an athletic big man and another ball handler.

[funkatron101]

Just 5 more wins and we’re getting Knicks - Wolves

It's a good story for sure. Especially considering how all of us screamed what a terrible mistake the trade was! lol.

[whatisacenter]

Curry should NOT come back, we can still contend next year if the FO finally gets an athletic big man and another ball handler.

Next year????

I am not counting on a 38yo and two 36yo's to contend for anything even if 1 of them is Curry.

[LSWF]

If Ant ever starts flopping for calls, it will be a very sad day for me. I can't stand unethical BB.

[Wolfgang630]

I think this will be a game not to watch with a blowout

[Sandy333]

If Ant ever starts flopping for calls, it will be a very sad day for me. I can't stand unethical BB.

In game 2 , moment he started badly and could not break, he had a spate of foul cals for him and since that gsw have not been able to defend him and randle physically. Reference 4,5 6th foul called on Green.
Steph would have a field If this only this kind of defence was allowed.
Refs have laid down that they are willing are ruthless enough to foul out players without any leeway. Without being allowed to play physical defence, the defence minded warriors have no chance.
NBA made some changes because of the extremely low scoring 2nd game. But this gives a limited offence gsw no chance if they are not allowed to defend as they have been doing earlier.