The Denver Nuggets defeated Minnesota in the first round of the playoffs in 2023, but this season, the Timberwolves have swiftly emerged as one of the best teams in the Western Conference.
“I don’t even need to talk about how big it is. Everybody knows,” Timberwolves guard Anthony Edwards said of the upcoming encounter with the Nuggets.
This will be the fourth meeting of the season between the Northwest Division foes, with Minnesota winning two of the previous three, including 111-98 on March 29 at Denver. The Nuggets were without guard Jamal Murray in that loss, but he has appeared in the previous two games after missing seven due to right knee soreness.
Murray is limited to 27 minutes each game, yet he scored 28 points on Tuesday night. Nikola Jokic is not restricted and is widely regarded as the leading candidate for his third league MVP award in the previous four seasons. He averages 26.4 points, 12.4 rebounds, and 9.0 assists per game. Jokic, who had 25 triple-doubles this season, has taken on the load with Murray limited to 56 games due to different ailments.
“He’s a supernova; he’s the brightest star,” teammate Reggie Jackson said recently. “Honestly, he’s the sun. Everything revolves around him.”
The Timberwolves were formerly centered around Karl-Anthony Towns, but Edwards has emerged as the team’s primary emphasis. Towns, who hasn’t played since March 4 due to a knee ailment, is coming close to returning.
Minnesota has done well in his absence, going 12-5. Edwards ignited the game Tuesday night with a career-high 51 points, seven assists, and six rebounds. Edwards claimed he was motivated by a pep talk from coach Chris Finch.
“He put me in the office two, three days ago and said, ‘Look man, we’ve got this Washington game, and we need to win it, need to come ready to play, and you can’t treat it like any other game,'” Edwards said.
This will be the second high-stakes game between the Nuggets and Minnesota this season. In 2018, they faced off in Game 82 in Minneapolis, with the winner earning the Western Conference’s eighth and final playoff position. The Timberwolves won in overtime that night, extending Denver’s postseason streak to five years. Since then, the Nuggets have not missed the playoffs, earning the second seed in 2019 and reaching the Western Conference finals in the 2020 Orlando bubble.
Minnesota has earned the No. 1 seed in the conference once in its history, in 2004 when Kevin Garnett was the franchise player. The Timberwolves lost to the Los Angeles Lakers in the conference finals, which remains the only time they’ve gone that deep in the postseason.
Minnesota has only won the conference’s top seed once in its history, in 2004, when Kevin Garnett was the franchise player. The Timberwolves fell to the Los Angeles Lakers in the conference finals, the only time they’ve advanced that far in the playoffs.
