Moments after the Timberwolves beat the Nuggets 106-80 on Monday, big man Rudy Gobert FaceTimed the unmistakably electric locker room.
Gobert returned to the Twin Cities and was enjoying the birth of his first child. The Timberwolves praised Baby Gobert, praising their defensive anchor for a suffocatingly relentless, soul-crushing performance that would clinch a spot in the Western Conference Finals just days later.
And perhaps beyond that.
The Wolves won all six postseason games. They have won all four postseason games they have played on the road.
Sweeping out the Phoenix Suns, who lacked depth and a reluctant defense whose star player, Devin Booker, hip-checked Mike Conley by head coach Chris Finch in Game 4, sending him to the operating room. It was a different matter from giving him a farewell gift. table.
It's one thing to dominate the defending NBA champions when the hosts have no answers through two games in Denver. Head coach Mike Malone should have been disciplined for storming the court and yelling at the referees. Their point guard, Jamal Murray, should be fined for throwing a heat pack on the floor in frustration during a play.
Gobert was home while this was happening. And Finch was unable to walk his sideline after surgery on his knee. It didn't matter. The Wolves added Kyle Anderson to the starting lineup. Assistant coach Mika Nori played the role of Finch with aplomb. And they kept charging.
Based on what happened, Gobert could take paternity leave until the conference finals. they got this.
“The goal has always been to have a team that people want to root for,” Finch said. “That doesn't happen unless you play hard, and it usually doesn't happen unless you play defense and share the ball. We're doing all of those things right now.”
The Wolves arrived in the Twin Cities around 4 a.m. Tuesday in the midst of a postseason frenzy. The team is supposed to play its best ball this time of year. Not only are the Wolves doing that, they are raising the bar. And the expectations continue.
There are no signs of slowing down. This team smells blood in the water right now, just like it did when they were up 2-0 against the Suns.
After taking a 2-0 lead against Phoenix, fans chanted, “Wolves score four!” After Monday's defensive performance, perhaps the best in club history, visiting fans chanted “Four for Wolves!” once again. And the highland home fans could do nothing about it.
It's perfectly reasonable to speculate where this is going. A postseason that could end with the Larry O'Brien Trophy parked at 600 N. 1st Ave. A title based on defense that shouldn't exist in today's games. The team features a high-flying superstar in Anthony Edwards, who doesn't like being compared to the incomparable Michael Jordan. But after making a 3-pointer in the third quarter Monday, he shrugged it off like Jordan did in the 1992 Finals against Portland.
This looks real. They forced TNT's Charles Barkley, who had spent most of the season arguing that a two-big-man system wouldn't work in the playoffs, to evacuate that hill.
This series is over. It will be confirmed at Target Center on Friday and Sunday. Murray is shooting his one-legged jumper because of soreness in his right calf. Superstar Nikola Jokic was limited by the Wolves' heavy defense in Game 1, and was thwarted in Game 2 by the excellent work of Karl-Anthony Towns, who focused on defense. After Aaron Gordon, Denver's offensive options are limited outside of the top three. Defensively, Towns and Edwards cannot be double-teamed at the same time, and the pair has taken advantage of that by taking turns.
There will be no back-to-back championships in the NBA this year.
I was in Las Vegas for the Vikings-Raiders game on Dec. 10, when coach Kevin O'Connell announced to his team that they had won 3-0 and defended their championship. The real championship defense is taking place on the other side of downtown, as the Wolves lead the charge in pursuit of Mr. O'Brien's trophy.