Eyes on the Prize: Timberwolves Slide by Celtics and Nuggets
February 11 and 14, 2007
If the 2006-07 National Basketball Association season were to end on February 15—the day following the Minnesota Timberwolves win over the Denver Nuggets—the Timberwolves would be tied for the eighth and final playoff spot in the Western Conference.
The playoff race breaks down as follows: 1. Dallas (43-9). 2. Phoenix (39-13). 3. Utah (35-17). 4. San Antonio (35-18). 5. Houston (33-18). 6. Los Angeles Lakers (30-23). 7. Denver (26-25). 8. (Tie) Minnesota and the Los Angeles Clippers, both 25-27.
The Timberwolves would not have gained such a favorable position had the team failed to win its last two games, each of which was in doubt until the final seconds.
On Sunday, February 11, the peripatetic Ricky Davis scored on a jump shot from the corner with 0.2 seconds remaining to give Minnesota a 109-107 victory over Boston and give the Celtics 18 consecutive losses.
Then, last night, the Wolves came from behind in the fourth quarter to overtake a Denver team playing without future Hall of Famer Allen Iverson, out with an ankle injury. The final score: Minnesota 99, Denver 94. Both games were winnable from the start, but, with some erratic play, Minnesota made hard work out of the tasks.
All season long, under coaches Dwane Casey and now Randy Wittman, the Timberwolves have tended to play long stretches lacking in cohesion. Against Boston, it often looked as if the Minnesota players on the court were making things up as they went along with little regard for organized basketball standards. Players wandered about the court frequently out of position. In the first half against Denver, Minnesota’s game looked awkward when compared with Nuggets’ fluid offense led by recently-acquired point guard Steve Blake. The Nuggets were able to execute crisp passes and easily find the open shooter; the Wolves were not.
What kept the Wolves in both games was aggressive offensive rebounding. “Their offensive boards in the first half killed us,” observed Glenn “Doc” Rivers, Celtics coach. Minnesota had 10 offensive rebounds in the first half alone, compared to three for Boston. Yet, the Celtics led by 56-51 at halftime and 107-105 with 1:17 left to play. It looked as if the Timberwolves had a good chance of achieving the ignominy of snapping the losing streak of the worst team in the NBA. But Brian Scalabrine, one of the league’s most ineffectual centers, fouled Kevin Garnett, and the Big Ticket sank two free throws for the tie. With less than five seconds to play, the Timberwolves forced a 24-second shot-clock violation. Coach Wittman then took a 20-second timeout. Following that rookie Randy Foye drove the lane and for all the world looked ready to shoot. Instead he hit an open Davis and the former Celtic canned the bucket.
The 99-94 victory over Denver on Wednesday, February 14, was somewhat less dramatic. Once again, Minnesota dominated the offensive boards, grabbing a season-tying 18.
After trailing by 86 to 81 halfway into the final quarter, the T-Wolves went on an 18-8 tear to seal the win. The Nuggets’ previously smooth-running offense broke down, which was unfortunate for the Mile High City men because, throughout history, solid defensive effort has never been a hallmark of the Denver pro basketball franchise, and tradition dictates it probably never will be. Soft defense once again proved to be the undoing of the Nuggets.
Foye, who played the first half in a funk possibly induced by well-publicized late-night activity Monday morning, came to life in the fourth quarter and scored on a driving layup with 23.3 seconds left to give Minnesota a 95-92 lead. He followed with a pair of free throws to put the game on ice.
Carmelo Anthony led all scorers with 28 points. Blake, who only scored 4, turned in an impressive 18 assists.
“We could have gotten the ball to Carmelo more,” lamented George Karl, Denver coach.
Leading the Timberwolves in scoring (24 points) was the rapidly improving Mark Blount, who, immediately following the conclusion of the game, stormed out of Target Center as if pursued by bill collectors.