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Due in part to his knee issues, Anthony Edwards is averaging 21.3 points and 2.8 assists on 44.2% field-goal shooting.<\/p>\n
\u2022\u00a0Download the NBA App<\/a><\/b><\/p>\n A glass-half-full perspective for Minnesota in its Western Conference semifinal series<\/a> would suggest that the Timberwolves have the San Antonio Spurs right where they want them. \u00a0<\/p>\n It was only 24 months ago, after all,\u00a0the Wolves prevailed in a situation similar to what they face now. Then as now, they trailed 3-2 in the series against Denver<\/a>, not only the higher seed but the defending NBA champions. Then as now, the Wolves regrouped at home<\/a>, using Game 6 to propel themselves to not one but two victories. \u00a0<\/p>\n They whooped the Nuggets at Target Center 115-70, then mounted a furious second-half comeback<\/a> in Game 7 to reach the West Finals for the first time in 20 years. \u00a0<\/p>\n Drawing on that experience shouldn\u2019t be too difficult, considering the Wolves went back to the conference finals last year. The opponents they\u2019re facing Friday\u00a0(9:30 ET, Prime Video<\/a>)<\/b>, the Spurs, are a deep and aggressive bunch led by a big man, Victor Wembanyama, as uniquely talented in his way as Denver\u2019s Nikola Joki\u0107 is in his. And the Wolves already dispatched<\/a> Joki\u0107 and his mates two weeks ago.<\/p>\n The parallels sort of end there. Minnesota was essentially built to knock off Denver by the same front-office exec, Tim Connelly, who built the Nuggets\u2019 title team.\u00a0It\u2019s not likely there\u2019s one team among the other 29 that is built to handle the Spurs\u2019 advantage with\u00a0Wembanyama, the 7-foot-4 Frenchman who puts every game plan through a stress test.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n San Antonio has every reason to want to close out this series in Game 6.<\/b> Avoiding a Game 7 reduces the margin for error, reduces its guys\u2019 injury exposure and conserves a couple of days\u2019 and 48 minutes\u2019 of general wear and tear. \u00a0<\/p>\n It wouldn\u2019t earn the Spurs more rest \u2013 if they win Friday, the West Finals will move up to start on Monday. But if this series requires a Game 7, the winners\u2019 next foe \u2013 Oklahoma City, which swept the Lakers \u2013 will have had a full week off before the Wednesday opener. \u00a0<\/p>\n Here are three things to watch for in Game 6:\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n 1. Wolves get off to a better start<\/p>\n The Spurs defeat the Timberwolves 126-97 in Game 5, taking a 3-2 lead in the best-of-7 series.<\/p>\n Five games is way past the point of any feeling-out games. Minnesota has trailed in the first quarters by seven, seven, 15, six and 15 points, and it\u2019s no coincidence that the three times it lost the opening 12 minutes, it lost the games. \u00a0<\/p>\n There have been admissions out of the Wolves\u2019 locker room that they have been guilty of straying from their game plan, lapsing into habits or instincts that aren\u2019t the\u00a0soundest\u00a0against this specific opponent.\u00a0Only way to fix that would\u00a0be\u00a0more diligent adherence to what coach Chris Finch and his staff have drawn up.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n Another option would be to fiddle with the starting lineup, at least to alter the games\u2019 early minutes. Naz Reid, a versatile big capable of playing anywhere in the frontcourt, would be an obvious tweak. And both center Rudy Gobert, somewhat nullified as a defender by Wembanyama\u2019s mobility, and forward Julius Randle, struggling offensively, could reasonably be swapped out.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n In the backcourt, Ayo Dosunmu or Terrence Shannon Jr. could help with bonus scoring as we\u2019ve seen earlier in the series or a fellow such as Bones Hyland could get hot for four minutes as a game\u2019s pivot point.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n 2. As Wemby goes, so go the Spurs<\/p>\n Victor Wembanyama (22yr, 128d) becomes the 3rd-youngest player in NBA history to record 25+ points, 15+ rebounds, and 5+ assists in a playoff game. With UM Music (\u201cStand Up\u201d by Ludacris)<\/p>\n The Spurs are 7-3 in these playoffs. The only games they\u2019ve lost were Game 2 in the first round<\/a> vs. Portland when Wembanyama was out for concussion protocol<\/a>; the opener of this series<\/a> when the big fellow went 0-for-8 from the arc while adapting to a new team\u2019s physical challenges, and Game 4<\/a> when his angry right elbow<\/a> shut him down in less than 13 minutes. \u00a0<\/p>\n Wembanyama got his mind right before his bounce-back in Game 5<\/a>, with an apparent assist from the counsel of former Spurs coach Gregg Popovich (who met the team\u2019s charter flight from Minnesota on the tarmac to talk to the 22-year-old).\u00a0<\/p>\n The Wolves might not find or create any more openings on par with those to go through or around Wembanyama. There even was a tinge of resignation to some of their remarks after Game 5, when Wembanyama scored 18 of his 27 points in the first quarter to trumpet his renewed focus (and non-NBA suspension).\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cSome of the stuff that Wemby was doing, you don\u2019t really have too much of an answer for it,\u201d Anthony Edwards said. \u201cJust kinda hope he misses.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n Said Finch: \u201cWembanyama is a really tough cover. Any time we\u2019ve made a mistake around him with regard to executing the coverages to help him, we\u2019ve paid for it.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n In the first postseason of his career,\u00a0Wembanyama\u00a0is averaging 20.4 points, 11.2 rebounds and 4.2 blocked shots while shooting 53.8% from the field.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n 3. Finding ways to free up Edwards<\/p>\n Anthony Edwards’ 36-point Game 4 performance leads the Wolves to their 2nd win in the series.<\/p>\n Some nights, Edwards has made swift decisions, deft passes and slick moves to cope with San Antonio\u2019s double teams. Others, he has looked a tad slow, a step behind or a bit forced.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n The best way to get Edwards loose for the back end of what he does \u2013 scoring in bunches, inside and out, sparking a run for his side or stopping one for the Spurs \u2013 is to draw away those extra defenders or keep them off him in the first place. Much as Detroit has tried to do with its dominant backcourt star Cade Cunningham, the Wolves would like others to handle the ball across midcourt to help Edwards stay elusive and avoid traps.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n That was the difference in Game 5 between the early minutes of the first half and the\u00a0start of the second, when Minnesota quickly turned a 59-47 deficit into a 61-61 tie.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n As Randle told reporters Thursday: \u201cJust getting Ant off the ball and setting some screens for him so they can\u2019t just trap him when he dribbles over halfcourt. Every time he dribbles over halfcourt, they\u2019re trapping him.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n Edwards\u2019 playoff production is off. Due in part to his knee issues<\/a>, he is averaging 21.3 points and 2.8 assists on 44.2% field-goal shooting and 32.1% on 3-pointers. All are career lows, compared to his first four postseasons.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n * * *<\/p>\n Steve Aschburner has written about the NBA since 1980. You can e-mail him\u00a0here<\/a>, find\u00a0his archive here<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0follow him on X<\/a>.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n