Short-handed Timberwolves finish off Nuggets, will face Spurs in Western Conference finals

The Minnesota Timberwolves didn’t need to be 100% to finish off the Denver Nuggets.

Despite missing their starting backcourt and more, the T-Wolves beat Denver 110-98 in Game 6 on Thursday to end their first-round series. They will face the San Antonio Spurs in the Western Conference semifinals.

Minnesota certainly had to earn it. No team led by double-digits until the final minute of the game which was also the sort where homecourt advantage seemed to make a difference at Target Center.

Anthony Edwards’ absence could have loomed large in crunch time, but then Jaden McDaniels stepped up. There might not have been a more impactful player on the floor than McDaniels, who finished with 30 points and 10 rebounds while punking seemingly every Nuggets player on defense at some point.

Overcoming the Spurs will be a taller task, especially if Edwards can’t return during the series. No one in the building cared about that on Thursday, though, as Minnesota was at least able to make a memorable statement in its rivalry with Denver.

The Timberwolves built their backcourt on the fly

Both teams entered the game notably short-handed, the Timberwolves moreso. They were already down Edwards and starting guard Donte DiVincenzo for the rest of the series and beyond, but then had to rule out Ayo Dosunmu — who had been filling the gap left by those injuries — with a calf injury. Kyle Anderson also sat out the game with an illness.

The Nuggets were missing Aaron Gordon and Peyton Watson, but Minnesota had far more to figure out Thursday. It’s backcourt was a full “next man up.”

Terrance Shannon Jr. had previously played 21 minutes all series, and got 34 minutes in Game 6, which was also his first career playoff start. Jaylen Clark didn’t appear in the series until his 11 minutes in Game 5, then got 12 in Game 6. Mike Conley Jr. got 26 minutes, his most since March 25.

Nikola Jokić gets in another scuffle

Game 6 was tense but not testy … until the fourth quarter. That was when Nikola Jokić got in another scuffle.

The former MVP was fined over a last-shoving match in Game 4, and once again found himself in a confrontation with about 10 minutes left in the game. The incident began when Jokić set a screen on Clark, who got his arms tangled up with the big man then shoved him in the back after the whistle.

Jokić objected to the official, then made to shove Clark back. Clark responded by grabbing Jokić’s jersey as he went down, then immediately getting up to further push Jokić. Timberwolves big man Naz Reid also got an elbow into Jokić’s back as the official tried to break it up.

After a quick deliberation, Jokić, Clark and Reid were all hit with technical fouls, giving the Nuggets a free throw, which Tim Hardaway Jr. made.