What happened to Minnesota’s defense??
Where did that dominant, top-ranked defense go for the Minnesota Timberwolves in the playoffs against Denver? This detailed film breakdown & scouting report explores how the Nuggets have adjusted behind Nikola Jokic, Aaron Gordon, Jamal Murray and Coach Michael Malone to solve the Timberwolves defense during the 2024 NBA playoffs.
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26 Comments
Great analysis, as always. Gotta love this group. great personalities, great skills, great chemistry.
How gobert is a 3 time dpoy is beyond me 😂
Best basketball analysis on any media platform. Always a joy. Always a learning experience. Must be why after only being posted for 2 hours this vid had 33,000 views!
This video is proof we live in North Korea !
This is what happens when coach's only teach big men to set screens, get rebounds, and recently shoot 3's. Now that they've run into a big man who can play with a set of skills there is no answer for Jokic. Jokic isn't fast, he doesn't jump high. It's all practice and skill and nobody knows what to do about it because it hasn't been seen since Tim Duncan, Garnett, and Nowitzki.
Awful Coaching got everyone talking about how this defence has us trapped in North Korea
These tnt dudes back to work after missing the mvp presentation to watch their “mvp” get cooked by luka ?
Yea Jokic is the goat
The fact that Rudy Goebert is a multiple DPOY winner and seen as some all-time great defender just proves how terrible defense is in this era. Goebert is a great HELP defender, maybe one of the best I've ever seen, but he can't guard great centers one-on-one. The reason he looks so good is he plays in an era where there aren't many excellent offensive centers. The fact he typically doesn't have to worry about the opposing center means he gets to slide off them and go into help mode, which is his forte. He gets cooked every time he has to go up against Jokic, Embiid, or anyone of that caliber. Defensively Goebert is basically Shawn Bradley (again, just saying defensively, Goebert is the more well-rounded player overall). Hakeem Olajuwon would never let opposing centers destroy him one-on-one over and over. David Robinson would never. Hell, even Mark Eaton would never. Those guys also never had their team design the defense in a way to try and avoid one-on-one matchups with the other team's center like the T-wolves do for Goebert.
So… you're saying Jokic is good?
Lets' go Nuggets, get this over with. Let us see what TNT/ESPN analysts say !!!
"What is that??!!!" That's Jokic changing pivot feet
Conley got injured and minessota doesn't have another pg
Jokic is a all time great offensive player he will adjust to anything. In fact Denver is a great team with amazing coaching that will adjust to anything that another team throws at them.
Thinking Basketball definitely heard the call out by Awful Coaching
Hmm i still think that they should stick with no Rudy Gobert on the starting 5 (i dont give a flying chicken that Rudy Is DPOY). First 2 games when they won minesota didnt have Gobert and they are able to contain Denver(i mean it is a gamble especially when Michael Conley is injured)
Nikola “Mahoraga” Jokic
It’s honestly wild seeing a team steal the first two games on the road especially from the reigning champs only to go on to lose the series most likely
whan u have dpoy who rly cant defend 1 on 1 😂
nothing happened… its just that the loudmouth cringefest self-proclaimed "Michael Jordan" stopped scoring. this wouldn't have happened if "Michael Jordan" scored atleast 35
the only defence strategy left for Minnesota is to play better offence. They are actually doing fine on defence; of course they will concede baskets, it’s basketball! They are just making more offensive mistakes than Denver.
This series has been amazing to watch.
in short they stop playing defense
A center has more assists than rebounds, man…
What's crazy is that after every single one of these videos, I always think to myself that it seems like theres no answer to whatever offensive or defensive scheme is winning these games. Then the teams display a strategy I would have never thought of. Playoff basketball is seriously an entirely different sport.
This probably as dramatic as a turnaround you can have in a playoffs series they got dominant in G2 and then they destroy Wolves defense like it doesn’t exist that’s insane .
But Ant shows he is a superstar and one day his days will come just not now because there is Joker and the Nuggets 🃏
Love the knowledgeable details in this breakdown. Goes to demonstrate all the media talking heads were simply following a script blaming Gobert when it was Antman who was shrunk down in size.
Not having Conley hurt the Wolves though, as they don't have enough ball handlers themselves to bring up the ball, and allowed Denver to set their defence.