Locked On Wolves POSTCAST: T-Wolves vs. Dallas Mavericks Game 5 (INSTANT REACTION)

Locked On Wolves POSTCAST: T-Wolves vs. Dallas Mavericks Game 5 (INSTANT REACTION)

t-wolves collapse in game five as the season it comes to a close where’re breaking it all down it’s coming up next on the lock on wolves [Music] post you are locked on wolves postcast part of locked on Minnesota on the locked on podcast Network your team every day what’s up what’s up we’re back on the lab we’re back at it another t-wolves postcast episode right here on the locked on Sports Minnesota Network thre men crew tonight for the funeral Ben Beacon host of locked on wolves each and every day and our main man Tyler metap he’s on X at T metcap 11 and fellas before we jump into all the action from game five quick reminder tonight’s episode brought To Us by FanDuel make every moment more right now new customers you’re getting 150 bucks in bonus Bets with any winning $5 bet that’s 150 bucks with any winning $5 bet just visit fanduel.com lockon toay to get started all right fellas uh the stars were out for game five wolves back at home in the backyard at the Target Center you had snoopa Loop in the building you had kg finally came to one of these and they all got to sit front and center for the Lucas show dude brought the flamethrower 25 points in the first half 25 in the first half meanwhile the Wolves ice cold from the floor they go into the locker room down 29 Dallas at that point shot 61% from the floor wolves just shot 34 three-point numbers they were God awful wolves shot 16% in the first half they went two of 12 meanwhile Dallas went nine of 15 so between all that and then this deadly Luca Kyrie combo as we’ve you know pretty much seen the entire series uh guys this Dallas back court and really this Dallas lineup just kind of too much for the Wolves to figure out 29 Point halftime deficit that was just too much to overcome and the Wolves season guys it comes to a close on a sour note losing to the Mavericks in game five in your home building final score 124 103 uh plenty to dive into I’d love to spend a at least one segment kind of recapping the season as a whole I think that’s more than warranted but first let’s just break down game five here for a few minutes what went wrong Ben your biggest takeaways kind of your a topics first and foremost from tonight yeah I mean this this series in this game was the Lucas Story I mean like you said it like that was that as bad as the Wolves looked at times and we’ll get into that and and they did not play well for an elimination game they didn’t play well for any game much less an elimination game Luca donic was incredible I mean he set the tone immediately he hit to probably 30 plus Footers from the left wing the first one uh an was you know a little further back that he should have been the other one I thought a had pretty good coverage a hand in his face Lucas still made it he hit one from the logo in the first quarter I think he had 20 in the first quarter alone and that’s really what this was and the Wolves were just so Shell Shocked by it it’s like they never they never really woke up there were a couple kind of mini runs along the way but nothing serious um that’s what it was it was a combination of Luca being incredible uh and then secondarily the Wolves not not bouncing back not giving that you know elimination game effort that you would expect it was it was just really um kind of heads scratching and then to compound things I still thought they could have been within 12 14 points at halftime except for they just missed a bevy of wide open threes and the Mavs really didn’t miss wide open threes I mean there were a couple times where you’re like all right it’s PJ Washington or it’s Derrick Jones Jr hit a three like uh and and you know you expect them to miss some of those and the Wolves clearly did that was part of the game plan was make those guys shoot it and I understand that but the MAV shot like you said 44% on threes in the wolves may have finished with a at least somewhat respectable still not good 31% on threes I you know they hardly made any in the first half and so many of those came during you know kind of a feeble comeback attempt when they were down 30 plus to get it to closer to 20 but they never got it below 20 and and they just missed open shots cat missed a couple of wide open threes early Conley missed some wide open threes Jaden missed a wide open three um and Nas was was struggling throughout the game so it was Luca being Luca the Wolves not quite bringing the effort effort which is worrisome certainly uh but we’ve seen this team run hot and cold and then just missing open threes and I know that sounds so simple um but you know the process wasn’t great for Minnesota either but they still ended up with some of these mostly open shots they just couldn’t make yeah really good breakdown there good details Tyler anything to add as far as tonight goes that really stuck out or you wanted to touch on as well yeah and I Ben did a great job there uh this came down to Luca donic being a top three and not number three player in the world tonight it was an absolute Master Class we’ve seen it from him basically all series and he deserves an immense amount of credit because he just dictated every single aspect of that game and he came out on fire I he was making everything but they weren’t even touching Rim I they were some of the purest shots that you will ever see and it didn’t matter where or what the Wolves did on defense he just got to his spots he was too strong for jayen he was too big for ant he wasn’t affected by Lake contest and then even once they started sending the double the Closeouts on the kind of role players they were just weak they you know guys were getting really good looks on Dallas they shot 44% from three again uh drik Jones Jr is shooting near 50% from the corners in the playoffs and all of their their threes they shot at a ridiculous percentage but it didn’t feel like they were just making everything they were getting good looks they were getting open looks the defensive rtion were lackluster the effort wasn’t there from the start and right in the beginning of the game I know Anthony Edwards had really good numbers and a lot of that came from a pretty strong third quarter from him but the common theme with him in these playoffs is we know who we’re kind of getting on the a nightly basis from him B first couple minutes and he was super we was way too eager to pass out a doubles early and when guys aren’t making their shots like Nas like K like Jaden or Conley when those shots aren’t being made the offense looks atrocious and it was one of the worst offensive halves they’ve played all season in that first half yeah well said there and and I think big picture too when I look at this series as a whole and the dust settles someday here I don’t know a week from now a month from now and I I pull these games up and just go one by one and kind of dissect each one it’s always going to go back to games one and two for me right because it’s not just losing by four total points you lose by 3-1 game you lose by one the next but the fashion in which they lost right melting down kind of the way they did kind of almost in a way gifting the Mavs those two games with you know bad turnovers mental lapses you name it I mean I I I talked about this after those two games but I’ll ask you both again how much of this series do you think ultimately came down to Luca and Kyrie having played in in bigger moments like this before Kyrie obviously done it he’s got a ring whereas ant and Cat along with other young guys too right Jaden n n etc etc maybe the moment being a little bit too big for them just not having just not having the experience yet right when the lights got the brightest and before you answer that too I want to say this as well because they swept Phoenix right in four games and then like six out of the seven games versus Denver were kind of blowouts one way or the other so did the lack of having I guess recent crunch time experience also play a factor or do them a disservice I guess in any way uh is well either of you can can kind of jump in on that one yeah I mean I I would say yes um is the easy answer it’s so hard to quantify and and I think a lot of times that stuff does get overblown I mean sure you haven’t won a title until you win a title right so like you know people win all the time that haven’t won before right uh but I do think to your point the Wolves hadn’t been in all that many close games in the playoffs the Phoenix series was never really close the Denver series five to six of those games weren’t close as you said so I do think there’s a level of that the coaching staff same thing I mean I think there were some coaching adjustments left uh out there or maybe made too slowly in the series uh but also the matchup was difficult I think we can acknowledge that certainly with with the Wolves trying to guard Luca with the way they prefer to play defense um so yeah I mean I think it certainly played into it I think execution down the stretch a had that awful turnover I think it was game two late down the stretch when Luca hits a crazy shot uh they end up with Rudy on an island against Luca far too often like some of those things certainly and I think you could chalk up in experience for ant uh you know for for Jen in for Finch and the coaching staff I think it certainly plays into it it’s and I think it’s a legitimate thing right I mean like I’ve seen this going around Twitter already already you know Luca first time in the Conference Finals I think was 23 or 22 and and didn’t have a good showing um a was so much better in the first two rounds than he was in this round and and there’s layers to that as well and it’s certainly just going to be um obviously a stepping a stepping stone a building block if you will for ant here moving forward stemming off this conversation and topic as well here Tyler this team since the Dallas game back in January I know that was a a topic on Twitter a lot of people pulled up turned into one of the worst crunch time teams in the entire league so get what happened how do you explain it is there any Rhyme or Reason to kind of fixing those issues next time around next season that that’s kind of tangible that you can put your hand on outside of just you just got to have experience and kind of go through the lumps yeah crunchtime offense was a huge concern with this team all year and it’s why you know the doubters out in full force before the playoffs even started saying that this team couldn’t win anything in the playoffs and why they were picking Phoenix to beat the wolves in the first round in these you know those first two rounds like you said none of the games were really close so we never really had to deal with it or worry about it this series it was very very close and like you said those first two games four points couple of decisions go the other way this series looks a whole lot different but when your only shot creator when your only crunch time bucket getter when your only on ball Creator is 22 that’s tough that’s a lot to ask when he’s never been on the stage when he’s not a playmaker at heart when his decision- making has been a big question his entire career but improved tenfold throughout the season it’s a lot to ask especially when on the other side of the Court you have two of the best closur in arguably NB recent NBA history it’s a lot to ask from a 22y old it’s a flaw on the roster and we saw it at the end of games we saw it at the end of quarters where he would go too early and throw a turnover and then give Dallas six seconds at the end of the half or end of the third quarter and they would get a couple points out of that so it’s a it’s a learning curve but it’s also instructive for roster construction going forward where they have to have someone else who can do something with the ball in their hands yeah a lot of good points there and and stemming off that too again an only being 22 never been on this big stage but after a frustrating series like this even as great as the the entire series was season was I should say as a whole people need to put the blame somewhere so so how much criticism or how much blame for that matter do you think should be put on Ant and Cat in this series because so much was made about this kind of two verse two head-to-head matchup between those two versus Luca and Kye and obviously goes without saying you know they got outplayed by both those guys by a mile but it’s also a team game here too take a step back a lot of different variables a lot of different factors that go into these games so how much heat I guess do you think those guys should should take once we start dissecting this whole thing over the next few weeks Ben go ahead start with you yeah I mean I think I think uh an appropriate like I don’t know I like the easiest way to T for that is like Luca is the best player on the floor Bar n and there was never any question going into the series he was the best player in the series I mean ant’s great and he’s C a top I don’t know I don’t know I want to get into this debate now but we’ll call a top 15 player in the league or whatever you you can even argue top 12 uh which is different than a trade value ranking we’re not talking about that but like in terms of just in a vacuum best player call him top 15 top 12 probably Luca is one of the best two or three players in the entire league there’s no question about it and this is um he’s such a unique player to have to try and guard and so the gap between Luca and the next best player in the series whether you think it’s anter Kyrie and I I think it is ant is pretty big and it’s bigger than than the other gaps right and you take the top two for each team out of it the rest of the roster the Wolves probably have the advantage you would argue the wolves have the better you know three through 10 um so I think it’s fair to say that a lot of it falls on the shoulders of the stars because it is the playoffs and that’s usually how this thing works especially when you get beat in five and not in seven um but that’s not necessarily a knock on Anon cat as it is Luke is incredible and that’s fine I mean the best player in the world won the series last year or won the finals last year in joic and now you’re going to have a finals between two more you know top six players in in Luca and Tatum and um you know again I think it’s more about Luca than it is about ant and Cat uh real quick here before we move on to segment two Tyler anything surprise you or maybe even frustrate you about the x’s and o’s in this series like I I I know they tried to throw just about the entire book at times at Luca and Kyrie for that matter sometimes like Ben just laid out what are you gonna do you just got to throw your hands up sometimes it’s one of the best players in the league but this was the number one defense in the NBA you know the entire season and they just couldn’t find a way to stop these guys at times anything stick out or anything you were hoping they maybe do differently or switch up after that first game or two from an x’s and O standpoint and it’s tough because they they dared guys like PJ Washington and derck Jes J to make Corner threes and they were below average Corner three point shooters all year and especially Derrik Jones Jr he was Lethal so then once he starts knocking down 50% of his Corner threes you start to question okay now do I actually have to run this guy off the line when I’ve never had to do that in the eight years I’ve been playing against him and then once you do that that’s when the lobs start coming that’s when the dump offs start coming that’s when the hesitations the lack of trust in the guys behind you start coming so it it just kind of felt like a waterfall of just execution on Dallas’s part I’m sure there are some things but it felt like they threw every look they could think of at Luca and he’s just a basketball Savant and him and Kyrie they’re just so brilliant with the ball in their hand that they just can make the right decision basically every time yeah again so many times throughout this series as a wolves fan just had to throw your hands up and say hey you’re talking about two Hall of Famers here you’re going up against sometimes not a lot you can do all right plenty more Deep dive from wolves Dallas game five that’s all coming up right after this quick reminder tonight’s episode brought To Us by FanDuel America’s number one Sportsbook and official Sportsbook partner of the NBA right now playoff time in the NBA and NHL not to mention baseball’s in full swing that means FanDuel is your number one place to be to bet on all the action check this out right now new customers you’re getting 150 bucks in bonus Bets with any winning $ five bet that’s 150 bucks back in bonus Bets with any winning $5 bet bet on everything from slap shots to home runs to slam dunks all on the app that’s safe sec and easy to use so what are you waiting for visit fanduel.com loock onay and make your first bet a huge win FanDuel America’s number one sports book and official Sportsbook partner of the NBA okay Pit and the peak okay for this team when you look at the playoff experience as a whole big picture what was the biggest highlight for you the thing you’ll always remember the thing you’re most pleased with or happy about or proud about and then kind of the lowest low what was the thing that disappointed you the most Ben kick us off uh man the high the high is a tough one I I think I think specifically if I’m thinking of like specific moments there were a couple of those defensive possessions against Phoenix that were just incredible um the one that got a ton of play then obviously the game well the first two games against Denver there was a similar you know the the Niki Alexander Walker pressing Jamal Murray at the timeline and them trapping him at the Timeline those moments were awesome uh they go be Fade Away in game seven this game seven comeback I mean I guess I guess it would have to be the game seven comeback because that’s what allowed them to go to the Conference Finals but there’s a few snapshots in there that um you know are just just just were incred time yeah so fun to watch yeah I would say on the flip side that’s a tough one I I don’t know that I’ve fully decompressed from this yet I would which is fair that’s fair more than fair yeah I guess I would say that and this is this is just a very like this it’s not this play it’s not this player but the moment where I was like oh shoot this is they’re in a bad spot was when the nas buzzer beater went in and out in game two because up until that moment it was like all right if they if this thing’s a split at home it’s not great but like they’ll be all right they’re you know I I truly believe they were a better overall team than Dallas so they’ll be all right and in that moment it was like this is going to be a tough Hill to climb right um and that’s maybe not fair to NAS or anything but like that that moment sticks out to me is like had that ball gone down does this thing unfold differently because the wolves have momentum on a buzzer beater going back to Dallas uh but yeah I mean certainly certainly you could pick some moments from from game three or game five of the series as well yeah that ball drops and again Nas fantastic game that game in game two he had the flamethrower of that game as well but yeah that ball drops all of a sudden you feel like okay we got a series here you go down 02 though going into Dallas you’re totally right felt like a big hill to climb for sure pit in the peak for you Tyler what do you got um for Peak I I’ll go just sweeping Phoenix bullying straight GES after a lot of people doubted that the Wolves could even cover Phoenix that they even had a chance of winning that series and then they just dominated it it was incredible it was really really encouraging and then to kind of you know the fact that they carried over that defense into the next series as well was just is like okay it just affirmed the construction of this team that they were very real All Season the regular season wasn’t a fluke it just confirmed that they were a leg legitimate title Contender uh pit and I I’ll just go tonight and just that Luca dropping 20 in the first quarter was just gutr gut-wrenching and then you compare it to their effective field goal percentage being sub 40% in the first half it’s like oh this is just like you just didn’t even have a chance from from tip uh how about more from like an individual lens like was there one guy that that maybe impressed you the most compared to expectations going in or kind of stuck out the most in a good way and then maybe one guy you were you were disappointed obviously we’ve already talked about the big two quite a bit ant and cat but one one other guy maybe you were disappointed you didn’t get more from and and you can say this series or this entire playoffs for that matter either one doesn’t matter I know Kyle Anderson maybe deserves a little bit of props kind of being the glue at times vers this Mavs in this series as much as people like to pick on him Jade McDaniels had a couple fantastic games this playoffs as well that was nice to see still a little too inconsistent for some people’s like I guess but but Tyler maybe more individual lens uh guys you were impressed with maybe a guy didn’t quite do it for you uh I mean impressed I I was really impressed with Jayden for yeah the the final run here um I thought his offense really took an uptick the defense was fantastic throughout yes he fouls some yes the shot is inconsistent but when you look at who he is as a player and what he’s asked to do I thought some of the offensive performances in these last two rounds were just fantastic from him and I think it’s really encouraging going forward um I’m disappointed I I you know it’s tough to say cat but after that Denver series which was arguably some of the best basketball he’s ever played in his career and then I thought he was awful in this Dallas series I thought the defensive stuff with him was it’s almost like he was making the wrong decision every single time and then his shot just completely abandoned him another one for six from three tonight it was it it was just not who we’re used to seeing from him on offense it it was a brutal brutal time for him to completely disappear yeah same question Ben anybody stick out first and foremost yeah I’d second the Jaden pick that’s who I had too I think that uh everything Tyler said I mean I think the the the back-to-back 20 plus point games that he had um in the I guess it was or actually three in a rows last two games of the Denver Series in game one of of the MAV series was great uh but we’ve seen enough Jaden to know that wasn’t like a permanent thing he wasn’t going to do it all the time but still I think it was great doing it in the playoffs and and knocking down open threes and being aggressive off the dribble things like that um I I co-signed the cat thing as well because be because it’s just it’s so it’s so sad after he had such a great it did a great job defending Durant and did a great job defending yic and had some great offensive games along the way to see it come apart like this um but I would also say this is this is a tough one too but I’d say Mike Conley and I know I know Mike Conley had some good offensive games in the Dallas series um I know he hadit a couple of big shots I know that he he’s you know 37 basically and um isn’t being asked to carry a huge load on offense but I think the defense and and this is actually I think building into what we’re going to get to here in a minute which is offseason like it’s a bit ominous for me that Conley now I know guarding Kyrie and guarding Lucas is a completely different animal than guarding almost anybody else but connley when he was on Kyrie really struggled and showed his age and there’s been some of those moments I think late in the season the Wolves kind of ran him into the ground he didn’t get a whole lot of rest this year um now we’ll see we’ll see what that looks like like next year but he’s not getting younger and he’s now got two more years under contract and and which I think was a good extension to be clear but makes you start you know wondering like what what are what are the next moves that could be made this summer um because he was the weak link defensively uh from a size and athleticism and a Mobility standpoint in this series and and uh I think there were some tough moments for for Conley on the defensive end of the floor yeah that’s that’s more than fair and again we will get into uh some offseason talkers here in segment 3 in just a second but but you both did just mention kind of a low light a guy that disappointed was cat so just real quick 30 seconds each I’ll ask you here and this is going to be a talker all off season but what does the future hold for him in Minnesota or if he does stay put here what does it all need to look like for this whole thing to be successful because what we just saw versus this mths team that ain’t it and I know it’s tough because like you you mentioned Tyler uh you know versus Phoenix uh some of the Denver stuff that was everything you wanted and then some but but what’s it got to look like and what’s your prediction when it comes to his future here in Minnesota Ben kick it off yeah I think man I’ve I’ve really got to dive into the cap Stu I I don’t think they’re going to trade him I think that because you’re getting to the Conference Finals and and you know cat is still the second best player in the team um I don’t think they’ll trade him that certainly will be a topic all off season and there’s certainly a world in which they do it certainly depends on what the offers are out there but especially in a week draft I’d be surprised if they traded him um mildly surprised but uh you know as Tyler mentioned earlier they need another backourt Creator and cat is uh can create his own offense but he doesn’t naturally create offense for others and in this series he should have been able to score like I know the Wolves don’t do a ton of they don’t run a ton of low post plays to get low post touches but this was an opportunity where they could have done some of that for cat um I think that they try and run it back and just get a little more creative with the offense and it’s frustrating because they had like a hundred games to do it um but I think there’s some more stuff they could unlock with cat that e you know it’s partly on the coaching staff frankly um and obviously partly on cat but uh I think there’s still a world clearly it worked to the point they got to the Conference Finals I think there’s still some more upside here to unlock and I think ants playmaking plus cat getting in some better positions with the ball in his hands could help unlock some more offense too okay couple minutes left we’ll recap this wolv season one last time and some more possible offseason moves that’s all coming up right after this quick reminder tonight’s show also brought To Us by eBay Motors passion Drive patience with brings home the winning trophy is what also keeps your ride or die alive and eBay Motors they got everything you need to maintain your vehicle and level it up to the ultimate Peak Performance from superchargers to roof racks eBay Motors they literally they got it all with over 122 million parts for your number one ride or die you’ll always find exactly what you’re looking for and with eBay’s guaranteed fit your part is guaranteed to fit your ride every time or your money back with all the parts you need at the prices you want it’s it’s easy to turn your car into the MVP and bring home that win keep your ride or die alive at ebaymotors.com eligible items only exclusions apply eBay’s guaranteed fit only available to us customers okay couple minutes left here we got to talk offseason plans uh roster wise here so much was made after that Denver Series this team was literally built to stop the Nuggets they did that mission accomplished then you you run into a buz saww right the Mavericks team presents their own unique set of challenges obviously the outcome has been night and day different from that series to this one uh so in a perfect world I guess what would they need to do next time around to add on to what they’ve already built and tweak not just to beat the Nuggets again but to stop this same Mavs team from a Personnel Department if you’re Tim Conley and your coach FID what’s something you’re trying to do this offseason Tyler let’s start with you uh ball handler and decision maker um whether that’s you know a a traditional point guard or more of a combo guard or another Wing or you know whatever anyone who can create something when the play breaks down um the only person they had to do that this year was ant and when he would would get in a funk or teams would just Blitz him and force the ball out of his hands they didn’t have a consistent go-to and having I love Mike Conley he’s fantastic for this team but he’s going to be 37 or he is 37 37 in October I I I want to say but don’t quote me on that yeah yeah and it it it’s just not realistic to expect him to play a full season of starter minutes and then help carry a team deep into the playoffs they they just need someone else who can create anything on offense when ant doesn’t have it going because they become really really easy to guard especially when multiple guys have cold shooting nights yeah Ben go ahead yeah I mean that’s my answer too I I think there were stretches in the playoffs where they got a little bit of that from Jaden and the stretches where you know brief stretches where they got some of that with Alexander Walker with him as as somebody who can get his own offense and theoretically can generate off or can yeah generate offense for others generate looks for others uh but neither of those guys are unless Jaden takes a massive leap next year and I think part of this year was kind of seen if he could if he could do that um and he certainly made progress and so good defensively that anything he gives you offensively as long as he’s not a minus is is is great um but they need somebody else who can who can attack off the catch right that could that can you know pump fake and go that can can make quick decisions can make the right reads um and there’s a lot of time this offseason and we’re going to talk about a lot in lockdown wolves like who those guys could be um there’s obviously a a looming cap crunch uh not looming it’s here now and there’s you know it’s a light draft they’ve got a first round pick but it’s late in a bad first round so there’s no easy answers they’ve also got to figure out you know the Kyle Anderson Kyle Anderson’s a free agent so that role whether that’s a you know it’s kind of that Swiss army knife in theory it’s a bench Creator type role um are they G to look for a similar archetype or is this like are they as a Conference Finals team gonna pull a nuggets and say like Hey we’re gonna take a young guy off the bench we’re gonna say like Josh Min or Leonard Miller is gonna play in this role I don’t think so but I mean there’s there’s a lot of different directions this could go and that’s the biggest need I mean they’ve got obviously side they’ve got um they’ve got a lot of shooting like everybody in the rotation but slow-mo and Rudy is an outside shooter so um it really is that kind of other playmaker that that guy who they can play off of and um you know in theory that can be cat for stretches but they ideally they need somebody else in the back court that can that can do that so it’s not just ant creating from the back court yeah well said again can’t wait to listen to lockdown wolves all off season long continue to talk about and break down some of these offseason plans and a lot of burning questions for this roster right now le let’s try to end here a couple minutes left um with something positive here right positive spin once the dust settles here what what’s one or two things you’ll always remember from from this 2023 2024 Timberwolves season we already talked about kind of the playoffs in a nutshell but you know even though it wasn’t the dream ending that you hop for this season I mean truly guys it’s been one of the funnest rides this franchise has ever had so there’s a lot to choose from for sure but Tyler what do you think of first when you think back to this season I I think is that that win over the Celtics earlier in the season where yeah like where ant and jayen just went psycho mode on defense late and then kind of seeing something similar to that popup in game two against Denver where it’s like God this defense was so much fun all year and I don’t want to hear all this crap about there was fake and you know their their regular season defense this was the best defense from start to finish this year they got carved up by one of the best offensive creators in LCA donic but that that Celtics win and then also kind of repeating that similar performance on a back-to-back in Boston forcing them to overtime solidifying that it was real that they weren’t just it just wasn’t a fluke win at home I thought I thought that Celtics win was absolutely incredible yeah game three happened so early in the season to after last season where they remember they would get up those big leads that half time and then blow so many games it was nice to start out the season with such a a marquee premium win vers a team like the Celtics Ben favorite moments things you’ll always remember from this magical run especially when you think all the way back to the preseason expectations we had for this team yeah I mean I’ll say a couple things one that they never this is a weird one but something I’ll never forget about this team they never lost more than three games in a row Yes actually they never lost three in a row until the playoffs they didn’t lose more than two in a row all regular season which is crazy and I guess guess I don’t know the actual history on that but I can’t imagine there’s many teams obviously other than the you know the the teams that only lost nine or 10 games bulls and warriors teams that ever really did that um that was incredible and they didn’t ever lose four in a row and they lost three in a row a couple times in the playoffs and that was it and then I would say you know similar to what Tyler said and what I mentioned earlier some of those defensive possessions and the fact that uh you know that that got a ton of play you know certainly the one-on-one defense against the Celtics that Tyler mentioned but also in the playoffs when when you know the I guess the national media woke up and was like whoa this defense is incredible but I’ve talked about this unlocked on wolves a ton the gap between the Wolves and the next best defense we’ve only seen that one other time in the last 20 years like just how much better they were than the next best defense in the league in terms of defensive rating so they were that much better than every other defense in the league in a day and age when offense obviously rules everything and for at least the first two-thirds of the Season you know there were a ton of free throws being shot and there were a ton of Threes being shot and the pace teams were playing at was crazy and we had these like crazy scoring games the Wolves defense was consistently incredible um and that’s really why they never saw a losing streak of more than two games all season long uh 30 seconds each quick draft talk I know we got all summer for this obviously too late round picks uh and too way too early and too late in the order to kind of take a stab at who’s even going to be there and what’s realistic right now but which position do you think they should and will Target I think first and foremost starting to add some depth and more bodies into the mix Tyler go ahead yeah um I just kind of like I said earlier on ball decision maker you know preferably point guard depth um combo guard a couple names to keep an eye on uh Tyler kch uh from Marquette kind of more of a plug-and-play guy somebody somebody had a comment and wanted to ask you Tyler should the Wolves draft bub Carrington I can’t find it now but it’s in here somewhere uh freshman point guard out of pit more of a project really really intriguing incredibly skinny would be doubtful that he would actually get a whole lot of minutes early Finch doesn’t love playing super young raw guys like we saw with Leonard Miller and Josh Min not so maybe developmental piece would love that I love the upside with him if we’re thinking you know more plug andplay guys uh Tyler kak Jaylen Tyson KJ Simpson Jamal shed um Kevin mcculler even as more of just like a wing couple names to keep an eye on yeah anything to add there uh Ben I I don’t have names uh but I agree that uh I actually wouldn’t be shocked if they did take somebody that’s a little bit more of a project it’s tough with a first- round pick with the guaranteed salary but just r a um like whoever they pick is not going to play anyway and they do need to find a point guard more likely than not Mike Conley are starting point guard for the next at least season maybe too um so like they need to they need to start and I know that once you get to year three of a rookie we’ll see how it shakes out but I could see them doing that because there’s nobody else on the roster like that um you know obviously mcclaflin Monte Morris d next all free agents so um I could see them taking somebody like a backcourt Creator that’s a bit of a project and then potentially one of the guys we’ve mentioned Min not Leonard Miller gets a shot at being a rotation guy U but they’re not gonna have more than one rookie or seconde guy or third year guy in the case of Min not in the rotation on opening that next year I think it will be more of a project type pick you know I’m an NFL draft guy boys can’t wait to dive into some bub carington tape here over the next few weeks going to be a lot of fun uh wolves season comes to a close in game five vers Dallas in the Conference Finals an incredible run what more can you say incredible season to hopefully build off of now as this long off seon starts over the next few weeks as always huge shout out to all you guys that joined us on the stream not just tonight though but all season long trust me when I say we wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for you guys and it goes without saying your guys’s your passion your love for this team it’s been infectious all season long and has really made us on our end want to bring you the best possible cont content each and every night each and every game and it’s just been an absolute treat to share this entire t-wolves experience with you guys all season long so we appreciate you guys so much go check out all of Tyler’s work on X at Team metf 11 and of course Mr Ben Beacon always killing it ripping it up over on the lockon Wolves podcast each and every day as well can’t wait to tune in to all the offseason episodes coming up here shortly that’ll do it for us tonight and again for everyone who’s been a part of all these postcast all year long Sam xtram Jack Borman Andrew Duke witz we say thank you and we’ll see you right here for game one next season but until then one last time guys signing out

The Minnesota Timberwolves season comes to a close at home against Luka Doncic and the Dallas Mavericks losing game five 124-103. Join Like Inman, Ben Beecken and Tyler Metcalf for the instant reaction and breakdown after the game.