The Timberwolves and their bigs have the last laugh against defending champion Nuggets and Nikola Jokić

DENVER — The idea that the Minnesota Timberwolves’ magic began and ended with Rudy Gobert was so hilariously appropriate.

They were downstairs 20 points against the defending champion Denver Nuggets with 22 minutes to play, as the NBA’s most divisive player in recent memory pulled off a turnaround.

History was on the Nuggets’ side, with teams leading by at least 15 points at halftime in Game 7s having gone up 21-0 to that point (Indiana had joined that list earlier in the day against the Knicks ). So was Charles Barkley, as the Hall of Famer and TNT analyst called out Minnesota coach Chris Finch ‘Take Gobert out of the game.’

But then Nikola Jokić lost Gobert on the left wing, and Karl-Anthony Towns found the French big man with a dump-off pass for a dunk with 9:51 left in the third quarter that most observers – including yours truly – thought very little about at the time.

A quick confession about something that happened at the press conference around that time: for the first time in twenty years of covering the association, I prematurely booked my flight and hotel in the wrong city for the next series because it just felt like it was past. On Wednesday to Denver for Game 1 of the West Finals against Dallas.

Or not.

By the time this play reached the 7:43 mark of the fourth quarter, when Gobert had buried that wonderful spinning fadeaway from the left side that was so unexpectedly Jokić-esque, the Timberwolves had gone on a 41-17 run with that all so good about their resilient program.

The suffocating defense that had come to define them was back, with the Nuggets missing 15 of 21 shots in the period (Jamal Murray and Michael Porter Jr. were a combined 1 of 8). Meanwhile, Minnesota turned the tide on the rebounding front in the process: the Wolves were outscored 29-18 in the first half but held a 17-7 lead in that stretch.

“It showed us who we are because the coaches believed in us, even though we were down 20 at halftime – even in the third. They said, ‘Just keep making runs. Keep making runs,” said Anthony Edwards, who had just four points in the first half but finished with 16 points (on 6 of 24 shooting), eight rebounds, seven assists and a plus-11 mark. “And it showed us who we are, man. Once we really focus on the defensive side – because we played well offensively – but if we really focus on the defensive side, man, we’re a great team to beat.

The Timberwolves offense that had sputtered all night was suddenly alive thanks to the defense. Nearly every player of note chipped in for a 15-of-25 shooting effort that lifted the Timberwolves to their first West finals appearance since 2004 following their 98-90 victory. But that Gobert shot was the chef’s kiss, the kind of lasting image a basketball section at the Louvre should produce.

MY GOODNESS, GREAT RU. pic.twitter.com/S2XEQaummo

— Minnesota Timberwolves (@Timberwolves) May 20, 2024

To hear Edwards and Karl-Anthony Towns talk about it afterwards, as they sat side by side at the press conference and hilariously summarized the way the game had developed, was to understand the nexus between personality and personnel that was so played a major role. have been part of their hoop story so far.

“Rudy Gobert’s turnaround was crazy,” Towns stated.

“When Rudy made the turnaround, I was like, ‘Yeah, we probably got them,’” Edwards said with a laugh. “I know that’ll kill the whole thing – that’ll kill the whole thing. Big shout-out to Big Ru,” man. He knocked a turnaround on their ass.

“On God’s day too,” said Towns, who has so impressively evolved from the centerpiece of the Timberwolves franchise to this selfless and capable No. 2 behind Edwards. “Also on God’s day.”

However, it was not just the day of the Lord. It was the 20th anniversary of Minnesota’s Game 7 win over Sacramento in the West semifinals, the last time the franchise made the West finals. Kevin Garnett, who also happened to turn 48 on Sunday, famously promised to take all the proverbial artillery to that Game 7 showdown against the Kings.

More than anything else, this defining moment was a case of the Nuggets forgetting that there are 48 minutes in an NBA game.

Murray came out swinging, scoring 24 of his 33 points in the first half after a horrific Game 6 performance in which he missed 14 of 18 shots. If he kept playing like that, and if Edwards kept letting all those Nuggets double-teams take the ball out of his hands when it mattered most, the rest would be a fait accompli. But then the redemptive arc took hold.

Towns, who was viewed as the odd man out by so many when the Timberwolves’ salary cap became a concern following the Gobert trade in the summer of 2022, carried the otherwise dreadful Wolves offense throughout while doing a competent job to guard Jokić.

He hit 8 of 14 shots overall for 23 points, with 12 rebounds to boot, while posting a plus-10. As Edwards walked with Towns to their joint press conference, he made a bold statement that should be taken within the full context of the Nuggets environment.

“They didn’t have an answer for Karl,” Edwards said as he walked. “Karl is the meanest big one in the world.”

Here in this Ball Arena, where Jokić has won three of the past four MVP awards and where Denver’s 2023 title broke a half-century drought for the franchise, Edwards decided to declare Towns the best of them all.

But as save stories go, none of the Timberwolves can measure up to Gobert. Even with his poor first half, which reignited the conversation about whether he is a winning player – a debate that has persisted for years and led to his unwelcome distinction as the league’s most overrated player in recent years . The Athletics player poll — Gobert found a way to have the last laugh.

He finished with 13 points, nine rebounds, two blocks and a plus-10 rating. Including the first round, when the Timberwolves defeated the Phoenix Suns, Gobert now has a plus-minus sign of plus-111 that’s the best on the team (Edwards is second at plus-103). But sure, Chuck, tell us again how Gobert is unplayable when it matters most.

“I don’t watch those guys, so I don’t know what they’re talking about, but they’ve got to be talking about something,” Gobert said when asked about Barkley’s comments. “But yeah, I’m glad the Timberwolves coach (Chris Finch) didn’t listen to his advice.”

Of all the Timberwolves people who represented their team’s willingness to fight, Finch might top the list. He tore his patellar tendon after colliding with Mike Conley in Game 4 of the first round against the Suns, then sat in the second row for the second round while assistant coach Micah Nori handled the vast majority of side duties.

But late in Game 7 against the Nuggets, when every possession carried the risk of deciding the game and every play call had equal weight, Finch suddenly jumped up from his seat to make sure his voice was heard. He has been with this group since midway through the 2020-21 season, when he left his job as assistant coach of the Toronto Raptors to take over for the fired Ryan Saunders. Edwards was midway through his freshman season at the time, and the apparent connection between the 22-year-old rising star and Finch has everything to do with the historical state of the Timberwolves business currently unfolding.

“It starts with our head coach – Coach Finch,” Edwards said afterward. “He comes in every day, comes to work and gets there early. He thinks of ways to get Ant and KAT open looks. He thinks of ways to get Mike and Rudy open looks. He thinks of ways to get Jaden (McDaniels) involved. He tries to keep Naz (Reid) involved to get him involved. He’s just a great coach. And he doesn’t hide anything.

‘When Kat gets up, he goes to KAT. When I’m scared, he comes after me. When Rudy gets up, he’s going to tackle anyone who messes up the whole game, and I think that makes him the best coach in the NBA for me. Because whoever it is, no matter how high up on the pole he is, he will haunt you from beginning to end. It starts with the head of the snake, and it is the head of our snake. We all look up to him, listen to him, and he (does) a great job of making sure we’re ready to go every night.

Finch, who spent the 2016-17 season in Denver as associate head coach alongside the Nuggets’ Michael Malone, knows better than anyone what this Game 7 win means.

“It’s a big moment for our club,” Finch said. “Everyone talks about the last 30 years (in Minnesota), which means nothing to me. But it means a lot to a lot of people to see this team, (who) are behind this team. The city is behind this team. And to beat a team like Denver at home like we did would obviously mean a lot.

(Photo of Rudy Gobert and Nikola Jokić: AAron Ontiveroz / The Denver Post via Getty Images)