Luka Doncic sucked the air out of the Target Center almost from the opening tip. He came out on fire but so did the Dallas’ defense, which was sharp and had more depth with Dereck Lively back in the mix. It was one of those nights where everything clicked for the Mavericks and by halftime Dallas fans should have been researching hotels and restaurants in Boston.
Here are takeaways from the Dallas’ win in Game 5 of the Western Conference finals.
Maybe don’t anger Luka Doncic
Early in the game, a Timberwolves fan in in the front row at the Target Center was loudly taunting Luka Doncic — the person kept waving a handkerchief at Doncic as a reference to him crying about not getting foul calls. Doncic just smiled, according to Ben Golliver of the Washington Post.
An angered Doncic rained fire on Minnesota scoring 20 in the first quarter — and he kept staring at that fan after every bucket, and even yelled at the person.
LUKA HAS WORDS:
— Hoop Central (@TheHoopCentral) May 31, 2024
"Yeah, who's crying motherfu*ker? 🗣️
pic.twitter.com/QHaa1HxBng
“I can’t tell you. If I tell you, I could sue him,” Doncic said when asked what the heckler was saying. “But, you know, that gets me going. Everybody knows that.”
The Mavericks should thank that fan.
Doncic also adjusted. Minnesota had some luck covering Luka with Kyle Anderson in Game 4 — Anderson’s
nickname is “slo-mo” for a reason, but Anderson is big and Doncic doesn’t win with explosiveness, so it worked.
However, much like dealing with Nikola Jokic, give Doncic time, and he will figure things out. He figured out the Timberwolves defense to start this game. By the time Minnesota realized what hit them, it was too late. Their season was ending.
What’s next for the Timberwolves
Give the Timberwolves their flowers—this was one of the best seasons in franchise history. Minnesota won 56 games and reached the Western Conference Finals for the first time since the Kevin Garnett Timberwolves.
Minnesota’s fans deserved this run.
Part of what held this team back in the biggest moments of the Western Conference Finals was experience. Dallas’ core had it, while Anthony Edwards, Karl-Anthony Towns, Jaden McDaniels, Nickeil Alexander-Walker and Naz Reid did not. Those Timberwolves gained a lot more of it in the past couple of weeks, but the price for that knowledge can be painful.
Minnesota is not a typical young team on the rise (like Oklahoma City), this team will run into a financial cliff in the coming seasons — max extensions for Towns and Edwards kick in next season. Look at it this way: Minnesota will pay four players — Towns, Rudy Gobert, Edwards, and Jaden McDaniels — $158 million net season, which is already $17 million over the salary cap. They have guys like Reid ($13.9 million) and Mike Conley ($9.9 million) locked up on good contracts, but this team is going over the second apron (about $190 million) and it doesn’t matter who wins this embarrassing ownership fight, it will be difficult for this franchise to afford this level of spending for long.
Minnesota should — and likely will — run it back next season, but the pressure is on the Timberwolves to win because they will only have a season or two with this core before it will have to be broken up and changed. If Minnesota is going to keep winning long term in the Anthony Edwards era, it may look more like the Tim Duncan Spurs in that while they kept winning at a high level, how they played (twin towers with David Robinson, uptempo with Tony Parker, etc.) evolved with a changing roster.
Minnesota will make some tweaks to add depth and more wing scoring this summer, but the window is now open, and this team should be a title contender with this core next season.
