What went wrong for the Nuggets in Game 1 against the Timberwolves?

What went wrong for the Nuggets in Game 1 against the Timberwolves?

The Denver Nuggets find themselves in unfamiliar territory after a 106-99 loss to the Minnesota Timberwolves in Game 1 of the Western Conference Semifinals.

This is now the first time Denver has trailed in a postseason series since falling to the higher-seeded Warriors in the first round of the 2022 playoffs. The Nuggets never faced a series deficit in 2023 on their run to an NBA championship.

So, what went wrong for the Nuggets in Game 1? And is this merely foreshadowing for the rest of the series?

Let’s take a closer look.

Ant’s arrival

Minnesota guard Anthony Edwards is already considered one of the best young players in the NBA, but he looks determined to vault all the way to superstar status with the way he is playing this postseason.

In Game 1, Edwards scored 43 points on 17-of-29 shooting to go with seven rebounds and two blocks. Reminiscent of a young Michael Jordan, he did most of his damage in the mid-range game and had Denver players puzzled with his ability to hit fading, turnaround jumpers at will.

Edwards scored 25 points in the first half and was the only Minnesota player with over 15 field goal attempts. With his second straight 40-point game of the playoffs, Edwards became the only player besides Kobe Bryant to score 40 in back-to-back postseason games while 22 years old or younger.

The 6-foot-4 guard is also Minnesota’s unquestioned leader despite his relative lack of experience. He is often the loudest player on the court and regularly offers his teammates direction and encouragement where needed.

Denver really doesn’t have a solid counter to Edwards defensively. Jamal Murray is playing a step slower than normal with a strained calf. Christian Braun isn’t quick enough to stay in front of him, and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and Reggie Jackson lack the strength to effectively thwart him when he posts up.

If the Nuggets can’t find a counter to Ant fast, they could be in danger of losing Game 2 and heading to Minnesota with a serious problem on their hands.

Matchup problem

Part of the reason for Denver’s dominance in Round 1 against the Lakers was the way they were able to control the offensive glass. The Nuggets grabbed at least nine offensive rebounds in each of their five games against Los Angeles, but they only had three offensive rebounds in Game 1 against Minnesota on Saturday.

The Lakers played with one big man — Anthony Davis — on the court for most of the series, but the Timberwolves normally deploy at least two at any given time, whether it by Rudy Gobert (7-foot-1), Karl-Anthony Towns (7-foot) or Naz Reid (6-foot-9).

Gobert had 13 rebounds to lead all players and combined with Towns and Reid to completely shut down Aaron Gordon, who finished the night with nine points and three boards.

Gordon averaged 13.8 points and 9.8 rebounds per game against the Lakers, including a 29-point outburst in Game 3. He was a non-factor offensively on Saturday, though, and he also had issues guarding Reid in the fourth quarter.

With Towns dealing with foul trouble, Reid dropped 14 of his 16 points over the final 12 minutes to help Minnesota pull out the win. Reid — the 2023-24 NBA Sixth-Man of the Year — averaged just 9.5 points and 2.0 rebounds per game in the Timberwolves’ sweep of Phoenix in the first round.

Outside of Nikola Jokic — who went for 32-9-8 on Saturday — Denver’s tallest player is Michael Porter Jr. at 6-foot-10, but he lacks the strength to take on post players. That often leaves the 6-foot-8 Gordon in charge of slowing down Minnesota’s bigs, which has not been an effective strategy so far.

Missing: Murray

Continuing his up-and-down postseason performance Saturday was Denver guard Jamal Murray, who made history in the first round by hitting two game-winners in the five-game series against the Lakers.

Murray struggled out of the gate and had zero points in the first half — the first time in his playoff career that happened. He put up 17 points in the second half, but it wasn’t enough to help Denver’s offense overcome a really tough Minnesota defense.

The Timberwolves were the best team in the NBA during the regular season with a defensive rating of 108.4. Minnesota was the only team in the league during the regular season to hold Denver under 100 points on two occasions.

This postseason, Murray has averaged 22.5 points while shooting just 40.3% from the field and 31.6% from 3-point range. In last year’s playoffs, he averaged 26.1 points per game and shot 47.3% from the field and 39.6% from deep.

The Canadian guard could probably use an extra few days or rest, but he will have to suit up again Monday night when Denver hosts Minnesota for Game 2. If Murray gets off to another slow start, the Nuggets might not have enough firepower to turn things around.