The Denver Nuggets will never be confused with one of the league’s quicker teams. It’s hard for a team to be so when they roster three-time MVP Nikola Jokic and often have the center set up the offense. During the regular season, Denver ranked 20th in the NBA in pace.
An athleticism advantage for the Minnesota Timberwolves has been seen during the series, especially with Peyton Watson having not suited up, and Aaron Gordon having missed 2 games. The advantage is not as great anymore after the injuries to Anthony Edwards and Donte DiVincenzo, which has required more minutes from less athletic players.
More Conley and more Slo Mo
Over the first three games of the series, 38-year-old Mike Conley played a total of 16 minutes. That has gone up to 38 over the last two outings, the first of which saw Ant-Man and DiVincenzo out for the entire second half, and the second with Conley entering the starting lineup.
The 32-year-old Kyle Anderson was barely in the rotation for any of the first four contests, seeing a total of 20 minutes of floor action. That increased to 15 in Game 5 for Slo Mo.
Those two are not guys who are going to run down the court each offensive possession. If Chris Finch had decided to whittle down what has mostly been a 10-man rotation in this series prior to their starting backcourt getting hurt, they would have been the two most likely candidates to be removed. Instead, at least for Game 5, both had to play more.
The Timberwolves could have even less of an athleticism advantage for Game 6 on Thursday. As of this writing, Bones Hyland is listed as questionable with left knee soreness. If he is unable to give it a go, that could mean even more minutes for the two aforementioned veterans.Â
This isn’t to say that Conley and Anderson aren’t able to provide value for Minnesota. They are both guys who take care of the basketball, and that’s important after the Timberwolves accumulated 25 turnovers in Game 5. Now, four of those were from Slo Mo, but that is somewhat of an outlier performance, as he didn’t have a single turnover in the first four games. He has always had low turnover rates throughout his 12-year career.
It’s something to watch for in Game 6. Depending on whether Hyland plays, Conley could see less playing time after he played just four minutes in the second half of Game 5. If the offense is having its struggles, and Finch is looking for ways to turn up the pressure, turning to Terrence Shannon Jr. instead of Anderson could be a way to do so.
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