For the second game in a row, OKC wore Minnesota down with its ball pressure on defense and ran away with an easy victory once the Timberwolves let go of the rope in the second half. In Game 1, the Thunder sealed the win by winning the second half by a 30-point margin. It wasn’t that lopsided on Thursday night, but Minnesota still ends up falling behind 0-2 in this series after back-to-back double-digit losses. As of now, the gap between these two teams appears to be fairly sizable.
OKC defenders Lu Dort, Cason Wallace and Alex Caruso have done a phenomenal job of crowding Minnesota star Anthony Edwards every time he has the ball and making him work every look he gets at the rim. Edwards tried to mix things up in Game 2 by sprinkling in a few post-ups and being more unselfish on his drives to the basket. It’s just really difficult to consistently attack this swarming defense over and over again throughout an entire game.
Edwards finished wih 32 points in Game 2, but he’s shooting a combined 17-39 from the field after two games in this series. Julius Randle, Mike Conley and Donte DiVincenzo were a combined 6-25 from the field in Game 2 and also threw in nine turnovers. The other playmakers on this team have to take some pressure off Edwards.
The Timberwolves won’t have a chance in this series if they keep hoping Edwards can get them across the finish line by himself. Playing in front of the home crowd in Games 3 and 4 could help lift the confidence of those supporting cast members. Minnesota will need it to keep this series within reach.
