The NBA playoffs are finally in the Conference Finals round. Out of the West was Oklahoma City Thunder and the Minnesota Timberwolves. Prior to Game 4 in Minnesota most recently, the Thunder were able to go up 2-0 after winning both games at home by a large margin. The Timberwolves were set to host games 3 and 4. They snatched Game 3 away from the Thunder, blowing them out. The series was 2-1, Thunder, prior to this Game 4 in Minnesota.
Headlining the Oklahoma City Thunder starting 5 was: Chet Holmgren, Jalen Williams, Isaiah Hartenstein, Lu Dort and the league’s newest first-time MVP, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. The Timberwolves 5 consisted of: Jaden McDaniels, Rudy Gobert, Mike Conley, Julius Randle and today’s modern version of Michael Jordan, Anthony Edwards. The Wolves need this game if they want to knot up this series and 2 games a piece.
Right off the bat, both teams knocked down a ridiculous amount of shots, as the shooting percentages were through the roof. The Thunder held the lead by 7 at the end of one period of play. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander was showing off his masterclass mid-range game, while Edwards had yet to take a shot for Minnesota.
The second quarter starts and both teams were just about evenly matched, but Points were still piling up for the Thunder stars. Jalen Williams and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander saw almost every shot of theirs ripping the net. On Minnesota’s end they were still only down 8 but Julius Randle and Anthony Edwards looked abysmal for them. Nickeil Alexander-Walker, Donte DiVincenzo, and Terrence Shannon Jr. were the ones keeping them in the game all three of them come off the bench.
The second half started and it was tug of war all the way until the final minutes of the game. The Thunder had a slim lead going into the final minutes. A couple of key triples from Jalen Williams and defensive strategizing by the Thunder sealed the deal. The Thunder took Game 4 in Minnesota and went up 3-1 with a chance to close it out at home and secure a spot in the NBA Finals. The final score was 128-126, Oklahoma City.
On the losing end, the Timberwolves stars had a rough day at the office. Anthony Edwards with only 16 points and 1 three-pointer, and Julius Randle with 5 points only making one out of his seven shots. Nickeil Alexander-Walker, Donte DiVincenzo, and Jaden McDaniels fought hard to keep Minnesota in the game. Minnesota also had a whopping 21 turnovers.
For the victorious Thunder, league MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander had 40 points, 10 assists and 9 rebounds. Jalen Williams had 34 points, 6 threes, and 3 steals and Holmgren added 21 and 3 blocks.
Can Oklahoma City punch their ticket into the Finals?
