SEATTLE - It's a win-or-go-home situation for the Minnesota Timberwolves in Game 5 of the Western Conference Finals. The Timberwolves' best season in 20 years depends on the type of game they play after getting a five-point win over the Dallas Mavericks to force another game in the series.
It will be a monumental task for Minnesota, as no team in the history of the NBA playoffs has come back from a 3-0 deficit to win a best-of-7 series, and only 11 out of 115 teams forced a Game 6. If they want a shot at making history, they will need the best version of themselves, but many eyes will be on Karl-Anthony Towns.
The four-time All Star has struggled to find his best form against this Mavericks defense. In the first three games, the big man shot 27% from the field and only 13.6% from beyond the arc. But things changed for him in Game 4, as he bounced back with 25 points and five rebounds including 4-for-5 from deep.
Despite his struggles, Timberwolves coach Chris Finch believes it was just a matter of time until we saw Towns back at his best. "KAT is a great player," Finch said after the win. "His struggles were not going to last forever. He got himself going. Even when he got deep in foul trouble, we left him out there...just let him roll. He played smart, played under control, rebounded really well for us, executed defensively. Really proud of him."
Just like Towns, co-star Anthony Edwards has failed to replicate the impact he had in previous rounds of their playoff run. But lets focus on KAT for a second. Since Dallas doesn't necessarily have a 7-footer that can match up with the Timberwolves big man in terms of size and skill, his contributions in Game 5 will need to be even more impactful from what we have seen from him so far.
The Dominican's ability to shoot the ball from deep is what sets him apart from most of the centers across the league. However, as mentioned, Towns is struggling to find his shot, with his effective field goal percentage dropping to just 41%, ranking seventh among nine players that have seen action against the Mavs in the Western Conference Finals. His usage rate in the playoffs has gone down too compared to his numbers during the regular season. KAT is only finishing 24% of his team's possessions so far in the playoffs, compared to the 33.6% he averaged during the regular season.
In summary, the Dominican is not seeing the ball as frequent as he has and, when he's got it, he hasn't been able to shoot it well.
All of that is going to have to change in Game 5 if Minnesota wants to keep the dream alive. KAT finished with 25 points in the 105-100 win. When Towns goes for 20+ points this postseason, his team has a record of 5-1.
With the season on the line, KAT will need to show up for the Timberwolves one more time. It will be the eight elimination game of his career and the third in 2024. He averages 20 points with 10.9 boards and three assists in such games and has a record of 4-3 after the win over the Mavs in Game 4.
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