Timberwolves-Nuggets Game 2: Wolves claw back on the road

• Download the NBA App

A reality for the Denver Nuggets for most of Nikola Jokić’s tenure has been the challenging underbelly of the three-time Most Valuable Player’s magnificence. Namely, the stretches of games when he sits down, a.k.a., “non-Jokić” minutes.

The Minnesota Timberwolves have their own on/off issues at times with their center, Rudy Gobert. Their “non-Gobert” minutes can mean one thing to the Wolves’ offense but something altogether different to their defense.

For the two teams’ fans and lovers of intense, entertaining NBA playoff basketball, though, a more pressing concern now is the “non-Wolves and Nuggets minutes” they’ll have to endure between the final horn of Game 2 and tipoff of Game 3.

This crazy-close first-round series shifts to Target Center in Minneapolis Thursday (9:30 ET, Prime Video). That means approximately 4,110 minutes to fill, some of which can be covered by finding a replay to watch of Minnesota’s 119-114 Monday at Ball Arena.

Oh, and burning a few more here by reading about four takeaways from the Wolves’ recovery Monday to even the series at 1-1:

1. Your quarter, our quarter

Things looked bleak for the Wolves when Denver scored 17 unanswered points early, stacked no fewer than three 3-pointer-plus-the-foul plays to bump its lead to 14, then used assorted saves, charges and hustle plays to lead at the end of the first quarter, 39-25.

Things looked bleak for the Nuggets, though, when Minnesota finally stopped settling for perimeter shots, put stress on defense by attacking the paint, unveiled a little “small ball” when foul trouble sent Gobert to the bench, and outscored the home team in the second quarter, 39-25.

Mirror image scores across two action-packed periods, dialed to full chaos when Denver’s Jamal Murray beat the halftime buzzer with a heave from the far side of the logo – 51 feet – to tie it, 64-64. The Wolves’ initial doldrums got buoyed in those second 12 minutes, Denver let go of the proverbial rope a bit, and then Murray’s circus shot hit the reset button for the subsequent 24 minutes.

Jokić focused on finding teammates early, scoring just six of his eventual 24 points in the half. Minnesota’s Anthony Edwards went the other way, amassing 20 of his 30 before halftime once he felt secure that his achy right knee wouldn’t betray him. And teammate Julius Randle, eager to do better than in the opener Saturday, followed Edwards’ lead with 18 of his 24 by the break.

“I feel like I can’t let him down,” the veteran power forward said of Edwards. “If he’s out there battling, there’s no excuse where I can’t give my best and make the extra-effort plays. It energizes me and makes me want to be on my best game.”

Coaches being who they are, neither Chris Finch nor David Adelman was pleased with two quarters that wound up precisely half-full and half-empty.

“We had a great first quarter, they had a great second quarter, the game basically restarted from there,” Adelman said.

2. Second chances saved the Wolves

Eight of the game’s 15 lead changes came after halftime, as did three of the night’s seven ties. There were lots of similar stats, from shooting numbers and free throws earned to turnovers and scoring margins (neither team led or trailed by more than six the rest of the way).

But one big disparity came from Minnesota’s ability to keep possessions alive, grabbing offensive rebounds and making the Nuggets pay for their eagerness to hurry upcourt. In their five-point victory, the Wolves built a 20-3 advantage in second-chance points.

“In a hard-fought game like that when you work so hard to get a stop,” Adelman said, “and then just give up second-chance points … it kept them in the game. Every time we made a run, it felt like that’s what stopped the run. That’s something we have to clean up as a team.”

3. A little respect for Rudy

Gobert’s early fouls gave Minnesota a chance to run offense without him on the floor and, frankly, it freed up the Wolves in the second quarter. The paint was more open without their big man lurking, and with Jokić on the side, there wasn’t much to discourage Edwards, Randle, or the rest from working their way closer to the rim.

Down the stretch, however, Gobert was back. And playing an active, conscientious level of defense much as he had in Game 1. He and his four Defensive Player of the Year awards called Jokić’s three MVP trophies, and won the hand.

He contested a three by Jokić that was an air ball. He defended the Denver center on drives and various short shots from the lane. He banged back when Jokić posted up. The Wolves’ often-criticized big man did come up short when Jokić drove and dunked to get Denver within 115-113 with 49 seconds left. But Gobert already had stood strong.

“I want to give a shoutout to Big Ru, man,” said Randle. “It’s not going to show up in the box score but what he did, especially in that fourth quarter … Ant challenged him, he said ‘I need you to stop fouling.’ He came in and how he guarded Jokić, it was super-inspiring to the team. It lifted the team. Him getting stop after stop at the end of the game was huge to us.”

Said Edwards: “I told him ‘Brother, we’re half the team when you’re on the bench. Everybody gonna say this about Rudy, he’s this, he’s that. They don’t understand want he means to us when he’s on the floor. People don’t want to lay the ball up, people just don’t want to go at Rudy.”

4. Two late Nuggets second-guesses

It was 115-113 when Jokić got the ball near the foul line and, as he is known to do, worked his way closer. Rather than unleashing one of his finesse hooks, floaters or jumpers from 12 feet to tie, he saw teammate Christian Braun closer still. His pass brushed against a Minnesota defender, slowing enough for more Wolves help to come and hammer Braun.

Braun, who isn’t a three-time MVP, missed on the first of his two free throws. Denver trailed by one with just 19.1 seconds left.

“I should have definitely took that floater,” Jokić said.

Randle hit two foul shots moments later for a 117-114 lead. When Murray pushed the ball up, he got within 21 feet of the basket before launching a jumper. Had he made it, Denver still would have been down by one point, with 11 seconds left. He missed.

The Nuggets might have played the foul game from there. But a three by Murray could have set up overtime. Either way, “I needed to make the shot for it to go well,” Murray said. “I didn’t make it.”

* * *

Steve Aschburner has written about the NBA since 1980. You can e-mail him here, find his archive here and follow him on X.