MINNESOTA TIMBERWOLVES 105, PHOENIX SUNS 93
April 23, 2024
TIMBERWOLVES NOTES
Player Notes
• Jaden McDaniels led the way for the Timberwolves tonight with a Playoff career-high 25 points on 10-of-17 shooting, including 2-of-4 from deep and eight rebounds. Tonight marks his second career 20+ point Playoff game and his first 20+ point/5+ rebound game of his career.
• McDaniels scored 12 of his 18 points in the first half, marking the third time he has scored 10+ points in a single half of a Playoff game, two points shy of tying a career-high (14 points: April 29, 2022, vs. Memphis; 2nd half).
• McDaniels (23 years, 207 days) becomes the third youngest player in franchise history to score 25+ points in a Playoff game. Only Stephon Marbury and Anthony Edwards were younger when scoring 25+ points in a Playoff game for the Timberwolves.
• Rudy Gobert finished the night with 18 points on 6-of-8 shooting, including 6-of-7 from the free throw line, a team-high nine rebounds and a game-high-tying three steals. Tonight marked the 11th Playoff game of his career scoring 18+ points and his second such game as a member of the Timberwolves.
• Tonight marked Gobert’s first career Playoff game with 15+ points/5+ rebounds/3+ steals while shooting 75.0%+ from the field. He becomes just the 42nd player in NBA Playoff history to record such a game (since 1973-74) and the first player in Timberwolves franchise history to record such a game.
• Mike Conley finished the night with 18 points on 7-of-13 shooting, including 3-of-6 from three, four rebounds, four assists and two steals. Tonight marked his 42nd career Playoff game with 15+ points and his second such game as a member of the Timberwolves. Tonight also marked his seventh career playoff game with 15+ points and 2+ steals while shooting 50.0%+ from both the field and from three. Conley becomes just the 15th player in NBA Playoff history aged 36 or older to record such a game (since 1973-74).
• Conley scored 14 of his 18 points in the first half, including 12 points in the second quarter, the sixth time in his career Conley scored 12+ points in a single quarter in a Playoff game and the most since scoring 12 points against the Dallas Mavericks on April 21, 2022 (2nd quarter).
• Anthony Edwards added 15 points, five rebounds, a game-high eight assists and a game-high-tying and Playoff career-high-tying three steals, marking his fifth consecutive and sixth career Playoff game with 15+ points/5+ rebounds/5+ assists, all but one of which have come with 2+ steals. Edwards ties Kevin Garnett for the most consecutive 15+ point/5+ rebound/5+ assist Playoff games in franchise history.
• Nickeil Alexander-Walker ended the night with 10 points and a Playoff career-high five assists in 30:57 minutes of action off the bench. Tonight marks his second consecutive Playoff game with 10+ points off the bench, he becomes the 10th player in franchise history to record consecutive 10+ point games off the bench in a single Playoff season.
Team Notes
• In winning Game 2 tonight, Minnesota has now won the first two games of a Playoff series for the second time in franchise history (Against Denver in 2003-04).
• Per STATS Perform, through the first two games of the series, the Wolves have outscored the Suns by 37 points. Since the 2020 Playoffs, the only other team to be +37 or better through two playoff games was the eventual NBA Champion Denver Nuggets last season at +38.
• With all Timberwolves’ starters scoring 10+ points, tonight marked the seventh Playoff game in franchise history that all five starters scored 10+ points and the first such Playoff game with all five starters also tallying at least one steal.
• Minnesota forced Phoenix into 20 turnovers which resulted in 31 points for the Wolves. Tonight marks a franchise record for forced turnovers and points off turnovers. With the Wolves outscoring the Suns in points off turnovers 31-2, the +29 differential tonight tied the largest margin by any NBA team in a playoff game since 1997-98. Denver was +29 (41-12) at New Orleans on April 27, 2009.
• Led by Edwards and Gobert, who each had three steals, the Timberwolves tallied 11 steals in tonight’s victory, marking the 12th time in franchise history they have collected 10+ steals in a Playoff game and first time doing so since April 21, 2022, vs. Memphis. Minnesota’s Playoff franchise record for steals in a game is 12 (3X; MR: April 29, 2022, vs. Memphis).
• The Wolves finished the night going 26-of-30 (86.7%) from the free throw line, the ninth time in franchise history making 25+ free throws in a Playoff game and the ninth time in franchise history shooting 30+ free throws in a Playoff game.
(info courtesy of Wolves)
