The Minnesota Timberwolves have been a pretty big surprise this NBA season. Despite having to win two play-in tournament games to make last season’s playoffs, only to get defeated in the first round in five games by the Denver Nuggets, they have blossomed lately.
On Monday, they claimed a big 121-100 win over a red-hot Los Angeles Clippers squad. The Clippers had won 10 of their previous 12 games, and they had one of the league’s best offenses during that span.
Minnesota center Rudy Gobert, who had 17 points, 10 rebounds, and four blocked shots on Monday, knew that even though his team won easily, the Clippers are still a major threat. He praised James Harden, whom the Clippers traded for early in the season, for impacting them.
In Monday’s game, Minnesota held L.A. to 40.5 percent field-goal shooting while Harden shot just 5-of-13. But on the season, Harden is averaging 17.5 points and 8.4 assists a game while shooting 42.1 percent from 3-point range, which is a career-high.
NBA NEWS & RUMORS: Rudy Gobert, Minnesota Timberwolves, James Harden, Los Angeles Clippers Updates
The Clippers got back on track on Wednesday by getting past the surging Golden State Warriors 130-125, and Harden led them in scoring with 26 efficient points while also notching eight rebounds and seven assists.
They have risen to third place in the Western Conference with a 36-17 record, and many people feel that if they’re not the favorites to reach the NBA Finals, they’re at least co-favorites.
However, there is the specter of the Clippers’ past postseason failures, as well as those of Harden’s. he has a history of playing poorly in decisive playoff games, such as when he went a combined 7-of-27 in the last two games of last season’s Eastern Conference semifinals. His Philadelphia 76ers held a 3-2 series lead over the Boston Celtics, but they lost those two contests and went home for the summer empty-handed.
NBA NEWS & RUMORS: Rudy Gobert, Minnesota Timberwolves, James Harden, Los Angeles Clippers Updates
Meanwhile, Minnesota has the best record in the West at 38-16. But the Clippers are just 1.5 games behind it, and the two games will play each other twice more in just the next month.
