How could the Timberwolves survive an extended period of time without Donte DiVincenzo? That’s been a lingering question in recent days after the team announced the wing would be out “indefinitely” with a Grade 3 toe sprain.
The instant answer for many was rookie guard Rob Dillingham.
The No. 8 overall pick from last summer’s NBA Draft was thrust back into the rotation after DiVincenzo’s injury, and has impressed with his offensive acumen.
But another option emerged in Wednesday’s 115-114 win in Dallas — what about Mike Conley?
The 37-year-old guard certainly endured his struggles over the first half of the season. The shots didn’t fall at the same clip and there have been nights where the veteran looks overwhelmed by the opponent’s athleticism. Conley even was removed from the starting lineup in favor of DiVincenzo, though Timberwolves coach Chris Finch has stated that was in an effort to get to get to a few different lineup combinations.
Conley was re-inserted into the starting lineup once DiVincenzo went down. And, on Wednesday, he delivered his best performance of the season.
The floor general finished with 18, points, eight assists and five rebounds and responding well every time Dallas (23-21) tried to target him on the other end. Minnesota won Conley’s 32 minutes by 19 points.
“Conley has played an absolutely fantastic game,” ESPN analyst Jay Bilas noted near the end of the national broadcast. “He’s been terrific on both ends of the floor.”
The defensive piece isn’t always as noticeable, but Finch told reporters it was Conley who played a large role in Minnesota starting to stand up Dallas’ driving attempts in the third quarter, which allowed the Wolves to generate some cushion they badly needed in the end.
“One of the things that’s really underestimated about Mike is how great of a defender he is,” Finch told reporters. “He’s always in the right spot, executes the gameplan, competes on his matchup, anticipates well, all that stuff.”
If Conley can find a rhythm, Minnesota (23-21) would greatly benefit. He’s the type of playmaker and spacer the Wolves desperately need in their continued hunt for offensive consistency. The Wolves are now 19-2 this season in games where they win Conley’s minutes.
“That kind of says it all,” Finch told reporters.
Conley rediscovering a rhythm is especially important in a season where Anthony Edwards continues to struggle to adapt to the additional defensive attention he’s received this season. Wednesday was no different.
Edwards went 6 for 19 from the field against Dallas, while committing three turnovers. That’d usually spell disaster for Minnesota, even against a Dallas team missing five rotational players, including Luka Doncic, Dereck Lively and Klay Thompson.
But Minnesota was carried by Conley and Jaden McDaniels, two guys who’ve been offensive minuses this season, but were anything but that Wednesday. McDaniels finished with a career-high 27 points to go with eight rebounds, three blocked shots and four steals.
Conley buried a pair of free throws in the final 10 seconds to extend Minnesota’s lead to three, and McDaniels hit the freebie that iced it with three seconds to play. Kyrie Irving, who scored 36 points to go with nine assists for Dallas, hit an irrelevant three at the buzzer for the Mavericks. The Wolves were not impressive in closing time Wednesday, as they were again unable to secure important defensive rebounds nor maintain an offensive rhythm. But that didn’t come back to bite them this time.
“We held on. We’ve got to be better at the end of these games, there’s no doubt about it,” Finch said. “It’s a big, huge area of focus for us right now going forward, but we were able to hang on today.”
And, in the process, Minnesota secured the season series with Dallas, which could be a valuable tiebreaker by season’s end.
Leave a Reply