Charlie Walton

1 week ago | zonecoverage.com | Charlie Walton

Even when something good happens for Minnesota, it turns negative. That’s what Mike Breen proclaimed on ESPN late in the first half of Game 5 of the Western Conference Finals. As he did, Alex Caruso egged on a euphoric Paycom Center crowd, as if they needed encouragement to cheer. The Oklahoma City Thunder built a 28-point lead over the Minnesota Timberwolves. Caruso just recorded a steal off an ill-advised pass from Donte DiVincenzo after Anthony Edwards blocked Shai Gilgeous-Alexander.

1 week ago | zonecoverage.com | Charlie Walton

Donte DiVincenzo laced in a corner triple. He was wide-open. It was a practice shot for him. The type of shot that helped him blossom into one of the better role players in the NBA with the New York Knicks in 2023. This three was different, though. It wasn’t a practice shot. DiVincenzo tied the game 79-79 with 4:25 left in the third quarter of a pivotal Game 4. It wasn’t a practice shot because DiVincenzo is shooting 31% from deep in the postseason.

1 week ago | zonecoverage.com | Charlie Walton

It’s challenging to stay present. Be where your feet are, as the cliché goes. Most of us try to focus on that each day, not what may be coming in the near future. The Minnesota Timberwolves walked into Target Center on Saturday for Game 3 knowing how important a win was. They dropped the first two games of the Western Conference Finals on the road against the Oklahoma City Thunder. A loss in Game 3, and the Wolves would have been in a hole that no team in NBA playoff history has overcome.

2 weeks ago | zonecoverage.com | Charlie Walton

Anthony Edwards wasn’t playing Madden in his hotel room, as he typically likes to do in his free time. He wasn’t dropping 50-yard dimes with J.J. McCarthy after the Minnesota Timberwolves dropped Game 1 of the Western Conference Finals 114-88. He was up until 3 AM, watching film on the loss from the team hotel with Wolves assistant coach Chris Hines. The two studied everything the Oklahoma City Thunder did to limit Edwards to 18 points on 5 of 13 from the floor over 37 minutes.

2 weeks ago | zonecoverage.com | Charlie Walton

Nickeil Alexander-Walker tried his best to rally his troops as the third quarter was winding down in Game 1 of the Western Conference Finals. They were men in black, drowning in a ferocious white storm. His cousin, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, just converted an and-one over Anthony Edwards. It was Edwards’ fourth foul of the night. While Alexander-Walker tried to calm his teammates, Edwards smiled in disbelief, not paying attention to any message NAW tried to convey.