Ant and his little ball buddies.

Nimmi3

Although the long road trip is finally coming to an end, proud of their trio of unicorns, Minnesota has another key player missing in action in the middle of the Jazz's second game due to a head injury, following Gobert's left rib injury. From the Big Three to small ball, it's such a distant and unimaginable journey.

Important offensive statistics:
Turnover rate: 8.6%, ranked 1st in the league
Corner three-point attempts/made rate: 29.7 (ranked 3rd)/39.3% (ranked 5th)
Cutting frequency/scoring rate: 48.7 (ranked 15th)/65.1% (ranked 6th)

Although the long road trip is finally coming to an end, proud of their trio of unicorns, Minnesota has another key player missing in action in the middle of the Jazz's second game due to a head injury. Reid is not only the Wolves' strongest initiator from beyond the arc but also the player with the most varied off-ball attacking abilities. It can be foreseen that Reid's absence will lead to new adjustments in the Wolves' tactics. Sure enough, when they presented Slo-Mo as the No. 5 formation, they emphasized more off-ball movement, added more off-ball screens to amplify the speed threat (also borrowing a tactic commonly used by SGA-Back Screen of the Thunder), and reduced the use of cutting passes. With Conley, Ant, and NAW taking turns as initiators from beyond the arc, combined with Slo-Mo's centralized response, the widened space and decisive shooting increased the chances of success, while turnovers also decreased significantly. The acceleration in the two consecutive games against the Jazz also allowed the Wolves to fully unleash their already high-quality transition attack.

Both the Nuggets and the Jazz have lineups that can be compared to the healthy period of the Wolves. Although their defense is not top-notch, it mainly comes from the decline in fast-break defensive quality. For role players, it is not easy to cut into the paint easily during half-court play — of course, it is another matter for Ant, who can first use his exquisite footwork to deceive the defense and then challenge the basket with his extraordinary ability to hang in the air and core strength. Therefore, the Wolves' offensive area in half-court play focuses on perimeter passing and three-point shooting outside the paint, and the increased threat from the perimeter (Garza) can attract help defenders' attention, thereby freeing up opportunities for players to cut without the ball. Of course, when Ant masters the timing of the skip pass and emphasizes creating more steps to approach the basket to attract help defense and make shots/passes rather than simply committing fouls, it is truly the key to allowing this small ball team to bite the defending champion in a tight game.

Let's talk about Big-Mac, who has been heating up gradually this week. When KAT fell, the author had already mentioned that his offensive skills lacked the ability to make up for the 20 points gap, which would be much more difficult than Reid. The increased usage rate not only exposed his shortcomings from both wings to beyond the arc but also caused even his previously stable corner three-pointers to malfunction. However, Finch did not give up on finding a way for him to find his offensive rhythm — that is, to give him simpler tasks and allow him to be more patient in this five-out defense space where it is difficult to double-team. In the game against the Jazz, you could still see Big-Mac executing screens, with poor passing quality in the end and multiple disruptions to his shots, leaving him feeling dejected. But in the game against the Nuggets, Big-Mac relied more on simple initiations after screens. Taking advantage of the space where the Nuggets switched all screens except for Joker, they allowed Big-Mac to take on one-on-one challenges. The result was that he steadied himself, first backed down firmly to control possession, and then used his advantage in wingspan to take his favorite mid-range jump shot. The confidence-recovered Big-Mac has indeed hit many crucial three-pointers for the Wolves.

Isha000

Players often get injured.

Ritu13

Making key three-pointers also requires luck.

Yamini003

Defense and offense are both necessary.