歪歪漫画

There comes a point when Timberwolves guard Mike Conley believes his team simply stops thinking and shifts into a gear with a sole purpose: 鈥淲e just do what is necessary at that moment.鈥�

Minnesota entered that mode in the third quarter of its critical Game 3 victory.

The Lakers buried four triples over the final five and a half minutes of the frame, and yet Minnesota鈥檚 lead didn鈥檛 shift an inch in the aggregate. Because everything Los Angeles did via its shotmaking was offset by what the Wolves produced via hustle and grit.

Minnesota produced four buckets over a three-minute span near the end of the third quarter in a stretch that defined who this team is when it鈥檚 at its best.

Three minutes of Timberwolves, described in four plays:

Minnesota led 72-70 with just north of five minutes to play in the third quarter when Jaden McDaniels missed a turnaround, mid-range jumper. But Donte DiVincenzo , who struggled from the field Friday, soared in for a tip-in bucket.

Luka Doncic , who defended McDaniels well on the play, threw his hands in the air at the play鈥檚 conclusion.

With the Wolves up 74-72, Anthony Edwards and McDaniels both missed 3-point tries on a Wolves possession, which seemingly ended with a Luka Doncic defensive rebound.

But rather than retreating on defense, Edwards snuck around the backside to poke the ball away from Doncic. It ricocheted back to the Wolves鈥� star guard, who first retreated to the corner before identifying an open path to the bucket.

He went at Doncic with a head of steam and finished a flush.

Doncic鈥檚 game-winning triple in last year鈥檚 West Finals lives forever in two places: social media and the nightmares of Wolves鈥� fans.

But Gobert exacted a smidge of revenge with Minnesota leading 77-75. He was again isolated against Doncic on the perimeter, and when Doncic went to gather the ball for a jumper, Gobert poked the ball away.

McDaniels scooped up the loose ball and raced down the floor, scoring a bucket while being fouled in transition.

Leading 80-78, Julius Randle鈥檚 3-point attempt misfired and Lakers forward Jarred Vanderbilt scooped up the board.

But Nickeil Alexander-Walker pinned Vanderbilt to the baseline and poked the ball away and collected possession.

He delivered a shovel pass to Randle, who tallied the and-1 finish.

DiVincenzo said it was that stretch of plays that 鈥渃hanged the game鈥� for Minnesota.

鈥淟oose balls, just getting our hands on deflections, getting blocked shots, getting out in transition,鈥� he said. 鈥淎ll those little plays that we鈥檝e made throughout the course of the year for stints. It鈥檚 key for us in the playoffs. That鈥檚 what wins games, and that鈥檚 what won it for us (Friday). 鈥� Those hustle plays, those energy plays give us that edge and get us six, eight points. That鈥檚 the difference-maker.鈥�

Conley described the plays as a combination of high IQ and effort. When they鈥檙e making those efforts and producing something from them, 鈥淚 think that鈥檚 when we鈥檙e at our best.鈥�

They鈥檙e plays of desperation, in all the best ways. The mere thought of losing drives the Wolves to a place of urgency that can often not be matched by the opponent over the course of a contest.

Then they play that way, they eventually will wear you down.

鈥淥ur team is built that way. It鈥檚 a 12-round fight with us every time. It鈥檚 not going to be easy,鈥� Conley said. 鈥淲e鈥檙e going to be physical. We鈥檙e going to throw a bunch of different lineups and a bunch of different bodies at you. That鈥檚 been an advantage for us all season long. Especially now in the playoffs, we want to try to just be the team that wants it just a little bit more on every possession. If we can do that, we can find ways to win.鈥�