(Photo by Matthew Stockman/Getty Images)
Coming into the second round of the NBA playoffs, the defending NBA champion Denver Nuggets appeared to be firing on all cylinders after beating LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers in five games in the first round.
However, the competition has gotten much tougher in the second round for the Nuggets, with Denver contending with the up-and-coming Minnesota Timberwolves, who have arguably the league’s best defense and are led by promising young star Anthony Edwards.
The Nuggets were expected to take advantage of the Timberwolves’ inexperience in the postseason in the second round and advance to the Western Conference Finals in five or six games.
So far, that hasn’t been the case, with Minnesota looking like the far better team in this playoff series, with Edwards and company sporting a 2-0 series lead ahead of Game 3 at the Target Center in Minneapolis.
According to Tim Bontemps of ESPN, only five teams in NBA history have been able to come back from a 2-0 deficit after dropping the first two games on their home floor.
Per the great @StatsWilliams:
Five teams have ever come back to win a series in the position Denver is now in — having lost the first two at home:
1969 — Lakers vs Warriors
1994 — Rockets vs Suns
2005 — Mavs vs Rockets
2017 — Celtics vs Bulls
2021 — Clippers vs Mavs
— Tim Bontemps (@TimBontemps) May 7, 2024
With the way the Nuggets have played over the last few years, it’s hard to count them out of any situation where they face long odds, as this team is about as well put together and resilient as any team in the league right now.
However, the Timberwolves have proven they can play with the defending champions and might be the better team right now, as it could very well be Minnesota’s time to shine with Edwards leading the charge.
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