Mike Conley officially returning for must-win Game 6 against Nuggets

Timberwolves starting point guard Mike Conley has been officially given the green light to play in a critical Game 6 of Minnesota’s second-round matchup against the Nuggets on Thursday night, per Chris Hine of The Star Tribune.

Hine reports that Timberwolves head coach Chris Finch revealed the news pregame. The one-time All-Star sat out Game 5 of the ongoing Western Conference second-round playoff series with a right soleus strain and had been previously considered questionable for Game 6.

“He’s in,” Finch said, tweets Dave McMenamin of ESPN.

Conley has served as something of a coach on the floor for the Timberwolves, who started off the series with two stunning road victories against the defending champs in Denver. 

The Nuggets, propelled by three-time MVP Nikola Jokic, roared back, winning the last three games of the series. Denver leads the series 3-2. The Timberwolves will at least be playing on their home turf for Thursday’s must-win bout.

Through his eight healthy playoff games so far, Conley, 36, is averaging 11.3 points on .400/.375/.846 shooting splits, 7.0 assists, 3.8 boards and 1.1 swipes a night.