Wolves Aim to Tighten Defense as Playoff Push Begins

Minnesota entered the All-Star break winning seven of its final 10 games before the nine-day break. They enter Friday's game against the Dallas Mavericks in sixth place in the West, a game back of the Rockets and Nuggets for third and fourth place, respectively. San Antonio has a big five-and-a-half game lead on the Wolves in second, while Minnesota sits eight back of the Thunder for first place in the conference

While the top two spots in the conference may be a far distance off at this point, Minnesota is still within reach of securing a home-court advantage in the first round as the focus of the NBA's season now shifts to gearing up for the playoffs. Finch noted the importance of securing a higher seeding as the team looks for their third-straight deep playoff run this spring.

"We're not afraid to go anywhere or play anybody, but obviously you want to give yourselves the best chance," said Finch. "We've got some ground to cover, and obviously we all have to play each other."

Finch will also be focused on the continued meshing in of new guard Ayo Dosunmu, whom the team acquired at the trade deadline. Dosunmu made an impact during his first three games in a Timberwolves jersey, averaging 14.7 points, 2.7 assists, and 1.7 steals while averaging 28 minutes of game time. Dosunmu's pace was a new wrinkle for the Wolves in the three games he played before the All-Star break. On what Finch envisions for Dosunmu's role, as well as Bones Hyland's, for the important stretch run, he notes, "everything is on the table."

"We've got some things to work through," said Finch. "Those two guys, Ayo and Bones, have been great, no doubt about it. They're a nice little combination, too. So, we'll just kind of take it day by day as we move forward. So, don't have anything pre-scripted right now."

On if that means picking up the pace for a Wolves team that ranks 10th in pace of play, Finch said that's been a focus for the team this season and something Ayo and Bones will certainly help with.

"I think those guys play a little faster in general," continued Finch. "I think that's kind of been a byproduct of their partnership. Better defensively has created more fastbreak opportunities. Pace has been one of our points of emphasis all season. So far, we've really done a good job, I think. We just have to maintain it in our half-court decision-making, more than running in transition."

Finch noted that, with the return of Terrence Shannon Jr. from injury and the nine-day layoff, the Timberwolves enter the final stretch of the season "the healthiest that we've been in a long time." Minnesota will certainly need that depth as it looks to close the gap to the teams above them and claim a top seed in the Western Conference playoffs. The final stretch begins Friday night at Target Center against the Mavericks, with tip-off set for 6:30 p.m. CT.