Minnesota Timberwolves head coach Chris Finch pointed to repeated mistakes in execution after a 125-113 loss to the Denver Nuggets in Game 5 at Ball Arena on Monday night, highlighting turnovers and decision-making as key issues.
“Yeah, just kind of silly, playing in a crowd. Not handling the physicality well, just trying to plow through it,” Finch said. “Just a lot of silly forced plays by guys trying to make something out of nothing.”
Finch dismissed the idea that his team lacked urgency despite falling into a deep hole early in the game. “No, I didn’t feel a lack of urgency. We started the game a beat slow, but I didn’t think there was a lack of urgency,” he said.
He emphasized that Minnesota’s issues were more about execution than effort, especially in key moments. “I didn’t like our decision-making in the paint. The decision-making in and around the rim was not good for the most part,” Finch said. “Sometimes you got to finish better and sometimes you got to make the play that’s there.”
Finch also addressed Denver’s defensive pressure and how it disrupted Minnesota’s offensive rhythm. “They were more physical. They put two on the ball against the same guys they’ve been doing, put two on I.O. for the first time,” he said. “Their physicality was certainly key to that.”
Turnovers were a major factor, with Denver scoring heavily in transition. “They had 23 fast break points. A lot of them were just turnover led by us,” Finch said. “Defensively there were a lot of game plan mistakes early.”
On Jaden McDaniels’ early foul trouble, Finch pointed to how quickly the game shifted. “His second foul was ridiculous,” he said. “I thought Jaden had a clear line to the basket and Johnson came over. That was a tough start more than anything else.”
With Anthony Edwards and Donte DiVincenzo unavailable, Finch explained the challenge of managing rotations. “We knew coming in that we would have to be able to go whatever way we thought. We didn’t have anything particularly set,” he said. “Different lineups at certain times looked good and the same lineup didn’t perform.”
Finch added that Denver’s interior focus altered Minnesota’s usual strengths. “We didn’t really do a good job in and around the paint with our decision-making,” he said.
He also explained his late-game rotation choices involving Mike Conley. “It was just trying to shake up the lineup. They were on a little bit of a run,” Finch said. “There’s nothing really with Mike. I was just trying things at that point.”
Finch highlighted Terrence Shannon Jr.’s offensive impact while noting defensive issues. “Really good offensively,” he said. “Defensively, his first shift was full of a lot of game plan mistakes.”
Looking ahead, Finch stressed that the solution starts with simplicity and cleaner reads. “We got to start by getting back to making the right play that’s in front of us,” he said. “I don’t think we did that well tonight, and it started from the jump.”
