Chess on a basketball court

Timberwolves vs. Mavericks is high-level basketball.

Good morning. Let’s basketball.

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Fishing for Oysters at Cancale; John Singer Sargent; 1878

The key takeaway from Game 1 of the Western Conference Finals is that either the Mavericks or Timberwolves are fully capable of winning this series and advancing to the NBA Finals. And frankly, with no offense intended to the Boston Celtics, who remain the overall most likely champions, either of these teams can win the championship.

Game 1 was an intense affair — made better, I should note, by the fact that you can hear the crowd intensity on TNT and the broadcast team is providing the sort of breathless tone a game like this requires. But for a brief moment, the margin the entire second half was five points or less. It felt like it. Unlike the teams’ previous series, there were no massive, nearly quarter-spanning swings. Just punch after punch, adjustment after adjustment. It’s high-level basketball chess.

Dallas shot poorly from deep and has room to improve there. Minnesota shot poorly in the paint and has room to improve there. Most of the Mavericks’ defensive gambits — particularly on Anthony Edwards — seem viable. The Timberwolves started blitzing Luka Doncic pick-and-roll action late, and Dallas adjusted by letting Luka cook one-on-one. As has been predicted by many a smart analyst, Jaden McDaniels is an excellent defender who is giving up a ton of strength to Luka. How will Minnesota adjust to that going forward?

Crunch time was really intense.

Underrated huge play: Mike Conley turning it over with just over a minute left, trying to lob it to Rudy Gobert with Edwards open on the wing and Karl-Anthony Towns a pass away. Conley may have had space for a pull-up mid-range jumper too after upfaking Dereck Lively II. Conley usually makes the right play here. It’s a little jarring to see such a critical possession go up in smoke at his hand. Also, it was a great defensive play by Luka.