The minnesota timberwolves arrived at Ball Arena with a chance to end their first-round series, but the mood around Game 5 shifted after Anthony Edwards and Donte DiVincenzo were injured in Saturday’s victory. The Wolves still led the best-of-seven series 3-1, yet the night immediately felt heavier, built around absence as much as opportunity.
How did the game open in Denver?
Denver led 34-29 after the first quarter, a small but telling edge in a game the Timberwolves could have closed out. The setting was simple and tense: one team trying to finish the series, the other trying to extend it on its home floor. The minnesota timberwolves had already shown in Game 4 that they could win without two key players, but the first quarter underlined how much harder that path would be.
The broadcast was set for NBC and Peacock, with Noah Eagle on play-by-play. On radio, KFAN and the iHeart app carried the game with Alan Horton and Jim Petersen. Chris Hine, the Timberwolves reporter at the Minnesota Star Tribune, was providing live reports from the game.
Why do the injuries matter so much?
The biggest shift was not tactical but human. Anthony Edwards and Donte DiVincenzo were both lost to injuries in Saturday’s Game 4 victory, leaving the Wolves more than shorthanded. That changed the meaning of Game 5 before the opening tip: it was no longer just about closing out a series, but about doing so without the energy and production of two important guards.
The context around that loss is stark. The Wolves won Game 4 and took a 3-1 lead, but the same win came with the cost of two injuries. The series still sat in their hands, yet the margin for error had narrowed. In the short term, the team could point to Saturday’s result as proof it had enough. In the longer view, the absence of the starting backcourt raised questions about how much more the group could absorb.
What did the team already prove?
Saturday showed that the Timberwolves could challenge Denver even without Edwards and DiVincenzo. That result mattered because it gave the Wolves a live chance to finish the series in Game 5. It also gave the Nuggets a warning that the matchup had not turned on name recognition alone. The Wolves had already demonstrated they had Denver’s number in the series, and they carried that edge into Ball Arena.
Still, the same notes that made Game 4 feel like a statement also made Game 5 feel fragile. The team’s ability to respond in one night did not erase the strain of playing without two key players. The question was no longer whether the Wolves could compete. It was how long they could keep doing it with such a short rotation.
What comes next for Minnesota?
The immediate answer lies in how the Wolves handle a closeout game while short-handed. The series lead remained with Minnesota, and that gave the night its central tension: a chance to finish now, but under less comfortable conditions than anyone would choose. The game was also a reminder that playoff series can change shape quickly, not only through score lines but through injuries that alter a team’s identity.
For the minnesota timberwolves, the challenge was as much about endurance as execution. They had already done the difficult work of building a 3-1 lead. Now they had to decide whether that lead was enough to survive the loss of two key guards in the same stretch, or whether Game 5 would become the first step in a longer and more demanding series.
In a building where Denver led after one quarter, the Wolves’ larger story was still unfinished. The chance to end the series remained real. So did the cost of getting there.
