The Minnesota Timberwolves are off to the second round of the NBA playoffs for the first time in 20 years.
Their first-round sweep of the Phoenix Suns served notice they might be ready to go even deeper.
Anthony Edwards scored 40 points, Karl-Anthony Towns added 28 and the Timberwolves pulled away late to beat the Suns 122-116 on Sunday night and sweep the first-round playoff series.
The victory came after coach Chris Finch left the game late in the fourth after an inadvertent collision with Wolves guard Mike Conley. The team said he had a ruptured patellar tendon in his right knee.
The success for Minnesota has been a long time coming, particularly for Towns, who was selected with the No. 1 overall pick in 2015 and waited nearly a decade to get his first playoff series win. Edwards is in his fourth season after being the No. 1 overall selection in 2020.
The Suns swept the three-game, regular-season series from the Wolves, but Minnesota flipped that script in the postseason by wearing down a Phoenix team that had championship aspirations with their All-Star trio of Kevin Durant, Devin Booker and Bradley Beal.
The 35-year-old Durant — who Edwards said was his favorite player growing up — offered nothing but praise for the young star.
“So impressed with Ant,” Durant said. “My favorite player to watch. Just grown up so much since he came into the league. His love for the game shines bright. That’s one of the reasons I like him the most, because he just loves basketball, he’s grateful to be in this position and he’s taken advantage of every opportunity he’s gotten.