For the second year in a row, the Minnesota Timberwolves are in the Western Conference Finals. Last year, they were eliminated in five games by the Dallas Mavericks, who went on to lose to the eventual champion Boston Celtics in the NBA Finals.

Every time the mere thought of attacking the rack crossed Anthony Edwards’ mind in Game 1 of the Western Conference Finals on Tuesday, he saw four Thunder players between himself and the bucket. Oklahoma City simply wasn’t going to make it an option.

It's been a battle as the Denver Nuggets and Oklahoma City Thunder continued to slug it out on the court. However, Sunday's game decided who would go on to face the Minnesota Timberwolves and who would head home.

The Timberwolves are much different than they were last season, and Chris Finch thinks they have gotten worse at one key thing.

Former NBA head coach Michael Malone made a clear statement regarding Shai Gilgeous-Alexander after Tuesday's matchup between the Oklahoma City Thunder and Minnesota Timberwolves.

“Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, he showed why he’s the MVP,” Malone, who will be featured on ESPN throughout the network’s coverage of the series, said after the game. “He took over in the second half. Did so in a very efficient manner, and he put the team on his back.”

The Oklahoma City Thunder went viral for using a Ludacris song during a possession in Game 1 against the Minnesota Timberwolves. During Game 1 between the Oklahoma City Thunder and Minnesota Timberwolves, the crowd at the Paycom Center was singing along to Ludacris in a viral moment.

The Denver Nuggets fired Michael Malone three games before the end of the NBA regular season. He has now joined ESPN in their playoff coverage and called Shai G

The Minnesota Timberwolves wouldn’t be where they are if it weren’t for Julius Randle, whom they acquired last summer from the New York Knicks in exchange for Karl-Anthony Towns.