The Little Things That Almost Killed the Wolves in Game 2

How many times can a team that is as seasoned as Minnesota, with back-to-back deep playoff runs to the conference, shoot themselves in the foot against a disciplined, championship-pedigree team like the Denver Nuggets?

The answer: Too many times.

Minnesota unraveled multiple times in Monday night's stunning victory in Denver, but escaping with a win required some superhuman performances to overcome all of the boneheaded plays that made the job way more difficult than it had to be. Here are four of the issues that stick out like a sore thumb.

The four-point plays

Death by a million four-point plays? That's what it felt like in the first quarter as the Nuggets converted THREE four-point plays. Jamal Murray had two of them, and Tim Hardaway Jr. had the other. What made it more demoralizing is that they came in the span of four Denver possessions.

With 4:32 left in the first quarter, Murray completed the first four-point play to give Denver a 24-11 lead. Murray did it again the next time down the court, giving Denver a 28-13 lead with 3:57 on the clock. Jokic missed a three on Denver's next possession, but Hardaway had his four-point play with 2:53 left to put the Nuggets ahead 32-18.

Tim Hardaway Jr. hits the 3-pointer And-1, threes straight 3s plus the foul for the Nuggets, after back to back 3s And-1 by Jamal Murray (with replays).

This is wild, lol. 12 Points like that.

Anthony Edwards pleads his case to the referees after the Nuggets' fourth four-point… https://t.co/n8xDWJGw2w pic.twitter.com/WnsoHr8eAl
— MrBuckBuck (@MrBuckBuckNBA) April 21, 2026

Three four-point plays in a couple of weeks would be quite the accomplishment. Three in one game is madness. Three in four possessions is flat-out ridiculous and might never happen again.

Naz Reid guarding Jokic in the third quarter

After Rudy Gobert picked up his fourth foul early in the third quarter, Chris Finch brought Naz Reid off the bench and asked him to go man-to-man with Jokic. As one would expect, Jokic ate him alive, scoring 14 points in the third quarter alone. All the while, former Wolves guard Austin Rivers, now an analyst for NBC's playoff coverage, kept begging Finch to put Julius Randle on Jokic.

Note to Finch: Please only allow Gobert and Randle to guard Jokic. That'll help fans breathe a little bit easier. Everyone knows Jokic is going to get his numbers, but at least with Gobert and Randle, he'll have to work a bit harder.

Kyle Anderson's double disaster

Anderson is supposed to be a level-headed veteran, but after Ayo Dosunmu's layup cut Denver's lead to 88-86 late in the third quarter, he got handsy with Jokic while they jogged down the court after the layup, and the refs whistled him for a foul. That sent Jokic to the line, and he hit a pair of free throws.

The next time down the floor, Anderson, somehow, air-balled a five-foot floater. Brutal, even for a guy who wasn't in the flow of the game, having played only five minutes off the bench.

👌🏽 pic.twitter.com/Ro68gsZ6Ii
— Shabazz 💫 (@ShowCaseShabazz) April 21, 2026

Missed free throws

You aren't going to win many playoff games going 19 of 30 at the free-throw line. Julius Randle was 8 of 10, and Anthony Edwards was 7 of 9 at the stripe, but Donte DiVincenzo (0-2), Rudy Gobert (0-2), Naz Reid (2-4), and Jaden McDaniels (0-1) were a combined 2 for 9 at the line.

Missing that many free throws and still overcoming a 19-point deficit on the road is a miracle.

Ironically, free throws also doomed the Nuggets, as Christian Braun missed one of two free throws when he had a chance to tie the game with under 30 seconds left in the fourth quarter. His miss kept Minnesota ahead 115-114, and Randle made two free throws with 18 seconds left to help secure the win.

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