The NBA’s Western Conference Finals will once again feature the San Antonio Spurs, as they dispatched the Minnesota Timberwolves in a 139-109 blowout in Game 6 on Saturday.
With franchise big Victor Wembanyama held to a subpar performance, fellow lottery pick Stephon Castle spearheaded the Spurs’ offense with 32 points, 11 rebounds, and 6 assists.
“I think our energy and attention to detail has probably been the best it’s been all series, so when we’re playing like that on defense, it makes the offense for us very easy,” Castle said postgame.
Spurs Book Return to Conference Finals
The last time the Spurs reached the conference finals dates back to their 2017 playoff campaign against the Golden State Warriors, where star forward Kawhi Leonard infamously injured his knee in Game 1, which forced him out for the rest of the series—resulting in a sweep for the Dubs.
Nine years later, a fully revamped San Antonio squad marks their way back into the third round, where they are set for a bout with the reigning champions, Oklahoma City Thunder. More than half of the Spurs’ current roster has never made the conference finals until now.
De’Aaron Fox notched 21 points and 9 assists on 80% shooting, while Dylan Harper added 15 markers, 5 rebounds, and 2 assists off the bench.
Despite committing 15 turnovers, the Spurs shot an impressive 55% from the field, and 47% from long range.
Timberwolves Conference Finals Streak Snapped
With the loss, Minnesota’s 2-year streak of making the conference finals has come to an end, bowing to the second-seeded Spurs in six games.
Anthony Edwards paced the Wolves with 24 points, although on an atrocious 34.6% clip. Meanwhile, Terrence Shannon Jr. sparked the team’s bench with 21 points.
Collectively, the shooting slump never seemed to leave Minnesota, as they finished with only 37%. They were also outworked in the rebounding department by a wide margin, 60-29.
The schedule for the Western Conference Finals is yet to be announced.
