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Jonathan Isaac: A Unicorn on the Defensive End (Part 2)

Houston Rockets (1) vs. Minnesota Timberwolves (8) Preview

The Minnesota Timberwolves limped into the playoffs off beating the Denver Nuggets in a thriller of a knockout game, in front of them the daunting challenge of the Houston Rockets. The Rockets won a league-best 65 games and have the presumptive MVP in James Harden. He had a heck of year scoring 30 points per game and dishing out 8.8 assists. Also a career-high PER of 29.8 and 15.4 win shares and a 10.9 BPM. Those are insane statistics and prove how valuable James has been to the Rockets. His sidekick, in Chris Paul also provided a second ballhandler and playmaker who can defend at an elite level. It gave the Rockets one hall of fame guard always being on the floor. The Rockets looked lethal all along the regular season. How will this series pan out for them?
Before we talk more about the Rockets, let's talk Timberwolves. The Wolves have clinched a playoff birth for the first time in 14 years. It has been 14 years since we have seen them in the playoffs. 14 years ago, there was no iPhone, no Facebook, no Twitter, no Instagram, Bitcoin was not real, George Bush was the President. A lot has changed since then, hasn't it?

The Timberwolves came into the season with much higher expectations. Bringing in Jimmy Butler to team up with young stars Towns and Wiggins, they were supposed to be contenders. The Timberwolves coached by Tom Thibodeau are not a good defensive team. That is a surprise to everyone as, coach Thibs is known for his defensive schemes. This is because their two young stars aren't very good at defense. Towns and Wiggins consistantly under perform on the defensive end at are caught multiple times not showing the needed effort. The Timberwolves finished with the 28th best defensive rating in the entire league. That is straight up horrible. No excuses can justify this stat.

Despite all of this, the Wolves were in a top 4 playoff seed before the injury to Jimmy Butler. Without Butler, the Wolves struggled mightly as he was the leader and the heart and soul of the ball club. The Timberwolves fell through the rankings and were fighting for playoff position. Jimmy cam back for the last four regular season games and helped clinch a playoff spot against Denver by dropping 30. The Wolves did have a underwhelming season, but they have won their championship. They have done something historic in their franchises' history.

The Rockets came into the season as a mid-level contender. No one was sure that the Harden-Paul experiment was going to work out. How would they share the ball? Who would stand in the corner? How does this work? They both have proved everyone wrong leading the Rockets to the league's best record. The Rockets finished the season with the best offensive rating and the 7th best defensive rating. This is the DNA championship teams have.

James Harden is most likely going to win his first ever MVP after his jaw dropping season from dropping Wesley Johnson to getting the first ever 60 point triple double in NBA history. Doing something that has never been done in history is pretty special and can't be understated. The league was put on notice by James proving he is a MVP and can be one of the league's best players. The only thing left to prove for James Harden and even Chris Paul is winning at the highest level. The two of them need to get rid of their playoff reputations and win the all elusive NBA championship.

Regarding this series, it's over for the Wolves. There is no way to sugar coat this. The Wolves just can't match up with the Rockets. The Rockets have too many offensive firepower to lose this series. On top of that the Rockets also have a better defense and are more experienced. There is no way the Rockets lose to this Wolves team. I'll take the Rockets in a easy 5 game gentlemen sweep.

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