Amid one of their most memorable playoff runs in franchise history, the Minnesota Timberwolves have taken the NBA by storm.If a first-round sweep of Kevin Durant, Devin Booker, Bradley Beal and the Phoenix Suns didn’t cement Minnesota as a legitimate contender, ousting the defending champion Denver Nuggets in Game 7 of a Western Conference semifinal series certainly did.Led by star guard Anthony Edwards, the Timberwolves punched their ticket to the conference finals for the first time since 2004, but this feel-good story has reached its final chapter.Minnesota finds itself up against the Dallas Mavericks, and it has its hands full with one of, if not the, best backcourts in the league in Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving.And there’s no chance that duo lets Dallas lose this series.Doncic and Irving took over in Game 1, going off for 33 and 30 points, respectively. Doncic also had six rebounds and eight assists on his ledger as the Mavericks escaped Minneapolis with a 108-105 victory.Just two years ago, the Mavericks reached this stage of the postseason, but they were blitzed by the Golden State Warriors and came up three wins short of the Finals.That Dallas team had virtually no experience when it came to making a deep playoff run, as it went into the Western Conference finals on the heels of back-to-back first-round exits following a three-year postseason drought.Sound familiar? It should.Minnesota has followed an identical course, missing the playoffs three years in a row (2019-21), then getting bounced in the first round in each of the past two seasons ahead of a trip to the conference finals. Trippy stuff, right?Point is, Edwards and the Timberwolves aren’t quite ready for a series where the lights are this bright — yet. Their time will come, and it will likely come soon, but a little bit of postseason heartbreak is going to be standing in the way.That probably isn’t what veteran Minnesota guard Mike Conley wants to hear given his agonizing track record in the playoffs, but it’s the truth.It also might be time to stop jumping the gun and acting like Edwards is the second coming of Michael Jordan. Listen, he still very well may be, but we certainly aren’t going to find out here in 2024.Edwards has started to falter as the stakes continue to rise. In Game 7 against the Nuggets and Game 1 against the Mavericks, he has combined for 35 points on 12-of-40 shooting (30 percent).Don’t let those lackluster performances take away from the incredible postseason that Edwards has had, but also don’t turn a blind eye to the fact that maybe the 22-year-old isn’t at a point where he can lead a team to a title.Still, Edwards believes Minnesota controls its destiny.“We came out flat (in Game 1),” Edwards said. “We found our energy, then we went back to being flat. So, I think it was just on us. Everything was on us.”Maybe the Timberwolves do go out and flip a switch in Game 2 to even the series at 1-1. But even then, we’re still calling this Dallas’ series to lose.With Irving, the Mavericks finally have the veteran leadership they needed to get over the hump, and hey, Doncic isn’t a bad go-to option either. Dallas spent its time going through trials and tribulations during the playoffs, and now it’s time for Minnesota to pay its dues.
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Cadiz were 0-2 down at home against Barcelona with around five minutes of the match left to play when a medical emergency broke in the stands.
Goalkeeper Jeremias Conan Ledesma used his pace to help the medical team by bringing a defibrillator they obviously needed to save the life of a fan.
El arquero del Cadiz, Conan Ledesma corrió por un desfribilador, ya que un aficionado en el partido sufrió un ataque.
De momento el partido se encuentra pausado.
— ESPN Deportes (@ESPNDeportes)
…
Market: AC Milan win
Odds:
Hoping to briefly reclaim their spot in the top-six, a resurging AC Milan will make the trip to the Stadio Mario Rigamonti on Friday night.
Starting with the hosts, while Brescia may have managed to scrap a 2-2 draw off of fellow strugglers Cagliari last weekend, it does no cover what has been a growing rut for Eugenio Corini s men. Still sat in the drop zone and without a win to their name over the past five weeks, the Serie A returners also have a reputation for their recent struggles on home soil. Including being hit with a 2-0 defeat against Sassuolo at the Stadio Mario Rigamonti last month, Friday s hosts have managed to record just a single Serie A victory in front of their own supporters and it should also be noted that when Br…
Serie A outfit Bari claim they have reached an agreement with Scottish giants Celtic regarding Italian midfielder Massimo Donati.
The Italian midfielder has spent the last two years at Parkhead, but now looks set to head back to his homeland.
Donati began his career at Atalanta, before moving on to AC Milan in 2001, and struggled to make an impact at the Giuseppe Meazza, though, and was often sent out on loan, taking in spells at Parma, Torino, Sampdoria, Messina and back at Atalanta.
The 28-year-old then moved to Scotland in 2007 and helped Celtic to the SPL title in his first season at Parkhead.
Donati soon fell out of favour under Gordon Strachan, though, and was tipped to be on the move during the 2009 January transfer window.
He ultimately r…
Swansea City manager Michael Laudrup believes his side s Premier League encounter against Stoke City has taken on must-win status.
The Liberty Stadium club conceded an injury-time equaliser in their 1-1 UEFA Europa League draw at Kuban Krasnodar on Thursday, and have won just one of their last five fixtures in the English top flight a run that includes last Sunday s 1-0 defeat to fierce rivals Cardiff City.
And, with Swansea having won both home fixtures against Stoke since their promotion in 2011, Laudrup knows his side need a positive result again this time around.
The game on Thursday was the first game after the derby so that was always going to be special, he told The Daily Mail.
But Sunday is the next game in the Premier League. So a combination of that and…
Mattia Perin has acknowledged trying to emulate Gianluigi Buffon s success at Juventus might be an impossible challenge.
Iconic goalkeeper Buffon brought an end to his illustrious 17-year stay at Juve, which included nine Serie A titles and four domestic doubles, when his contract expired following the 2017-18 season.
The 40-year-old will continue his career at Paris Saint-Germain, where he has signed for the upcoming campaign with an option to extend for another.
When asked if Buffon s legacy in Turin weighed on him following his €12million switch from Genoa, Italy international Perin said: To emulate what Gigi did will be difficult, if not impossible.
He is the most gifted goalkeeper in football history. He is the reference point for all goalkeepers.…
Kylian Mbappe has committed his future to Paris Saint-Germain amid links with European champions Real Madrid.
Mbappe won the FIFA Young Player award for his performances at Russia 2018 after helping France claim the World Cup on Sunday.
The 19-year-old forward scored in France s 4-2 victory over Croatia in Moscow as he took his tournament tally to four goals.
Mbappe – who completed a permanent transfer to Ligue 1 champions PSG from French rivals Monaco during the off-season having spent last term on loan in Paris – has no plans to leave the capital as Madrid attempt to replace Juventus-bound Cristiano Ronaldo.
MY LOVE
— Kylian Mbappé (@KMbappe)
I will stay with PSG, continuing on my path wi…
Swede Lars Lagerback, has been named as Nigeria s coach on a five-month contract through until the World Cup in South Africa, the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) announced on Saturday.
The 61-year-old was interviewed on Friday and named after a meeting of the NFF board here early Saturday.
He takes over from Shuaibu Amodu, who was sacked after Nigeria lost 1-0 to Ghana in the Africa Cup of Nations semi-finals last month.
Lagerback began work with the Sweden Football Association in 1990, concentrating on the the country s junior teams.
In 1996, he took over the Sweden B team and stayed there until 1998 when Tommy Soderberg took him on as assistant coach for Sweden.
In 2000, he was promoted to the position of joint-coach, a responsibility he woul…
One bright spark
I am wondering if Sir Alex Ferguson is beginning to feel a little worried about things at Manchester United.
Competitive
His first team is still competitive in the race for the Premier League title although Chelsea are looking good for that. They have lost to Chelsea and Liverpool and been somewhat fortunate to beat Arsenal and Manchester City. Whilst they are clearly still in the top two or three, they do not seem to have compensated for the loss of Cristiano Ronaldo.
In Europe, United have been less than impressive despite qualifying with games to spare. They have looked vulnerable at the back and less decisive in front of goal than they have been for a long time.
Shadow
At the back, Nemanja Vidic looks like a pale shadow…
Marcelino has signed a new three-year deal at Villarreal, the Liga club have confirmed.
The former Spain youth international – whose contract was set to expire at the end of this season – arrived at Villarreal in January 2013 and guided the club to second in the Segunda Division, sealing a return to the top flight.
In their first two campaigns back in La Liga, Villarreal finished sixth on both occasions, securing qualification to the Europa League.
They reached the last 16 in 2014-15 before being knocked out by eventual champions Sevilla.
This season, Marcelino has led the club to fifth in La Liga after 11 matches, while once again they look well placed to reach the knockout stages of the Europa League.
An official presentation to an…
Harry Kane made it eight goals in his last five games as his double helped Tottenham to an impressive 4-1 Premier League victory against London rivals West Ham on Sunday.
Kane s turn and finish put Spurs in front midway through the first half, before Cheikhou Kouyate struck the crossbar for West Ham with an acrobatic effort.
Toby Alderweireld headed in a second and Dele Alli hit the bar in a frantic end to the first half, before Kane netted with a shot from the edge of the box and Kyle Walker produced a fine finish after the break.
Manuel Lanzini contributed an impressive consolation goal for the visitors, before substitute Ryan Mason smashed an effort against the post as a great day for the hosts was almsot rounded off by a fifth goal.
The convincin…