Minnesota Timberwolves head coach Chris Finch outlined a physical strategy to stop Denver Nuggets star Nikola Jokic in their playoff series. Finch said the plan involves fighting Jokic on every single possession down the court. This approach aims to replicate tactics used by other teams against the MVP.
Finch explicitly described the required defensive effort. He said it comes down to the ability to be physical and fight him. The coach emphasized doing it every time down the floor.
This strategy resembles the Oklahoma City Thunder’s method with Alex Caruso. Caruso acted like a fronting double-team on Jokic repeatedly. The Timberwolves hope this physical plan will succeed where their regular season defense failed.
Jokic dominated Minnesota during the regular season. He averaged 38.3 points, 15.0 rebounds, and 11.3 assists against them. The Timberwolves must change their approach to contain these numbers.
Analyst Brian Windhorst discussed a secondary strategy on his podcast. He said the Timberwolves will try to force Jokic into a score-first mode. The goal is to cut down his high assist totals.
Windhorst pointed to the 2023-24 playoffs for evidence. He noted Jokic had only 2 and 7 assists in critical losses. Forcing Jokic to score from beyond the arc proved effective in those games.
The Timberwolves could not replicate that success this regular season. Personnel differences are a factor, as Julius Randle is not Karl-Anthony Towns. Randle’s defensive rating was 113.1, while Towns’ was 109.1 in 2023-24.
The strategy makes some sense given Denver’s supporting cast. Jokic’s teammates form the league’s best three-point shooting team. They shot 39.6% from three-point range this season.
Jokic has faced physical play all season from various opponents. He often encounters a fronting guard 20 feet from the basket. This physical play would likely be called a foul closer to the hoop.
For an unknown reason, Jokic is not getting those foul calls. Opposing teams are exploiting this lack of whistles. Nuggets coach David Adelman must find a combination to counter this.
