2018 NBA Playoffs: Houston Rockets vs. Minnesota Timberwolves preview
3. How do Wiggins and KAT react in first postseason?
It’s not a mystery that NBA players need to dip their toes into the postseason waters to fully grasp the step-up in intensity that is the NBA Playoffs. Kobe Bryant shot four airballs in a game during his rookie year trip to the postseason, for example, so it’s fair to wonder how Karl Anthony-Towns and Andrew Wiggins will handle the pressure of playing in their first playoffs.
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The fact they play on a mostly veteran led team will help them, but it’s still a different animal to play in the postseason. Foul calls are (hopefully) more difficult to come by, so keeping your cool when these types of things go against you is vital, especially when a game against the Rockets can turn into a blowout in a flash if you’€™re not careful.
In this case, Towns and Wiggins are level-headed players that don’€™t seem to get overwhelmed in these situations. They each played some of their best defense all season in the play-in game against Denver, with Wiggins stepping up to hit two free throws to put the game out of reach in overtime.
They could have favorable matchups offensively depending on who Houston chooses to throw at them, which bodes well for them finding success in their debut postseason appearances. But this is the playoffs, and we’€™ve seen much better players struggle in their initial taste of the postseason. How KAT and Wiggins handle this increased pressure will be a telling sign of how competitive Minnesota will be in this series.