12 hours ago
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DETROIT — A significant portion of the Knicks’ soul has already made its reservations for the next round of the playoffs — and were able to do it in five games, unlike the teammates they left behind. And they did it in the belly of the beast — at Los Angeles, against a Luka/LeBron combo that had already blocked out most of May for work purposes.
Most stunning: It wasn’t even that close. The Minnesota Timberwolves outplayed the Lakers consistently all across the playoffs. And while Anthony Edwards is their leader and their best player, even Edwards had to concede that it was that pair of old Knicks who helped push them into the NBA’s Elite Eight, opponent to be determined by the Rockets/Nuggets outcome.
And one of the first things Edwards did was offer formal thanks to his teammates.
“When Julius and Donte came back (after extended stays on the injury report), it changed everything, our whole demeanor changed,” Edwards said after the Timberwolves closed out the Lakers with a decisive 103-96 win Wednesday night at Crypto.com Arena. “We had a team meeting with [Minnesota head coach Chris Finch] and the coaches and they got on us, and it felt like everybody responded the right way. Everyone became a grown man.”
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