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The Minnesota Timberwolves and Los Angeles Clippers kickoff the NBA Play-In Tournament with a head-to-head matchup on Tuesday night in Minnesota. The Timberwolves finished as the 7-seed while LA finished as the 8-seed. Minnesota opens as the favorites but the Clippers could be a sneaky underdog pick. Timberwolves' star Anthony Edwards was asked about the key to holding off the Clippers and taking care of business at home. Edwards gave a very simple, yet honest answer.
“To stop Paul George. If we stop Paul George, we win the game.”
According to Anthony Edwards, the key to winning for Minnesota is to stop Paul George. And that's it.
George is undoubtedly the Clippers brightest star with Kawhi Leonard still injured. But it should be noted that the Clippers stayed afloat even during George's mid-season injury. They went 24-27 without Paul George on the floor this season. So it isn't as if the rest of the team is completely hopeless. Minnesota needs to avoid taking Los Angeles's roster for granted.
George led the team in points per game with 24.3. However, Normal Powell finished with 21.4. Reggie Jackson also finished with over 16 points per game and Marcus Morris Sr. posted an average of over 15 points per contest. Players such as Robert Covington and Ivica Zubac were vital to the Clippers' success as well because of their strong defensive and rebounding prowess.
But Anthony Edwards is correct to an extent. If they can contain Paul George than the Timberwolves chances of winning will greatly increase.
It will be interesting to see how Minnesota's gameplan looks to open the NBA Play-In Tournament. The Clippers will need someone else to step up if George is taken out of the equation.
