Many scoffed at the Timberwolves front office for giving Jaden McDaniels a five-year, $136 million contract last October. That kind of money is typically reserved for a 20-points-per-game scorer or an elite sharpshooter, neither of which describes McDaniels, a role player who gives it his all on defense.
But the Timberwolves obviously knew what they were doing.
In Minnesota's two playoff series wins, McDaniels clamped down on gifted scorers such as Devin Booker and Michael Porter Jr., holding them to subpar shooting splits by forcing them into bad shots.
To McDaniels' credit, he's also done his part on offense, blossoming into a reliable 3&D specialist. When the Timberwolves faced elimination in back-to-back games against Denver, McDaniels answered the bell by averaging 22 points and 4.7 rebounds while shooting 73 percent from deep.
McDaniels' teammates realize his value. After the Timberwolves ousted the Nuggets, Anthony Edwards ended his presser by naming McDaniels the team's MVP.
For the first time in his NBA career, Jaden McDaniels has 20+ points in B2B games, and it just so happens to have come in the two biggest games of his life.
— Charlie Walton (@CharlieWaltonMN) May 20, 2024
Must-win Game 6:
• 21 pts (8/10 FG)
Must-win Game 7:
• 23 pts (7/10 FG)
Here was Ant postgame:pic.twitter.com/96eQgTsZsV
McDaniels' two-game stretch also got him into an exclusive club with a certain GOAT.
Jaden McDaniels is the 2nd youngest player in NBA history to have back to back elimination games with:
— StatMamba (@StatMamba) May 20, 2024
20+ PTS
3+ STL & BLK
Only Michael Jordan did it at a younger age. pic.twitter.com/HZGT57a2fZ
As McDaniels continues to wreak havoc on perimeter scorers with his lateral quickness and wingspan, he could be tasked with guarding stars such as Luka Doncic, Kyrie Irving, Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown the rest of the playoffs. There's little reason to believe he won't show up.
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