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The San Antonio Spurs were well on their way to the Western Conference finals in the fourth quarter when Minnesota Timberwolves star Anthony Edwards went down to their bench to briefly offer his congratulations. The young Spurs left no doubt they’re already a serious NBA title contender.
Victor Wembanyama and the Spurs romped past the Timberwolves 139-109 on Friday night in Minneapolis to finish in the second-round series in six games and reach the conference finals for the first time since 2017. Stephon Castle had 32 points and 11 rebounds in another dominant performance from the backcourt.
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The Spurs will face defending champion Oklahoma City in Game 1 on Monday night. The Thunder swept their first two series.
Wembanyama was well guarded by the Wolves in Game 6. He had 19 points, six rebounds and three assists in 27 minutes. But he still served as a constant defensive deterrent in the paint – handling Minnesota’s physical play days after his stunning ejection in Game 4 for elbowing Naz Reid in the face – and he dutifully joined the Spurs in transition whenever they had the opportunity to run.
“I had to make a statement coming back,” Wembanyama told Amazon Prime’s postgame broadcast. “I knew there was going to be a certain narrative, but I felt like if I gave in to the physicality and the dirtiness, that would have helped them, and I knew I couldn’t go over the edge again, so I had to beat them by playing basketball.”
The size, smarts and shooting touch of the Spurs guards were too much for the Wolves, who predictably had their hands full with the 7ft 4in Wembanyama.
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De’Aaron Fox added 21 points and nine assists and rookie Dylan Harper had 15 points off the bench for the Spurs, who set their franchise postseason record for three-pointers made by going 18 for 38.
“I just tip my hat to them,” Edwards said. “They were just the better team.”
The Spurs outscored the Wolves by a whopping 97 points in the series and never once trailed by double digits. The Spurs breezed by the Portland Trail Blazers in five games in the first round.
“Of course we’re confident, but…
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Publish date : 2026-05-16 12:58:00
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