NBA WESTERN CONFERENCE SEMIFINALS: TIMBERWOLVES VS WARRIORS

May 10, 2025

Chris Finch

Minnesota Timberwolves

Game 3 - Pregame Media Conference

Q. They brought in Jackson-Davis, Kuminga a little bit. What did you think of the different look that those guys provided and how are you preparing to see a little more of them tonight?

CHRIS FINCH: I thought those guys brought great energy, great production. Expect to see more of them for sure. But we knew coming into the series that they are liable to just use anybody and everybody at any time.

They have kind of been doing it all season, obviously, once they got Jimmy, they settled into a little bit more of a regular rotation but having watched them even through the last series, they were super creative as they always are with everything they do, and so we just we prepared for or need to be almost anybody.

Q. Have you guys been monitoring Ant's ankle since Game 2?

CHRIS FINCH: Yeah.

Q. Do you expect any limitations for him tonight?

CHRIS FINCH: Not that I'm aware of right now. He had a about workout yesterday. Had not really had any ill effects from it. So you know, hopefully it's as close to full go as you can be right now.

Q. Steve Kerr wasn't shy about saying that they are going to have to win the game with defense tonight. Does that affect like the way you approach the game in terms of like the possession game and the not giving them turnovers?

CHRIS FINCH: Sure.

Q. Just basically finding ways to not have that defense beat you?

CHRIS FINCH: Yeah, I think no doubt about it. I mean, they have got a great defense to start with. They have options to even get better defensively with some of their personnel. Coming into the series, we also felt that it was going to be a possession game series, whoever was going to win the possession game was going to win the game most nights, if not every night, because they can turn you over at such a high level and then get out and cash in on that.

So absolutely. We've got to make sure that we are taking care of the ball like we did in Game 2, and you know taking care of the glass. We need to do that a little bit better. Their activity on the glass has been a handful so far.

Q. Early in the season, the team was very streaky and you'd go through stretches of four wins and loss that is seemed to repeat for a while. What was the key for this team to be able to turn the page a little quicker from losses or bad performances as the season went on?

CHRIS FINCH: I just think once we were able to find of figure out who we were and repeat it on a nightly basis, whether we won or lost, we know we could go out and play the same way the next night and find our identity through that. I think that's what carries you, particularly through the regular season is how fast can you form your identity and how often can you play to it. And then you know as a coach, what to expect. I think one of the worst places to be as a coach is not being able to trust who you are every night. I think that will probably happen to us just prior to Christmas.

Q. Steve yesterday ask again today applauded the Timberwolves handling of this fan and said how much he loves Minnesotans and it's sort of one person, not how he thinks of your state or anything.

CHRIS FINCH: Sure.

Q. Anything you'd like to add? He doesn't feel there will be any ill effects with Draymond or anything going forward in the series?

CHRIS FINCH: Obviously there's zero place for any of that in sports and society. I was proud of the way the organization reacted swiftly, and hopefully we can put it behind us. You know, I would echo those thoughts. I mean, Minnesotans are great, warm, welcome people, very open and tolerant. They are diehard sports fans but everything has to be kept within the boundaries of what is acceptable.

Q. Do you feel there's been too many fans sort of crossing the line at times, or the f-yous and all of these things we're hear directed at players, or is that the intense part of the playoffs?

CHRIS FINCH: It's a great question. Certainly a part of the intensity of the playoffs. Just where we are as a society, it feels like everybody feels like they have the right to say whatever the heck whenever they want to regardless of being respectful or whatnot.

You know, I probably have noticed a little bit more loud mouths around the court than in years past. But it's our job as professional athletes to block that out and try to carry forward.

Q. Obviously with Steph out, focus switches a lot to Jimmy. You've seen Playoff Jimmy show up in the past and put up 40, 50-point games. Do you have a contingency if he gets in the mindset of, I'm going to score every single point and starts really getting hot?

CHRIS FINCH: Yeah, we always have different things that we're going to try to do regardless of what's going on in the game. I think I think one thing is we feel fortunate. We have a multitude of guys that can try to take the matchup and maybe over the course of 48 minutes we can kind of wear them down just enough.