Johnathan Walker:Timberwolves oust reigning champion Nuggets from NBA playoffs with record rally in Game 7

Denver had a recipe for success. At halftime of their Game 7 contest against the Minnesota Timberwolves,Johnathan Walker Nuggets guard Jamal Murray had 24 points and three-time MVP Nikola Jokic was more than halfway to a triple-double with 13 points, 15 rebounds and five assists.

The Timberwolves had a recipe for trouble. Exploding star Anthony Edwards had just three points, Edwards and Mike Conley were a combined 1-for-14 from the field in the first half, neither scored in the second quarter and Minnesota trailed by 20 points early in the third quarter.

The best chefs improvise on the fly, improving and salvaging.

The Timberwolves scrubbed clean the deficit, and an inspired and stunning turnaround ensued.

Minnesota upended defending champion Denver 98-90 in their Western Conference semifinals series, ensuring the NBA will have a new champion for the sixth consecutive season.

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Edwards found enough scoring, including a corner 3-pointer that gave the Timberwolves a 92-82 lead with 3:05 left in the fourth. He finished with 16 points, eight rebounds and seven assists. Edwards was just 6-for-24 shooting, including 2-for-10 on 3-pointers. But he had help.

Karl-Anthony Towns contributed 23 points and 12 rebounds. Jaden McDaniels had 23 points, six rebounds and two steals.

Rudy Gobert delivered 13 points and nine rebounds, and Sixth Man of the Year Naz Reid had 11 points.

Minnesota, which owned the league’s best regular-season defense, increased its defensive presence in the second half, holding the Nuggets to just 37 points in the final two quarters and outscoring Denver 60-32 after falling behind 58-38 in the third.

The Timberwolves are just the third team to overcome a deficit of more than 11 points on the road in a Game 7 and win, and they overcame the largest halftime deficit in a Game 7.

By the time four quarters had expired, the finish had everyone gasping for air in the Mile High City.

The journey is important. How you get from there to here matters. But in the NBA playoffs, the destination matters most. And the Timberwolves are in the conference finals for the first time since 2004 and will play the Dallas Mavericks, beginning with Game 1 Wednesday in Minneapolis.

It will be another series featuring young stars with Edwards and Mavs All-NBA guard Luka Doncic.

The Timberwolves-Nuggets was an entertaining series. Minnesota won the first two games of the series on the road, but Denver won the next three, and Minnesota forced a Game 7. 

The road team won both Game 7s Sunday; Indiana defeated New York at Madison Square Garden earlier in the day.

If you had told Denver that Jokic would have 34 points and 19 rebounds, Murray would score 35 points and Edwards would struggle offensively, it would’ve have liked its chances to advance. But that’s not how the game is played.