Away From TNT Crew, Draymond Green Echoes Charles Barkley’s Emotions as Mavs Embarrass Timberwolves in Game 5

Draymond Green was not with the Inside the NBA team tonight. But that didn’t mean he wasn’t tuned into the Minnesota Timberwolves vs. Dallas Mavericks elimination game. Unfortunately, though, it seems like Green missed a major chunk of the matchup. When he did manage to get his hands on the score, the four-time champion was beyond shocked.

Taking to X, Draymond Green tweeted, “WiFi just came on, on my flight after a while in the air… OUCH!! lol wow.” After the whole trash-talking, promises, and blockbuster performance in Game 4, everybody expected the Wolves to be flying all over the court and not accept defeat easily. To the dismay of the Minneapolis crowd, the Mavericks had a 20-point lead with 4 minutes left in the game and finished with a 124-103 score finally. A 21-point lead!

But that wasn’t the biggest lead. By halftime, the Mavs had created a 29-point gap, with Luka Doncic scoring 20 points in the first half alone. The Dallas superstar finished the night with 36 points, his postseason high. Kyrie Irving also stepped up for a 36-point game tonight on 40% shooting from the three while going 51.9% from the field. The second half saw Minnesota get their affairs in order, kind of. Seeing how far down the scores were, the Wolves regrouped to attack. Only glitch was, so did the Mavericks.

They didn’t defeat the fourth-seeded Clippers and No. 1 OKC Thunder to go home so close to their goal. Karl-Anthony Towns managed to get going, creating a little rim pressure and hitting a trey. Doncic also fell back a little in the third. Nevertheless, as the matchup moved to the final quarter, it was simply about maintaining the lead. The Wolves would hack to cut the lead down to 20, only for the ‘Lone Star State’ to hit a big shot. It went on like this until there were only three minutes left. It looked like Minnesota raised the proverbial white flag when they sent in their bench players on the field. Minnesota was the third seed in the West, and now the Mavs can check them off the list.

 Charles Barkley couldn’t believe the first half of the Timberwolves

“That was embarrassing. I’m embarrassed for these Minnesota fans. … I’m at a loss for words how bad Minnesota looked that first half,” Barkley said, watching the first half of Minnesota floundering. Luka was focused on only one thing and one thing alone. Wrap things up here and go home for a well-deserved rest. The 20 points he scored in the first half happened under 10 minutes! Do we have to say any more?

Even without Doncic in the second quarter, the Mavs never hit the brakes. Walls and roadblocks hit the ‘North Star State’ at every turn. Their baskets in the lane were a tough business, as the Wolves were met with multiple defenders in the lane or at the rim. Dereck Lively, who was back from a neck sprain, had an unfortunate hit to the head from Naz Reid. However, Doncic and Kai kept draining threes to milk the Wolves dry.

The Mavericks were 69-40 at halftime. What was once an energized crowd saw little to no energy as the game progressed. Dallas will get a full week’s rest before meeting the Celtics in the NBA Finals on June 6th. What do you think? Exciting? Electrifying? Undoubtedly! It is, after all, their first appearance since 2011.

Another matter foremost on our minds is about our beloved Inside the NBA crew. While many are sure they are going to be disbanded, Shaq’s confidante and ex-agent, Leonard Armato, thinks otherwise. To learn more about his comments, watch this video.