The Minnesota Timberwolves won the home court battle, took a 3-1 series lead, but lost their Iron Man. Apart from an injury to the guard Donte DiVincenzo, who had to leave the arena in a wheelchair, there are serious questions about the participation of superstar Anthony Edwards. Losing two players to a non-contact injury is a significant blow, and the head coach reacted emotionally.

Just over a minute into Saturday’s Game 4, DiVincenzo took a deep 3-pointer at the 10:44 mark. He tried to chase the rebound and planted with his right foot, then immediately fell to the hardwood, grabbing at his heel. Something was wrong, and the veteran guard quickly signaled for the training staff. He needed some help to get off the court, and moments later, the Timberwolves ruled DiVincenzo out of the game with a lower leg injury.

After the game, Minnesota confirmed that DiVincenzo suffered a torn right Achilles tendon. He started and played all 82 games for the first time in his career. His 30.4 minutes per game were also a career high. That’s why Chris Finch called him the heart and soul of the team. “Completely devastating for Donte,” the Timberwolves coach told reporters after the game. “He had been playing so well. He had such a great season; he’s the heart and soul of so many things that we do. You could just see the look in his eye when it happened, you kind of just knew. We’ll love him and we’ll be there for him.”

His effectiveness in the series was evident when he averaged 13.4 points, 5.0 rebounds, and 5.0 assists through the first three games of the series. In fact, Donte DiVincenzo also proved his worth with 2.3 steals per game in the Round 1 battle against the Nuggets while converting 11 of 22 from behind the arc. Unfortunately for him, it’s the second time in his career that his postseason run came to an end due to an injury.

In 2021, the then Milwaukee Bucks’ DiVincenzo suffered a torn ligament in his left ankle, causing him to miss the remainder of the playoffs. It was the same year when Giannis Antetokounmpo led the Bucks to the title. Although Donte did not play further part after Round 1, he still received the ring for his contributions in the regular and postseason games. He would be cheering the Wolves now from the sidelines as they look to close this series in Game 5. But it won’t be easy without their superstar Ant.

After Donte DiVincenzo, even Edwards suffered an injury

Edwards missed 11 of the Wolves’ 14 final games with a “runner’s knee” injury in his right knee, and he is dealing with an injury to his opposite knee. The 24-year-old had been questionable before every game in this series, yet continued to produce results. In Game 3, things took a turn for the worse when he played just 24 minutes as he was struggling with foul trouble throughout the night. Tonight, the injury problem for Ant-Man became more serious.

Late in the first half, Edwards’ left knee appeared to buckle as he landed after contesting a layup late in the second quarter. He was helped to the locker room, and the Timberwolves ruled him out for the rest of the game with a left knee injury. ESPN’s Shams Charania confirmed, “Anthony Edwards is set to undergo tests on his injured left knee. He had been playing through a runner’s knee in his other knee. The Timberwolves’ starting guards sustain injuries in the first half tonight in Game 4 against Denver.”

Head coach Finch in the post-game just said,” Nothing definitive.” Meaning the injury was serious. “Losing those two guys is really tough, tough emotionally for our guys,” Finch also added. Sports medicine doctor Brian Sutterer noted that there’s a chance this is a severe injury, such as an ACL and PCL tear, but also mentioned it’s always difficult to evaluate how severe hyperextensions are. The Wolves will hope that after Donte DiVincenzo’s season-ending injury, they at least have Edwards back in some capacity.