Wolves rookie Alexey Shved said last week that Barea is always capable of a quick offensive scoring burst. He was alluding to the big fourth quarter against the Thunder, but he said on any given night Barea can go off for six, eight consecutive points and take over a quarter. That was true on Thursday, as Barea scored nine of the Wolves' 12 points over a four-minute span late in the fourth.
"Everybody knows him; he's a very aggressive player and every time he comes," Shved said. "He's really a great player, that's for sure."
Against the Nuggets, Minnesota was in desperate need of a jumpstart late in the contest. The Wolves had trailed by as many as 10, and with Love leaving the game with a finger sprain on his right hand Minnesota was looking for that spark. It came in the form of the Wolves’ back court. In the fourth quarter alone, Barea and Luke Ridnour combined for 21 points on 9-of-11 shooting. Each looked confident within their roles—Ridnour knocking down those mid-range jumpers with that smooth stroke and Barea getting to the hoop while also hitting 2-of-3 from distance. But it was that combination of scoring inside and out as well as dishing off five fourth-quarter assists that kept the Nuggets guessing on what Barea was going to do next. Former Wolves guard Corey Brewer said Barea has the right combination of being quick enough to get to the rim and knows how to score when he gets there. “[Barea] finished the game off for them,” Nuggets guard Andre Miller said. “He made tough plays; he knows how to get into your body. He can make plays around the basket and he did that. He was clutch for them.” Adelman said it was a complete back court effort in those final minutes. “It was amazing,” Adelman said. “JJ was unbelievable. He kept us going around their big guys and getting to the basket, and Luke made a couple and I thought Alexey [Shved] played well the whole game to keep us in it. It’s just one of those games you don’t expect with everything that’s gone on and going on a trip to Utah and Denver and they are rested and we came in and won.” The Wolves are benefiting from Barea’s aggressive play over the past month—particularly while facing some of their toughest challenges. Don’t expect him to change his crafty philosophy. “It’s something I like to do,” Barea said. “Get to the paint and create for myself or create for others. And I think that’s something that has helped me during my career.”