Minnesota head coach Chris Finch suffered a freak injury in the Timberwolves' sweep over the Suns when Mike Conley accidentally collided with him. Finch was helped off the court. He'll undergo surgery to repair a right patellar tendon on Wednesday, and it's unknown if he'll be on the sideline for Game 1 against the Nuggets on Saturday.
You very rarely see head coaches get hurt, especially to that extent. Strangely enough, the trend continued in New York Knicks-Sixers Game 5 at MSG, but luckily, Nick Nurse didn't suffer a severe injury.
SNY's Ian Begley reported that Nurse hurt his finger when he "slammed his hand in frustration" because of a call. He couldn't draw up plays in the second half, but that didn't matter. Tyrese Maxey took matters into his own hands with an incredible 46-point performance that included scoring seven points in the last 30 seconds of regulation.
SNY sources: Sixers coach Nick Nurse injured his finger when he slammed his hand in frustration on a call during Sixers’ Game 5 win at MSG. Unclear if it is a break or sprain. Nurse couldn’t draw plays up in the second half because he couldn’t grip a marker.
— Ian Begley (@IanBegley) May 1, 2024
Nick Nurse lets frustration get the best of him in Game 5 win over Knicks
Chances are that Nurse cares more about the win than he does his hand. In his first season as head coach of the Sixers, his team is on the cusp of being a first-round exit. Philadelphia must win the next two games to advance to the second round.
No, Tom Thibodeau doesn't need to get injured for New York to win Game 6. He's likely way more frustrated about the loss than Nurse was about whatever call he was mad about. Not only did the Knicks fail to close the series at home, but failed to secure a few extra much-needed rest days.
Now, New York will have to travel to Philadelphia for Game 6. If the Knicks play like they did in Game 4 at Wells Fargo Center, they'll advance to the second round. Maybe Tuesday's loss will give New York extra fuel. If losing that way doesn't, nothing will.