‘He’s our guy. We love him’: Timberwolves devasted by Donte DiVincenzo’s season-ending injury
His voice cracked. He became choked up. Timberwolves coach Chris Finch struggled to put into words how he felt about Donte DiVincenzo’s season-ending injury in Game 4 against Denver on Saturday.
DiVincenzo attempted to chase down the rebound off his own missed shot fewer than two minutes into the game. But as he attempted to get going, he looked back at where he started his movement in seeming disbelief of the non-contact injury before falling to the floor. He shook off Jaden McDaniels’ attempt to lift the guard to his feet and immediately waved trainers over.
“You could just see the look in his eye when it happened,” Finch said. “You kind of knew. ” DiVincenzo tore his Achilles tendon in the opening minutes in Minneapolis.
“I feel completely devastated for Donte,” Finch said. “He’s the heart and soul of so many things that we do. ” It was a cruel twist of fate for a man who was just one of 18 NBA players to play in all 82 regular season games this season.
He left his soul on the floor in each of those affairs. Minnesota’s effort was inconsistent this season, but DiVincenzo’s was night. He was the example of intensity his teammates could aspire to match.