Keldon Johnson is hitting his stride at the worst-possible time for Wolves

Despite San Antonio Spurs forward Keldon Johnson winning Sixth Man of the Year this season, he's struggled in the playoffs until now. In Game 5 against the Minnesota Timberwolves, Johnson finally broke out, scoring 21 points in 22 minutes.

His effort level helped ratchet up the intensity for the Spurs, keeping them from going stagnant even during tough scoring stretches. Johnson was relentless, attacking the Timberwolves every chance that he got.

That type of intensity was missing from the Spurs with Johnson struggling. Hopefully now he will give San Antonio an extra scoring punch during the remainder of this series and possibly during the Western Conference Finals if they advance.

Keldon Johnson just proved why he is Sixth Man of the Year

Thus far this postseason, Dylan Harper has been San Antonio's best sixth man, but both he and Johnson played extremely well in Game 5. In fact, I'd dare say that was the best game the Silver and Black have played during this playoff run.

In fact, their balanced scoring matches regular season levels with six players scoring at least 12 points. Johnson gave San Antonio a massive boost, attacking in transition and getting to the line five times. That resulted in several Timberwolves players being in foul trouble.

Players such as Harper and De'Aaron Fox joined him in exploiting the Timberwolves by finding gaps in their shoddy zone defense in which to attack.

The Spurs need Keldon Johnson to play well to close out the Wolves

Then there was Victor Wembanyama, who set the tone, helping the Spurs get off to a strong start in their most important game of the season. Still, Johnson deserves a lot of credit.

He has maintained his physicality throughout the series, even when his shot wasn't falling. Now that it is, hopefully he can punish the Timberwolves offensively. At his best, Johnson is relentlessly attacking the basket and finishing with authority.

He is also a hound on the offensive glass, corralling extra possessions for the Spurs as well as hitting open threes. If he can do that in Game 6, then San Antonio has a great chance of eliminating the Wolves in Minnesota.

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