Mitch Johnson makes several critical mistakes Spurs struggled to recover from

This game was there to be won for San Antonio, but this was the first time the Spurs looked their age. To be fair to the players, they went from a fairly easy series against the Portland Trail Blazers to a six-day hiatus, followed by an immediate uptick to real playoff intensity. That grace extends to Mitch Johnson as well, but we have to call a spade a spade and acknowledge he had several missteps.

Mitch Johnson must manage his challenges and timeouts better

Halfway through the first quarter, Stephon Castle was called for a questionable foul. The sophomore star then immediately called for Coach Johnson to challenge the ruling, Mitch gave in, and they lost. There are times when you want to show players that you trust them, but as the final decision-makers, coaches are supposed to know when it's simply not worth it.

That was the only foul last season's Rookie of the Year had in the opening period. You only get one chance to lose a challenge, and you lose it. Mitch could have saved Steph from the fifth foul call he received in the fourth quarter in a fight for positioning with Julius Randle. It was one of the most egregious fouls you'll see, considering the Timberwolves forward pushed Castle over with two hands.

Coach Johnson also could have used that challenge to save Victor Wembanyama from a bad offensive charge call that, on a second look, was obviously a blocking foul. You can't see around corners, so you don't know for sure that you'll need your challenges later, but it's precisely for this reason that coaches should be cautious about how they use them. You may need it later.

As far as the final possession goes, the Spurs could have been better off calling a timeout after grabbing the last defensive rebound. The idea behind going quickly usually stems from a desire to attack a defense before it gets set. Sometimes it works, and sometimes it doesn't.

There were almost eight seconds on the clock when Dylan Harper grabbed the rebound. In a two-point game, the Silver and Black would have had several scoring strategies available had they taken a beat. Getting looks wasn't the problem most of the night. It was the making shots part and the settling for too many threes that got them in trouble.

They ended up with a Julian Champagnie stepback three-pointer. He can hit that shot. But, despite what the players said after the game, it's probably not the best look at that moment. It still falls in a gray area, though, so live with that one.

Wembanyama must get easier touches

The Alien was as generational on defense as ever, but his successes were partially offset by his atrocious offensive performance. 5/17 is bad enough. His stubbornness is worse, and a large part of that is on the coach. Wemby was 0/8 from three. We know he can burn hot or go freezing cold from beyond the arc, but one of the most impressive parts of his season was his ability to adapt.

There wasn't enough adaptation in Game 1. The Timberwolves get some credit for their defensive strategy, but the Spurs let them off the hook by not putting more pressure on the paint. The Defensive Player of the Year had a similar struggle from deep in the first half of Game 4 of the first round. He dominated the inside in the second half as San Antonio changed their approach to getting him going.

There should have been a similar shift against Minnesota, and there was a small one, but it wasn't aggressive enough. He needs to get more touches on the inside so he doesn't have to work as hard for everything.

The 7'4" superstar only shot two free throws the entire night. There just wasn't enough force from the home team, and some of that may be attributed to the 16 straight minutes Wembanyama played to end the game.

Fortunately, this team has a strong foundation of unity and toughness. They've bounced back from tough losses all season. Coaches hold each other accountable just as much as they do the players. That standard should lead to a revenge game Spurs fans will be proud of.

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