The Minnesota Timberwolves are currently preparing for a date with the defending champion Denver Nuggets in the Western Conference semifinals.

What will be the biggest challenge for the Wolves in that series?

Is it the obvious answer in two-time NBA MVP Nikola Jokic? Is it the clutch, frequently-underrated Jamal Murray? It could also be the fact the Nuggets eliminated the Wolves last year to get to the Western Conference semifinals.

All good picks, but the biggest challenge Minnesota will have to deal with is the availability of its head coach Chris Finch.

A sideline collision with Timberwolves guard Mike Conley in the final minutes of a Western Conference first-round sweep of Phoenix led to Finch rupturing his right patellar tendon and requiring surgery.

What now?

The Timberwolves get ready to travel to Denver for the first game of the series on May 4.

When the news of Finch’s surgery broke, I was doubtful he would be in Denver on the sideline to coach Game 1. New information revealed Wednesday, however, was that the team is planning to get Finch in the building for the start of the series against Denver.

Among those plans were seating configurations to allow Finch an appropriate amount of room to safely sit and coach. Another was potentially having Finch in the locker room for pregame and halftime meetings if there’s not enough room for him to sit and keep his leg extended.

Finch might even have doctor recommendation to stay home and rest for a week, not that he would take that advice to begin with.

Even if he does miss that game, every game is crucial in a series against the defending champs.

Timberwolves assistant coach Micah Nori took over for Finch after Finch was helped off the court in Phoenix. The Wolves still earned the win, but the whole scene seemed like the typical events and bad “luck” you see from Minnesota sports teams.

Just when something really good is happening for a big team in Minnesota, the rug gets yanked out from under them.

Call me a pessimistic Minnesota fan, say I’m already getting my excuses ready if you want, but as good as the Wolves are right now, they owe a lot of that to their head coach and the chemistry he helped create.

Finch ultimately calls the shots. His halftime adjustments all season have led to many comebacks and strong second-half performances from a franchise that always seemed to be on the opposite end in prior years.

Is it really “next man up” for the coach also?

Nori has routinely gotten praise as a great assistant coach that knows his stuff. He’s been a coach in the NBA since 2009, serving as an assistant coach for the Toronto Raptors, Sacramento Kings, Denver Nuggets and Detroit Pistons before coming to Minnesota. While he’s typically giving funny one-liners and quotes in interviews, he was all business after Finch went down.

Nori also filled in this season when Finch was sick for a March 8 game against Cleveland, a Minnesota loss in overtime. That means the Wolves are winless when Finch isn’t in the building.

Point proven!

I’m kidding, of course.

With all due respect to Nori, however, if Finch is sidelined at home for the series against Denver or is forced to stay in the locker room, the Wolves could very easily see their season end quickly. They may win a game or two, but I don’t see them taking a seven-game series over Denver without the voice of their head coach in the huddle.

Coaching does matter.

If you don’t have a ton of talent on the team, there’s not much a coach can do to manufacture wins on a consistent basis. However, star power can only do so much in the NBA without a good coach keeping the team focused and united.

Timberwolves fans can be happy that Conley didn’t get hurt in the collision with Finch, but shrugging it off because it was “only the coach” that got hurt would be foolish.

The Wolves have a host of talented players and would never be where they are without them, but Finch deserves his flowers, too.

A 54-year-old coach is entitled time to rest and heal, but Finch is definitely a needed ingredient if the Wolves want to make it to the Western Conference finals.