Tim Connelly probably shook his head a few times while sitting in the stands during Game 5 in Los Angeles. He wanted the Minnesota Timberwolves to stop shooting threes.
“I’m thinking the same thing you are thinking,” Connelly said on KFAN. “Oftentimes when I watch a game, I just think, ‘Can I go back to pick-up rules?’ You miss 15-20 outside shots, [then] get to the paint, attack the rim.”
The Timberwolves shot 7 of 47 (14.9%) from three, missing an NBA playoff-record (at the time) 40 threes. Even though Minnesota’s offense struggled throughout the series, it felt like an anomaly for a team that ranked fourth in three-point percentage in the regular season. The Wolves still beat the Los Angeles Lakers 103-96 to advance because Rudy Gobert dominated the game.
It was an underwhelming shooting performance, but the Wolves didn’t extend the series. Still, there was reason for optimism entering Game 1 on Tuesday. Surely the law of averages would swing Minnesota’s offense back to the mean.
However, the Wolves shot an inexcusable 5 of 29 (17.2%) from deep on Tuesday and dropped Game 1 against the Golden State Warriors 99-88. They didn’t set a record for most missed threes again. Still, at one point, it felt like they would finish the night without making a three.
Not only did Minnesota’s shooting woes in Game 5 carry over to the second round, but they got worse. The Wolves had four days off before the second round, but no amount of rust could explain how poorly they shot on Tuesday. As fans filed out of Target Center, they wondered how much stock they should put into their team’s inability to hit threes.
“We couldn’t hit a shot, but I didn’t like how we couldn’t repeatedly generate good shots,” Chris Finch said postgame. “We should have been able to, really.”
At halftime, the Timberwolves were 0 of 15 from three. The last time they went 0-for from deep in a half was on January 3, 2018, in a 98-97 loss against the Brooklyn Nets. Jimmy Butler led Minnesota that night with 30 points.
On Tuesday, Butler played only his fourth game in Minneapolis since forcing his way out in 2018. Fans booed every time he caught the ball, and they would have loved the Wolves to stick it to him with a win.
However, it was hard for fans to be optimistic as Minnesota trailed 44-31 at halftime.
Shooting like the Wolves did in the first half places far too much pressure on its defense, especially against a team like Golden State. Steph Curry is the fixture, and the Warriors’ offense never stops moving. Draymond Green and Kevon Looney lay down brick-wall screens, some of which aren’t legal, that Golden State looks for Curry on almost every possession. You can see it coming, but sometimes, you can’t do anything about it.
Curry had 13 points through his first 13 minutes on 5 of 9 from the floor and 3 of 6 from deep, settling into a groove that frightens defenses. However, he injured his hamstring early in the second quarter and immediately returned to the locker room. Shortly after, the Warriors ruled Curry out with a left hamstring strain for the rest of the game.
The door was ajar for the Wolves, who only trailed by ten points when Curry subbed out. Minnesota’s offense was lousy, but they had time to get back on track and exploit a Curry-less Warriors team on defense. Instead, Green drilled two threes in less than a minute of each other, putting Golden State up by 14 and lamenting what Finch thought was a bad defensive performance all night.
“I didn’t like the way we started defensively,” said Finch. “With some of the things we were doing, we haven’t discussed any of that all week – making stuff up out there. I don’t know, it didn’t look like us at all, didn’t feel like us at all.”
Minnesota held Golden State under 100 points, which would have been good enough for the Timberwolves to win on a typical night. However, the Wolves gave up far too many open looks, especially in the second half. Buddy Hield filled in nicely for Curry as the Warriors’ primary movement shooter, finishing with 24 points on 5 of 8 from deep. Draymond Green hung 18 points on the board on 4 of 10 from three-point range.
The Timberwolves gave up 36 points in the third quarter. Golden State shot 12 of 22 (54.5%), but Minnesota shot 11 of 22 (50%). The Wolves worked a 21-point hold to ten entering the fourth.
Their offense was starting to find a groove, but it was apparent that if the Wolves were going to rectify their abominable first half, they’d have to with sheer effort.
It was a nine-point game with six minutes left. After recording one point in the first half, Anthony Edwards started finding himself in the fourth quarter. He got the Target Center crowd, who booed their team in the third quarter, back into the game.
Minnesota’s fourth-quarter comeback ultimately fell short; the Warriors hit timely buckets on the other end to keep the Wolves at a safe distance. However, the fourth quarter should give Wolves fans confidence that their team will even the series up at 1-1 on Thursday.
Fourth quarter stats:
Warriors:
- 19 points
- 6 of 22 (27.3%) FG
- 4 of 13 (30.8%) 3P
- 3 of 4 (75%) FT
Timberwolves:
- 28 points
- 9 of 20 (45%) FG
- 3 of 8 (37.5%) 3P
- 7 of 8 (87.5%) FT
- Edwards: 13 points on 5 of 7 (71.4%) FG
Despite landing a few late-game haymakers, the Warriors fizzled out offensively, which makes sense because they lost their Batman. After the game, Steve Kerr said he’s “definitely” game planning to play Game 2 without Curry, who will receive an MRI Wednesday in Minneapolis.
Meanwhile, despite shooting 45% in the fourth, the Wolves got momentous buckets from Edwards downhill, resembling the resilient team they were in the first round.
The Warriors will continue to struggle producing offense without Curry, especially late in games. Minnesota must take full advantage of that during any game or games he sits out. That starts with the Wolves beginning the game with a different mindset, especially Edwards.
“What’s there to talk about?” Finch said postgame. “You are the leader of the team. You’ve got to come out and set the tone in all ways that happen. If your shot is not going, you still have to carry the energy. If I’ve got to talk to guys about having the right energy coming into the opening second-round game, then we’re not on the same page.”
There is reason to believe that the fourth quarter on Tuesday is more like how this series will play out, especially if Edwards gets fired up by Finch’s comments and enters Game 4 on Thursday tuned up. However, since Game 1 against LA, the Wolves are shooting 41.8% from the floor and 25.4% from deep. Over their last two games, they are 12 of 76 (15.7%) from deep, the worst percentage in NBA playoff history over a two-game span.
Minnesota’s poor shooting becomes more concerning, especially in the postseason, with every passing bricked three. In Game 1, the Wolves’ headache behind the arc stemmed from a lack of energy, execution, and connectivity, compounded by Golden State’s defense. The Timberwolves were also occasionally unlucky, missing looks they usually make.
The law of averages says Minnesota’s offense will return closer to the mean. Even though it hasn’t yet, fans should still be confident that Game 1 isn’t a precursor for the rest of the series.
