THE Warriors of the Golden State lost to the Minnesota Timberwolves 114-110 on Sunday, falling to 36-34 on the season. THE Houston Rockets are just one game behind the Dubs for the 10th seed in the Western Conference, the final spot in the play-in tournament. If the Warriors don’t want to be in the NBA Draft lottery, they need to change things quickly.
The Warriors would likely be a top-five seed in the league if winners were determined by how long a team was ahead. Golden State failed once again despite leading for the majority of the game, trailing for only a few minutes in the first three quarters.
Steph Curry led the way for the Warriors with 31 points, while Klay Thompson (16), Andrew Wiggins (15), Jonathan Kuminga (14) and Draymond Green (12) all finished in double figures. Curry was the Warriors’ only consistent scorer throughout the contest, which made it especially confusing that head coach Steve Kerr seemed hesitant to push Curry’s minutes late in the game.
Even though neither team ever led by more than eight points in the second half and the Wolves took a lead they would never relinquish early in the final quarter, Curry still finished the game with less than 30 minutes of action. It was an odd rotation, even for Kerr’s historically cautious approach to using star players.
Anthony Edwards led the Wolves with 23 points, 6 rebounds and 8 assists while Rudy Gobert had a double-double of 17 points and 12 rebounds, but Naz Reid was the X-factor for Minnesota. Reid recorded 20 points and 12 rebounds, making 7 of 11 shots from the field (6 of 8 from three).
The Warriors now head to Florida for two matchups in the Sunshine State. They will play the Heat on Tuesday in Miami.
