At the end of the All-Star Game in Indianapolis, Green Draymond decided to have a little fun at the expense of the Minnesota Timberwolves.
As Karl-Anthony Towns piled up the points for the Western Conference team in a game won by the East, Green couldn’t help himself by calling the game for Turner Sports’ ALTCAST, a companion show featuring featured Green, Charles Barkley and Taylor Rooks.
“It’s like the old Minnesota days,” cracked Green. “KAT got 40, they lost 20.”
This struck a chord in Wolfland for a multitude of reasons. First, it came from Green, a longtime Wolves/KAT demeaner who was suspended earlier this season after putting Rudy Gobert in a chokehold. Second, this happened with the Timberwolves coaching staff on the sidelines at Gainbridge Fieldhouse, as Minnesota was the No. 1 seed team in the West for most of the first half of the season. Finally, even the most die-hard Wolves fans knew Green wasn’t wrong. Jokes based in truth tend to sting the most.
When Minnesota rallied to beat Golden State 114-110 on Sunday, it was the latest sign in a season full of them that these aren’t the same old Timberwolves everyone loves to pick on. And they’re not the same old people anymore Warriors who could afford to make jokes while dominating the league.
There were scores to settle everywhere as the Warriors entered Target Center. The two teams had not seen each other since the Wolves won two at San Francisco in November, part of a seven-game winning streak that helped propel the Wolves to the top of the conference.
On Sunday, the Warriors were desperate. They wanted redemption for those who were emotionally charged home defeatsthe second of which included Klay Thompson brawling with Jaden McDaniels and Green getting ejected for grabbing Gobert around the neck.
More importantly, they have the Houston Rockets they’re breathing down their necks for the final spot in the Play-In tournament and can’t waste a great season by Steph Curry miss the playoffs.
The Warriors are trying to hold on to their past. The Timberwolves are trying to bury theirs.
When the cities fell with a knee injury on March 4 and the Wolves lost first place in the West, the psychosis that comes with falling out of the first round of the playoffs once in 35 years began to whisper in the ears of their long-tortured fans.
When the Wolves opened Sunday’s game with eight turnovers in the first eight minutes of the game and fell behind by 12 in the first half, the volume of those whispers increased. But that’s what it takes to wake them up this season.
Naz Reid scored 17 of his 20 points in the first half to help Minnesota overcome some shaky shooting and all those early turnovers. He made his first five 3-pointers and finished 6 of 8 overall from behind the arc with 12 rebounds and two blocks in his second straight start.
NAZ REID HEAT CHECK. pic.twitter.com/LUraAdxJiv
– Minnesota Timberwolves (@Timberwolves) March 24, 2024
The Wolves still trailed by eight points through the third quarter and by three entering the fourth, a dangerous spot against an experienced Warriors team with Curry, Thompson and Chris Paul to generate great offense and their history of struggling in the fourth quarter this season. Minnesota ranks 22nd in clutch time offensive rating and 19th in fourth-quarter offensive rating, according to NBA.com.
It took them less than three minutes in the fourth period to take the lead, with Nickeil Alexander-Walker And Mount Morris both hitting 3s and Gobert throwing down a dunk to rock the arena.
THE BIG BOY WORKS pic.twitter.com/Xx7EQxHPbD
– Minnesota Timberwolves (@Timberwolves) March 25, 2024
The Timberwolves outscored Golden State 36-29 in the fourth quarter and recorded just one turnover after giving it up 13 times in the first half to earn their fifth win in six games. Mike Conley had eight points and three steals in the quarter, Anthony Edwards hit a big 3 and Gobert let his play do the talking with 10 of his 17 points and five of his 12 rebounds in the fourth.
The highly anticipated rematch between Gobert and Green never really came to fruition. There is no love lost between the two rivals for the title of best defensive player of this era. Gobert enjoyed a renaissance season leading the league’s No. 1-ranked defense. And after calling Green a “clown” for his behavior during their previous meeting, Gobert said he no longer has time for drama.
“I’m here to play basketball. If there’s a problem, we can talk about it outside of court,” Gobert said. “But I’m focused on my team, I’m focused on our goal and I’m not going to get distracted by anyone.”
For his part, Green was in complete control of his emotions. He had 12 points, eight rebounds and three assists. There was no barking at the referees, no bully ball with Gobert and no trash talk with Edwards.
Maybe he learned his lesson when he tried to get into Edwards’ head in November and the fourth-year star responded with 10 points in the fourth quarter to lift the Wolves to victory. This time around, Edwards had 23 points, eight assists and six rebounds, the kind of all-around game that was his trademark during the second half of the season.
this vision of the court too ???? pic.twitter.com/ibtSpiGaGm
– Minnesota Timberwolves (@Timberwolves) March 25, 2024
In their last 19 games, the Wolves are a plus-19 net score in the fourth quarter, which is the best in the league. They are 13-6 in those games. Their 14 wins by at least 10 points are the second-most in the standings. NBA has Oklahoma City And Chicago (15). Their .483 winning percentage in those games is #1. They are an NBA-best 7-11 this season while trailing to start the fourth quarter.
“We still have a way to go,” coach Chris Finch said. “I think in that game we did a really good job of figuring out how to close out the game. No breakdowns across the board, extremely well executed. These are things that we didn’t necessarily do consistently last year.
For years, the Wolves have been pursuing these Warriors. They were beaten, ridiculed and mocked by them. The Warriors rolled like that because they could. They have won four championships since 2015. The Wolves have only won four playoff games in that same span.
These wolves are no joke. Now they’re the ones expecting to make a deep playoff run while the Warriors are just trying to hold on to a Play-In spot. Curry scored 31 points on Sunday, but he only played 29 minutes in the game.
Warriors coach Steve Kerr said they were trying to conserve his minutes at the start of a stretch of five games in eight days, all on the road. There was a time when Curry would have played 38 minutes against a very good Western Conference team when the Warriors were looking for a well-deserved victory. But at 36, the Warriors are more cautious with Curry and less able to cover him when he sits.
Minnesota (49-22) is only one game behind Denver (50-21) for the conference’s No. 1 seed with Oklahoma City (49-21) sandwiched in between. The Wolves’ defense is the best in the league and their offense is showing signs of coming together even as KAT recovers from his torn meniscus.
“For the most part, I think we’ve made leaps and bounds in terms of winning from where we were,” said Conley, who finished with 14 points, seven assists and four steals. “We just have to continue to be able to mature as a team to understand the clock and score, not give up late, which we did a great job of tonight.”
If the Timberwolves continue to progress like this and get Towns healthy early in the playoffs, the All-Star Game won’t be the only time this season that Green watches and talks while they play on the court.
(Photo by Draymond Green and Mike Conley: David Berding/Getty Images)
