While the Timberwolves were buoyed by confidence after knocking off the reigning champion Nuggets in the Western Conference semifinals, they now trail the Mavericks 0-3 in the series. It looks like their fun is over as Luka Doncic and company dominate their conference finals.
Critics are looking for someone to blame, and Karl-Anthony Towns seems to fit the profile, as the Minnesota star has continued to fail in his scoring attempts. The center produced a poor shooting game in Sunday’s 116-107 Game 3 loss and his head coach knows it.
“He really struggled,” Chris Finch said of his 14-man points on 5-for-18 shooting, to go along with his 0-for-8 from beyond the arc. “It was hard to watch at times.”
Karl Anthony Towns through 3 WCF vs Dallas games
15 PPG
28% FG
14% 3P pic.twitter.com/duhPmbh2Cz— Jake (@SuperiorNBA) May 27, 2024
Towns was even worse in the fourth quarter, as he went 0-for-4 without scoring and his team was easily outscored 14-3 in the final 5 minutes of the game.
“I have to laugh,” KAT said after the competition. “I take up to 1,500 shots a day. He shot well all playoffs, confidence is very high. Having this unfortunate bump and this look that just doesn’t fit, it’s hard. It’s hard, definitely. I have good confidence. I have to keep shooting.”
The four-time All-Star, who was shooting 27.8% during the series, was benched for nearly the final 9 minutes of the Game 2 loss. Incredibly, the record marks the fourth-worst field goal percentage of any athlete through the first three games of the playoffs. at the conference during the shot clock.
“I think KAT has to do a better job of maybe getting back to his old style of getting closer to the basket,” said teammate Kyle Anderson. “Rim running is being used differently. He is obviously a great player, and he has a big time for us, so we need him to continue. So, it is our job to put him in the right place. 3s will fall. “
The Wolves’ program believes the secret to a series comeback is staying positive despite an 0-3 setback.
Never has an NBA team come back from behind 0-3 in a playoff series, but the Minnesota locker room does not lose faith, as it understands that basketball is a complex game with its own surprises.
“There is nothing we can do but be hopeful at this point. We will not be negative. Just try to win one at a time,” said Anthony Edwards. “I have never seen the sky fall. I don’t know, I’m always positive, I’m always happy. I’ve gone through a lot of pain so heaven doesn’t see me.”
The Wolves star even criticized the referees for their defeat. “They had 31 free throws,” he said, “we had 17.” Regardless of the blame, Minnesota missed as many free throws as the Mavericks did.
Rudy Gobert, on the other hand, believes it’s all about trusting your teammates. “Basketball is not a perfect science, but we have to find ways to raise our level when it matters,” he said. “In the last six minutes, everything has to be at a high level from this point. Everything. … So we must continue to trust each other. One by one, look at all the things that could be better and collect them and continue to be who we are.”
