The Wolves And Rockets Held An Incredible Meltdown-Off

Oftentimes toward the end of a basketball game that is sort of but not especially close, one team will take a multiple-possession lead with only a little bit of time left, and I, despite having watched the Indiana Pacers stage what felt like dozens of miracles last year, will wonder what the point is of watching the few grim minutes of free throws that conclude those sorts of contests. But sometimes there comes an ending so funny and so stupid that it reminds me: The tail ends of games are always worth sticking around for, because something amazing could happen. Something, in other words, like what happened in Minneapolis Wednesday night. In retrospect, a Houston Rockets–Minnesota Timberwolves matchup is ripe for a hilarious ending. Minnesota, especially without Anthony Edwards, can be maddeningly inconsistent, prone to prolonged bouts of brainlessness characterized by clusters of turnovers. This is the team that lost on a 39-8 run to the dregs of the Milwaukee Bucks last year. Houston, meanwhile, is incapable of running even vaguely functional offense under pressure, thanks to the combination of coach Ime Udoka's insistence on playing a bunch of 6-foot-9 guys who can't do anything; the dour, isolationist presence of Kevin Durant; and Alperen Sengun's plodding style. The Rockets came to Minnesota with a 1-6 record in overtime games. Last night's first collapse belonged to the Wolves. With just under four minutes left, Minnesota's Jaden McDaniels stripped Durant and got an easy dunk to give his team an 11-point lead. Houston immediately popped a 12-0 run in response, and exhaled a sigh of relief as McDaniels left with an injury. The Wolves recovered their composure to take a one-point lead with 28 seconds left. Rudy Gobert then fouled Sengun (and fouled out of the game) while the ball was still out of bounds on an inbound play, allowing Houston to tie it for free and granting the Rockets a chance at the win. They blew that chance, ceding a 3-on-2 fastbreak that the Wolves failed to score on, thanks to a tremendous shot-block by a bloodied Sengun.