SAN FRANCISCO — All the Warriors had to do was run down the clock, get one more shot up, maybe hit some late free throws and play defense.
With 27.1 seconds left in Sunday’s tight game against the Minnesota Timberwolves with playoff vibes, Rudy Gobert missed a free throw and an opportunity to tie it up. Golden State held onto the slimmest of margins, but the game was in their hands. Until they just threw it all away.
Draymond Green and Jordan Poole each committed head-scratching passes in the final 15 seconds of Sunday’s game and the Warriors didn’t even get a shot off when they needed to close it out. In a game oozing with playoff implications, the Timberwolves escaped with a 99-96 victory after Karl-Anthony Towns hit a game-winning three with 11 seconds following Green’s crucial miscue.
"We just didn't execute down the stretch," Warriors coach Steve Kerr said. "We didn't deserve to win. They outplayed us, made the plays down the stretch that they needed to make and we didn't. Simple as that."
The Warriors slowly walked off the court knowing they let one slip away, as they were held scoreless for the final 88 seconds of the game. When Jordan Poole hit a go-ahead 3-pointer with 1:28 left, he was closer to the Timberwolves bench than the other nine players on the floor. He damn near stepped on their feet, but then started doing a little dance.
It was a bit premature to be cuttin' a rug.
Poole's feet were frozen in place after his big error with 4.1 seconds left, as his pass to Steph Curry went out of bounds and they threw another possession in the trash. Poole briefly lost control of the ball before the pass, but it's also worth noting that Steph looked like he would be cutting to the wing but changed direction at the last second.
Poole also took an ill-advised step-back 28-footer with eight seconds left on the shot clock and less than a minute to go, but it rimmed out.
This isn't the first time Poole has helped fumble away a game in the closing seconds, as he couldn't handle an inbounds pass in a stunning loss against the Utah Jazz and dribbled into a late turnover against the Detroit Pistons earlier this season.
Klay Thompson is confident Poole can help contribute to another title run and close out games, as he pointed to the Warriors championship logo on the background of the press conference podium while supporting him after the game.
"He was a huge part of that," Thompson said. "People tend to forget that. That right there."
Klay also singled out Poole for keeping the Warriors in an offensive rhythm, as Steph picked up two quick fouls to start the game. Poole went 8-of-16 from the floor, 3-of-8 from 3-point land and 8-of-9 from the line as he was aggressive all night. A game after dropping 33 points and leading the Dubs to a win over the Philadelphia 76ers, he scored a team-high 27 points against Minnesota but also had a team-worst minus-11 in plus/minus.
In lighter news, Gary Payton II made his Warriors season debut after sitting out the past 20 games since being acquired at the trade deadline. GP2 logged 15 minutes, scoring nine points on 3-of-4 shooting, with a 3-pointer and some nice plays in transition and on defense. After the game, Payton told reporters he was feeling "good" physically after overcoming his adductor muscle strain.
"Good. Felt like I was out there shorter than I was," Payton said. "Sixteen minutes - felt good though. It was a lot of gaps in there, so I was able to get my breath back after whistles and calls."
The Warriors were also doomed by a sluggish third quarter when they shot just 7-of-20 from the field en route to 18 points, as Minnesota flipped a two-point deficit into a four-point advantage.
Steph had a last-second prayer to try and tie up the game, but it would have taken a miracle. Instead, Minnesota snuck out with an all-important ‘W’ in the Western Conference playoff picture.
"Disappointing because we gave ourselves a chance to win," Kerr said.
The Warriors (39-37) are now just a half-game ahead of the Timberwolves (38-37) for the crucial No. 6 seed in the West, as everyone is trying to avoid the play-in tournament.
