On March 25, Beijing time, the Warriors challenged the Timberwolves away. Before this game, the Warriors were ranked 10th in the West, but only 1.5 wins ahead of the Rockets, the gap is not big, and the Rockets are full of momentum, winning 8 consecutive wins to impact the play-offs, and the Warriors must also continue to win in order to keep their play-off spots. The Timberwolves, Nuggets, and Thunder are competing for No. 1 in the West, but they don't have an advantage, and at the end of the regular season, the Timberwolves are likely to be ranked No. 3 in the West. Warriors starting lineup: Curry + Podemski + Wiggins + Kuminga + Dream Green, Timberwolves starters: Conley + Edwards + McDaniels + Reed + Gobert.
In the first quarter, the Timberwolves struggled on offense and shot very inefficiently, while the Warriors went on a 27-18 run to extend the margin to nine points. In the second quarter, Reed of the Timberwolves went on a rampage and hit five three-pointers in a row, and the Warriors were caught off guard, but the scene still prevailed, and after playing 27-28, the Warriors led the Timberwolves by 8 points at halftime. Curry was in good shape with 14 points and three rebounds in just two quarters, while the Timberwolves had 12 turnovers, which was the main reason for the deficit.
In the third quarter, the Timberwolves were the top team in the West after all, and after adjustments, they played a good offensive and defensive performance, and they hit a 32-27 score in a single quarter. In the final quarter, the Timberwolves were on fire, blasting 12-5 in 3 minutes to overtake the Warriors, and at the last moment, the two teams started a tug-of-war, and after Curry hit a three-pointer, the two teams tied 104-104. But the Timberwolves played well in key moments, eventually beating the Warriors 114-110.
The Warriors' Curry scored 31 points, 4 rebounds and 3 assists, Wiggins 15 points and 4 rebounds, Kuminga 14 points, 3 rebounds and 2 assists, Dream Green 12 points, 8 rebounds and 3 assists, Podzemski 7 points and 2 rebounds, and the Warriors five Tigers combined for 79+21. For the Timberwolves, Edwards had 23 points, six rebounds and eight assists, Reed had 20 points and 12 rebounds, Gobert had 17 points and 12 rebounds, and Conley had 14 points and seven assists.
After this game, the Warriors are only one win ahead of the Rockets, but the Western landscape is still very chaotic, from the Clippers in fourth place in the West to the Mavericks in eighth place in the West, only 3 wins apart, and the Lakers and Warriors and Rockets are competing for the last 2 playoff tickets. And the NBA league's move to clean up the Rockets has also caused dissatisfaction among many fans. Today, the league officially announced a fine, Jabari Smith Jr. of the Rockets and Dunn of the Jazz had a fierce conflict and were banned for one game, while the latter was banned for two games, but judging from slow motion, Smith did not hit Dunn, it was the Jazz player who punched first, and Smith just subconsciously fought back and did not touch Dunn yet. This is common in NBA courts, but the league made a fuss by suspending Smith, and after Shin Kyung's injury, Jabari Smith Jr. was the only reliable No. 5 player for the Rockets, and now that he is suspended, it will be difficult to win the next game.
A win or loss in one game can determine the entire playoff landscape, and if the Rockets lose the next game, the Warriors will continue to lead by 1.5 games and regain the lead. The Rockets worked hard for almost a month in March and were about to storm the play-offs, but the NBA decided to clean up the Rockets, which was really not taken seriously.