The Minnesota Timberwolves are already letting frustration get the best of them just two games into their best-of-seven series against the Thunder.
During Oklahoma City’s commanding 118-103 victory in Game 2, star player Shai Gilgeous-Alexander earned 15 free-throw attempts, the highest in these playoffs so far. Meanwhile, Timberwolves’ defensive standout Jaden McDaniels wanted to leave a mark on the new league MVP with a late foul.
With a little more than six minutes to play and Minnesota trailing by 16, McDaniels decided it was the time to let that anger come out.
As Gilgeous-Alexander made his move down the lane and outmaneuvered McDaniels, the Timberwolves player forcefully pushed the star guard, causing him to tumble to the ground.
The incident escalated tensions, leading to exchanges between players on both teams. In the end, McDaniels was assessed a Flagrant 1 foul, though he didn’t seem too concerned about the penalty.
“I just wanted to foul him for real,” McDaniels said. “I wasn’t even mad. I just had fouls to use.”
ESPN broadcaster Mike Breen pointed out that Gilgeous-Alexander used his left hand to push the defender’s arm out of the way so he could get by prior to the foul.
“There, see him grab that left arm,” Breen said. “That’s what the Timberwolves have been so upset about and want called.”
Timberwolves coach Chris Finch has been complaining about the whistle — even before the series started — and it took all of two games for the refereeing to get in the Timberwolves’ heads.
“There was a lot of frustration out there, but we talked about that before the series started,” Finch said postgame. “We have to be able to kind of put that to the side [and have a] get-on-with-the-next-play mentality.”
Gilgeous-Alexander has been criticized for flopping to earn foul shots this season, something he’s seemingly carried into the playoffs and earning himself not-so-endearing moniker of “free-throw merchant.”
In Game 1, Gilgeous-Alexander drew a ticky-tack foul in the first quarter, angering star Anthony Edwards, who threw the ball at him to earn a technical foul.
That hasn’t stopped him from getting the most important accolade in the sport, receiving the NBA MVP Award honors on Wednesday, beating out reigning winner Nikola Jokic.
Minnesota heads home for a near must-win Game 3 on Saturday while trailing 2-0 in the series.
