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Baxter Holmes, ESPN Senior Writer
PHOENIX — When the Minnesota Timberwolves began to pull away in the third quarter Friday night, boos dripped in just as they had in the first two games of the series. Soon, that drip became a deluge, and by the end of the quarter, fans were steadily streaming out of his center footprint.
And as Game 3 reached its final minutes, most of the sold-out crowd had long since left into the desert night after the team's disastrous performance.
The Timberwolves' 126-109 wire win brought the Phoenix Suns, a team that started the season expected to win, to the brink of being swept in the first round of the playoffs.
The Timberwolves are also one win away from winning a playoff series for the first time since 2004.
The frustration from Suns fans was palpable, and it was certainly heard by a team that trailed by as many as 24 points.
“They're expecting a lot from us and they're paying us hard-earned money, so to react the way they want us to react is a big no-no,” said Suns star forward Kevin Durant, who scored 25 points. Of course,” he said. “It's our responsibility as players to use that as fuel and hopefully that's what drives us into the next game.”
Game 4 will be played Sunday at Footprint Center.
“I've never been swept a single day in my life,” said Suns guard Bradley Beal, who scored a team-high 28 points. “It would be terrible if that happened.”
No team in NBA playoff history has ever come back from an 0-3 deficit.
“People say no one's ever done it before,” said Suns guard Devin Booker, who scored 23 points. “That's fun.”
Added Suns head coach Frank Vogel: “Nobody quits in our group. This group doesn't want the season to end.”
The game played out in a familiar fashion, with the Timberwolves taking control in the third quarter. The team made seven 3-pointers in that frame, tied for the most in any quarter of a playoff game in franchise history, and jumped out to a 22-point lead.
As the deficit widened, the Suns relaxed again and abandoned optimism. According to ESPN Stats & Information, nine of the Timberwolves' 13 field goals in the third quarter were open looks. Meanwhile, the Suns totaled just eight points in the quarter.
Suns fans rained down boos throughout the quarter as the Timberwolves built a lead — “No wonder,” Booker said later — as the Timberwolves built a lead. Then, when Timberwolves guard Mike Conley hit a wide-open dunk off teammate Naz Reid with 1:08 left to give the Timberwolves a 95-73 lead, a noticeable number of Suns fans walked toward the exits. I started.
In the third quarter of this series, the Timberwolves outscored the Suns by 34 points.
“That third quarter was the worst for us, right?” Beal said.
Anthony Edwards led the Timberwolves with 36 points, and the Timberwolves outscored the Suns in the paint by a 56-36 margin. For Minnesota, Rudy Gobert had a well-balanced performance with 19 points and 14 rebounds. Gobert's defense harried the Suns all night. Karl-Anthony Towns added 18 points and 13 rebounds.
The Timberwolves entered the night as the only NBA franchise to never win three straight in the playoffs, let alone a series, but that streak has come to an end.
The Suns lost five straight in the playoffs, tied for the longest streak in franchise history.
For Suns fans, the outcome of the series so far is even more perplexing, as Phoenix defeated the Timberwolves in all three regular season games.
The Timberwolves have only won a playoff series once, in 2004 when they reached the conference finals.
Meanwhile, the Suns' big three of Bradley, Booker and Beal have underperformed compared to the lofty expectations placed on them. According to ESPN Stats & Information, both teams have shared the court for 98 minutes in this series, the most of the trio, and the Suns have been outscored by 42 points when all three have shared the court. . This number ties for the worst plus-minus of any three-man lineup this postseason.
It's no exaggeration to say that the Suns' season was underwhelming, and their future will be uncertain if they can't pull off a historic comeback.
The Suns enter the offseason with the highest annual salary of any NBA team at $206 million, but Booker, Durant, and Beal alone will receive $312 million over the next two seasons, increasing their combined salary next season. will exceed his annual salary. of 14 other NBA teams.
“It's disappointing because we wanted this so badly,” Vogel said. “It's frustrating. We're all very invested in this and we're putting everything into it to bring the fans a team they can be proud of. We still feel like we can do it, but we haven't played yet.” enough. ”
