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Tom Thibodeau would have liked not to be so prescient about the Timberwolves, his former club.
“It’s a really busy roster,” Thibodeau said ahead of Wednesday night’s game of the worst team in the league. “No lead is safe against them.”
And so it was. The Knicks lost an 18-point lead in the first half, recovered and took a 13-point lead early in the fourth quarter before losing a terrible 102-101 decision at Target Center.
“There are 30 teams, 29 that can beat you if you don’t come with that advantage, with the mentality of playing 48 minutes,” said Thibodeau. “If you let go, you will be knocked down …”
It was the first time in seven weeks that the Knicks had lost back-to-back games.
RJ Barrett scored 23 points but folded the stretch with a turnover and missed a potential game-winning 15-foot jumper with two seconds left.
Julius Randle scored 24 points but missed a foul line jumper with 10 seconds left and the Knicks down 1. Minnesota’s Karl-Anthony Towns got the rebound but lost it and the Knicks won the race for the rebound, calling the time out with 5.1 seconds to go.
It was a bitter loss in Thibodeau’s first return to Minnesota since his dismissal in 2019 and his team fell to 24-24. The Knicks were outscored 32-20 in the last period.
Minnesota won over Malik Beasley’s 3 points with 37 seconds left – their first lead since the first period.
The Wolves, who have collapsed since Thibodeau’s ouster in January 2019, have a big night to celebrate, rising to 12-36, still owners of the NBA’s worst record.
Former Timberwolves forward Taj Gibson, the Knicks’ save center, nearly pulled off the win with three blocks, seven rebounds and a big bucket of fire with 50 seconds left after catching a blocked shot from Elfrid Payton in the l ‘air and marked.
The Knicks, after an 18-3 run, took a 39-21 lead early in the second quarter before the Wolves returned. And, as expected, Minnesota never stopped coming.
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