Chris Finch angry at Wolves' 'immaturity'

The image of Karl-Anthony Townsthe head on his napkin and looking disappointed on his bench, says a lot about the evening spent by the Wolves against the Hornets. Minnesota's interior was not yet out of the fourth quarter when Chris Finch decided to replace him. Four minutes from time and the visitors had just taken the lead on a 3-point shot from Nick Smith Jr.

Unusual scene to see a player with so many points on the bench for the start of “money time”. However, the “KAT” showed signs of fatigue. Like his “lay-up”, however cooked, missed which led to the transition of Charlotte and this shot from Nick Smith Jr. while the interior of the Wolves, who had finished his race in the first rank, was slow to return to defense…

Karl-Anthony Towns was, however, well on his way to relegating Joel Embiid's 70 points to the background. At the break, the local interior, untenable at 3-points on the “pick-and-pop” (10/15 behind the arc!), already had 44 points on the stats sheet, but his team was not not really safe from the score (69-64).

Running out of fuel in the last quarter

After three quarters and another winning basket from him, the Wolves were breathing easier (107-92). Insufficient, however, to repel the eye-catching Hornets, like the impeccable Brandon Miller (27 points at 11/13). In the last quarter, the visitors will score twice as many points as their opponents (18-36).

“ It was an absolutely despicable performance in terms of defense and immature basketball… And throughout the game. There was therefore no slippage throughout the match. It was there from the beginning. This is what happens when you approach this kind of match like that “, can Chris Finch lose his temper at the end of the meeting.

He adds : “ It often happens that, simply because you score two, three or four points in a row, or baskets in a row… We're obviously going to try to feed the hot hand, but at some point, we have to come back to the fact of make the right choice. »

Words that seem directly addressed to his interior, limited to only 4 points with 2/10 on shots in the last quarter. A ratio which contrasts with his exceptional level of skill so far: 58 points at 19/25 shooting over the first three quarters of the match!

The Wolves got what they “deserved”

“ It's true and I believe that at the end of the match, we have to find a way to be mature and finish the job. This is something we have done very well throughout the year. […] There were moments where we showed a little immaturity, a lack of discipline but being 12 or 14 points ahead, it seemed good to me compared to the way the match was going to end. “, reports the person concerned who didn't take only good shots in the finale.

Also guilty of a communication error with Kyle Anderson on a “pick-and-roll”, leading to an uncontested lay-up by Miles Bridges, he believes that “ The fact of spending an evening like this in a defeat is not very pleasant or historic. […] There is no moral victory. It was cool to say that when we were at 15 wins for 30 losses. But when you are number one in the West, one of the best NBA teams, the era of moral victories is over. It's about winning, remaining number one in the West, protecting our territory more, which is the most important thing. »

His evening ended with an impossible drive, in the middle of a colony of hornets, for which he could undoubtedly have gotten a whistle. But the referees didn't move. While Leaky Black converted on free throws, Karl-Anthony Towns had one last opportunity to equalize at the buzzer and 3-pointer. Too short…

Beyond KAT, Chris Finch adds another layer, believing that he “ there was a lot of immaturity throughout the team. We totally disrespected the game, ourselves, and we got exactly what we deserve. »