Kevin Durant faced massive scrutiny from fans after choking game-tying free throws against the Timberwolves on Wednesday. With three seconds left, Durant did well to draw a foul with three seconds left, but he missed the first and had to intentionally miss the second to give the Rockets a chance for an offensive putback.
However, Durant squandered that, too. The loss was even more painful for the Rockets, who forced overtime and were up by eight with three minutes left. They were in an even more favorable position as the Timberwolves were without Anthony Edwards. Meanwhile, Rudy Gobert was ejected shortly before overtime and Naz Reid was tossed out when they led 100-95.
The Rockets have repeatedly struggled in the clutch and Kevin Durant has been a common denominator as the team’s offensive engine. After another botched game, fans ripped the NBA’s fifth-leading scorer of all time.
“To absolute no surprise Kevin Durant has once again ruined another team he’s joined,” one fan wrote.
“Refs gave them everything and they still lost rudy fouled out jaden hurt naz ejected for bs,” another said.
“What happened to KD,” one fan said.
“STOP SAYING KEVIN DURANT IS LEGENDARY,” another wrote.
“If you press kevin durant it’s like a 50% chance he will turn it over,” one fan said.
Kevin Durant also had a rough start to the game
Kevin Durant’s game ended the way it started. The All-Star had scored nine points on 2 of 11 shots in the first half. He couldn’t do much in the third, either, after going 1-for-3 to score six points. Durant was 3-for-14 from the field entering the fourth, and that’s when he flipped the switch. In the final quarter, Durant scored nine on 4 of 6 shots as the Rockets erased an 11-point deficit to send the game to overtime.
Durant added six in overtime finish with 30 points and eight assists on 9 of 22 shooting, but he committed six turnovers, including a costly one in overtime with 1:04 left and Rockets leading by three. Had the Rockets managed to get a good shot, they could have been up by five or six with a minute left.
Instead, Donte DiVincenzo hit a 3 on the other end to tie the game and give the Timberwolves more than a puncher’s chance to steal the win.
