The third quarter collapsed, where did the Warriors lose in this game? Four major defeats were exposed, and the biggest "sinner" was found

In the fateful NBA playoff Western Conference semi-finals G4 on May 13, 2025, the Golden State Warriors lost to the Minnesota Timberwolves 110-117 at home, and the series score reached 1-3, standing on the verge of being eliminated. Behind this failure, there are many issues that need to be analyzed urgently.

First, the overall offensive end, especially the inaccuracy of three-pointers, has become a key factor in the Warriors' loss. In the whole game, the Warriors made only 8 of 27 three-pointers, with a shooting percentage as low as 29.6%, while the Timberwolves made 16 of 34 shots, with a shooting percentage of as high as 47.1%. The Warriors lost 24 points in just three-pointers. The core outside players such as Hilde, Pojemsky, and Payton Jr. continued to be in a downturn. The three players only contributed 27 points in total, but made 8 mistakes. Without the restraint of the superstar Curry, the Warriors' pick-and-roll tactics cannot effectively open up space, the outside pitchers are in a dilemma of isolation and the offensive system collapses.

Secondly, the collapse of the third quarter completely put the Warriors in a passive state. In this quarter, the Warriors scored only 17 points in a single quarter, with a net loss of 22 points, and were hit by the Timberwolves with a 39-17 attack wave. On the defensive end, the Warriors' outside rotation was chaotic, and they frequently missed people during the backup defense, and there was no way to deal with Edwards' breakthrough and Randle's support. At the same time, the rebounds are not well protected and there are only 3 offensive rebounds, giving the Timberwolves the upper hand in second offensive scoring.

Furthermore, the collective loss of the role players also made the Warriors stretched on the court. Except for Kumingga who scored 23 points, the performance of other players was not satisfactory. Butler scored only 14 points on 5 of 9 shots in the game, with a sluggish offensive desire, with a low positive and negative value of -30 in the team; although Green scored 14 points and 7 rebounds, he made 4 fouls on the defensive end, with a positive and negative value of -18, which seriously affected the team's rhythm.

Finally, Cole's employing strategy was also controversial after the game. During garbage time, he still reuses Podjemsky and Payton Jr., but uses too little time to Moody and Post who perform well on the bench. In the critical stage of the final quarter, the Warriors failed to narrow the score gap through effective personnel adjustments and tactical arrangements, and ultimately had no choice but to accept the defeat.

In this game, Podjemsky was the biggest sinner. He made 3 of 14 shots in the game, 0 of 4 three-pointers, scored only 11 points, but made 2 mistakes, with a plus-minus value of -9. As the starting point guard, he was unable to connect the team's offense, and hesitated to shoot, and repeatedly forced shots resulted in blacksmiths or mistakes, which often caused the Warriors' half-court offense to stagnate. With Curry absent, the team urgently needed an organizer to drive the rhythm, but Pojemsky's inefficient performance directly dragged down the team's offensive efficiency.

In contrast, the explosion of the Timberwolves, Edwards and Randall has become the key to the team's victory. The two contributed a total of 61 points, providing a strong driving force for the team's offense. The team's excellent defense and rebounding control allow them to take the initiative on the court at all times. The targeted tactical adjustments made to the characteristics of Warriors' players have successfully restricted the Warriors' performance.

Now, the Warriors' promotion situation is in danger. If you cannot improve the three-point shooting rate in subsequent games, activate the status of the character players, adjust the employment strategy and tactical system, and want to reverse the series to advance, the hope will be extremely slim. Next, the Warriors must make changes, otherwise their season may come to an early end.