MINNEAPOLIS – As soon as it left his hands, Julius Randle knew his winning 3-pointer was going in.
Randle got the ball with the Minnesota Timberwolves and Phoenix Suns tied at 117 and 2.1 seconds to play. Minnesota, which battled back from 16 points down, advanced the ball down the court with a timeout to set up one final shot on an inbounds play.
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With veteran Joe Ingles coming into the game solely to inbound the ball, he found Randle at the top of the key. Randle took two dribbles, shook defender Josh Okogie, stepped back and fired from 3.
The buzzer sounded just after the ball left Randle's hands. When the shot dropped through the net, the Target Center crowd erupted, and Randle's teammates mobbed him on the court.
"Really the fun part was just seeing how my teammates celebrate,” Randle said. “We’re a very connected group, and we’re going to celebrate each others’ success. So for me, that was the coolest part.”
Randle's 35 points were the most he's scored since joining the Wolves in a deal that sent Karl-Anthony Towns to the Knicks and also brought Donte DiVincenzo to Minnesota.
Making the moment extra special for Randle was that both of his sons were at the game. While Randle said his older son is at most games, his younger son typically isn't. But he was in the building along with 18,977 other fans to witness his dad's shot.
“I think this is maybe his second game he's come to. He hates them,” Randle said of his 3-year-old son. “For him to be here and hit the shot in front of him is pretty cool.”
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AP NBA: https://apnews.com/hub/nba