The Minnesota Timberwolves absolutely annihilated the Miami Heat on Wednesday night, walking away with a dominant 131-106 road victory. They did it by raining down an incredible 21 made three-pointers. But guess who apparently didn’t get the memo about how basketball works in 2026? Charles Barkley, who spent halftime of a game where the Wolves were *winning* complaining about their three-point shot selection. Seriously?
Chuck’s Outdated Playbook Just Got Burned
At halftime, the Wolves were already up 69-59 in Miami. They had launched a whopping 26 three-pointers and drained 12 of them, a scorching 46 percent clip. Anthony Edwards and LaMelo Ball were leading that long-range onslaught, which was a huge reason why Minnesota held the lead despite Giannis Antetokounmpo having a monster first half for the Heat. You’d think that kind of production would be celebrated, right? Nah. Barkley, true to form, pulled out his classic criticism on the “Inside The NBA” halftime show, basically the first thing out of anyone’s mouth.
“They shoot too many threes,” Barkley declared. He even suggested, “There’s a lot of times they could get a layup.” The irony was thick enough to cut with a knife, especially when the show’s producers started playing a highlight reel of Ball just drilling threes. Chuck doubled down, saying their “shot selection, there’s 17 seconds to go on the shot clock. 16 seconds to go on the shot clock… I’d like to see LaMelo get them to the basket. Faster pace like they’re doing, but they relying too much on threes.” He was still on it after discussing Antetokounmpo’s great half and Edwards playing off-ball. “I just think Minnesota shoots too many threes,” he reiterated, adding, “Because they only got four free-throw attempts. That’s almost impossible.” Ernie Johnson tried to interject, noting, “And a lot of them have, 12 for 26.” But Barkley cut him off, “Yeah, but when they don’t go in, you gotta get to the free-throw line, Ernie. They only got four free throws. That’s not good.”
The Wolves Shut Him Down From Deep (and Everywhere Else)
The Timberwolves weren’t just going to listen to Barkley’s advice. They came out in the second half and within the first couple of minutes, Edwards and Ball dropped *three more threes*, stretching their lead to a commanding 17 points. They finished the game with an insane 21 made three-pointers on 50 attempts in that 131-106 blowout win that was never even close in the fourth quarter. Minnesota racked up 63 points just from beyond the arc. Miami, by contrast, only managed eight threes for 24 points. That’s a massive 39-point edge for the road team, all from deep.
And to top it off, it wasn’t a one-dimensional win, either. The Wolves absolutely dominated the glass, out-rebounding the Heat 52 to 34. Oh, and about those free throws Barkley was so worried about? Minnesota finished with more attempts, 29 to 26. Anthony Edwards had an absolutely brilliant 45-point shotmaking display, hitting nine of his 17 attempts from three-point land. LaMelo Ball wasn’t far behind with five makes on 13 attempts. So much for “relying too much on threes” when they’re hitting them at this clip and winning big.
Barkley Needs to Rewatch the Tape
Let’s just be real, Barkley’s take is lazy, outdated, and honestly, pretty dumb. This is a legend from a completely different era of basketball who’s been complaining about three-point shooting since Stephen Curry and the Warriors basically revolutionized the game. Anthony Edwards, for crying out loud, is arguably the best three-point shooter in the entire NBA right now. He LED THE LEAGUE in threes two seasons ago and has been hitting them at just under a 40 percent clip on seriously high volume for the last two years. Ball is also a prolific three-point shooter, finishing second in makes last season, and opponents *have* to respect his willingness to fire from 30-plus feet. And don’t forget guys like Jaden McDaniels, Jonathan Kuminga, Ayo Dosunmu, and Terrence Shannon Jr. who can all knock down open looks from deep.
Even Coach Chris Finch saw the logic in it, saying, “I thought most of ’em came in a good flow. Or even the self-generated ones were Ant when he was on a roll, LaMelo off Rudy screens. We’ve not intentionally talked about upping our three-point vo”
The Wolves are clearly building a team around elite shooting and a system that generates those looks. This strategy isn’t just working; it’s delivering massive wins. Ignoring that is just ignoring how the modern game is played.
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by Yahoo Sports.
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