Image Source: X
[Saba Sports News] A Minnesota Timberwolves fan sitting courtside on Monday night found themselves a little too close to the action in a tense final moment.
With the Timberwolves trailing the Oklahoma City Thunder 128-125 and just 3.5 seconds remaining in Game 4 of the Western Conference Finals at Target Center, the Thunder intentionally fouled Anthony Edwards to send him to the line. With no timeouts left and little time to work with, Edwards made the first free throw and intentionally missed the second.
Thunder star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander secured the rebound and launched the ball downcourt to burn the clock—but it ended up flying out of bounds along the sideline and directly into the hands of a courtside fan.
The moment was bizarre. The fan appeared to stop the ball slightly before it would’ve naturally gone out, catching it with around 0.6 seconds left on the clock. Officials initially set the clock to 0.1 but adjusted it to 0.3 seconds, giving Minnesota a slim chance at a tip-in.
The Thunder ultimately snuffed out a potential lob play and held on for a 128-126 win. But had the Timberwolves pulled off a last-second miracle to force overtime, that courtside fan might have gone down in NBA lore—Minnesota’s version of reverse Steve Bartman.