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So for the Wednesday paper, I wrote about how Charles Barkley was overstating the Wolves' offensive problems.

Then, Wednesday night, the Wolves made Barkley look brilliant.

My point was that the team's offense has been generally efficient except for late-game pressure situations. The numbers back that up. You can't rank fourth in offensive efficiency for an entire season, while missing Jimmy Butler for 23 games, without having a high-functioning offense.

What we saw Wednesday night was not a high-functioning offense.

Karl-Anthony Towns has disappeared, and while the Rockets are using a shrewd combination of doubleteams to frustrated him, he isn't the first big man in the NBA to face a difficult defense. He should be better, and the Wolves should be more intent on helping him get quality shots.

The Wolves had a chance to win Game 1 because of the Rockets' terrible shooting, and failed to deliver offensively late in the game.

They had a chance to take control of Game 2 because of James Harden's unusual struggles, and were inefficient in the first quarter when they had the lead, then just awful the rest of the way.

The biggest problem for Tom Thibodeau is the optics. The Wolves' offense isn't just struggling; it looks disjointed. There is too much talent on the floor for that to be the case.

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