What Went Wrong in the Rockets' Historic Loss vs. Timberwolves

On the surface, 43-29 isn't anything to be upset with. But for the Houston Rockets, it's not just the results as of late; it's how it happens.

The Rockets suffered a 110-108 overtime loss to the Minnesota Timberwolves on Wednesday night, and if you tuned in, you'd understand why fans are so appalled at how the game transpired.

Houston blew the largest overtime lead in the play-by-play era after going up 13 points with three minutes to go. The Timberwolves' 15-0 run sealed the deal as the visitors couldn't convert on one final possession.

But what went wrong throughout the night? How did the game manage to get to overtime and a loss for the Rockets, despite Kevin Durant and Alperen Şengün combining for 60 points?

Turnovers (Again)

The defining weakness of Houston's season has been ball security. The Rockets rank 28th in turnover percentage, averaging nearly 16 per game. They topped that metric with 20 giveaways in Minnesota.

The lack of a point guard has marred an offense that should be thriving. Durant had six turnovers, while the rest of the starters combined for eight. Aaron Holiday, who played just 12 minutes, was responsible for three of the bench's six.

Even though Minnesota was without key ball-stoppers in Anthony Edwards and Ayo Dosunmu, the team was still able to force sloppy passes and rip the ball right out of Houston's hands on certain possessions.

In overtime, the Rockets had two crucial turnovers in the final minute and a half to give the Timberwolves the win. They're a great defensive team, but Houston just lacked any sort of ball handling in the early half-court, which led to a large sum of Minnesota's 11 steals.

Lack of Late-Game Offensive Stability

This goes hand-in-hand with the turnover issues, but even on late-game possessions where the Rockets did not give the ball away, the offense was sloppy.

Ime Udoka's strategy in clutch games has been to let Durant operate in isolation while the rest of the players space the perimeter. That seemed to work all the way until the final possessions of regulation and overtime.

Durant took over in the fourth quarter, but predictability led to the 37-year-old missing the potential game-winning shot due to Rudy Gobert's block. In the extra period, he had just two attempts with a turnover, largely because Minnesota was able to key in on the team's only efficient offensive weapon. It was easy for the home team to create chaos because it started and ended with Durant.