Julius Randle Drains Buzzer Beater to Complete T-Wolves' Epic Comeback Over Suns

Minnesota was down by 16 at one point, and Randle's game-winner finished off the comeback.
Randle sunk an open three-pointer to finish off Phoenix
Randle sunk an open three-pointer to finish off Phoenix / Sportsenter on X

The Minnesota Timberwolves have struggled to start the 2024-25 NBA season after executing a foundation-altering trade just before training camp, sending Karl-Anthony Towns to the New York Knicks in exchange for Julius Randle and Donte DiVincenzo. They were 7-6 entering Sunday's matchup with the Phoenix Suns and generally did not look like a contending team. But they pulled off the kind of improbable victory that can turn everything around.

Despite a scalding performance from Devin Booker and falling down by as many as 16, the Wolves beat the Suns, 120-117, thanks to an awesome buzzer-beater from Randle, the centerpiece of the trade that changed everything for Minnesota this season. He brushed off Suns defender Josh Okogie after receiving the inbound with just over two seconds remaining and was left with a wide-open shot from beyond the arc after Okogie tried to foul.

Randle drained it, and the Target Center went wild.

Few things in sports are more fun than buzzer-beaters in basketball, and few highlights more epic to watch than when such a buzzer-beater happens at home. The cascade of cheers after the moment of tense silence watching the ball float towards the hoop is goosebumps-inducing.

Randle finished with 35 points on 11-for-20 shooting, helping Minnesota overcome a 10-point fourth quarter deficit alongside superstar Anthony Edwards. The win is what matters the most, though, and Randle ensured the Wolves got it.


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Liam McKeone
LIAM MCKEONE

Liam McKeone is a senior writer for the Breaking and Trending News team at Sports Illustrated. He has been in the industry as a content creator since 2017, and prior to joining SI in May 2024, McKeone worked for NBC Sports Boston and The Big Lead. In addition to his work as a writer, he has hosted the Press Pass Podcast covering sports media and The Big Stream covering pop culture. A graduate of Fordham University, he is always up for a good debate and enjoys loudly arguing about sports, rap music, books and video games. McKeone has been a member of the National Sports Media Association since 2020.