“Second Round Champs”: Devin Booker Goes At The Minnesota Timberwolves And Lynx

Phoenix and Minnesota’s rivalry on the basketball court has transcended leagues and Devin Booker is at the forefront defending his city. After the Minnesota Lynx swept the Phoenix Mercury out of the WNBA playoffs, the victors’ Instagram account took a shot at the latter and the Phoenix Suns, which did not sit well with the guard.

The Lynx posted a collage of their players celebrating the series win over the Mercury and a picture of Anthony Edwards and Karl-Anthony Towns posing for a picture following their 4-0 sweep of the Suns, and captioned it, “Tough year for Phoenix,” with a broomstick emoji at the end.

Booker commented, “Second-round champs,” suggesting that the team was celebrating a tad too early.

The superstar guard’s response may sound salty but he’s spot on in pointing out that neither team had won a championship yet. The Timberwolves’ playoff journey ended in the Western Conference Finals against the Dallas Mavericks, while the Lynx are still only in the semifinal.

Booker may not approve of the Timberwolves and Lynx’s celebrations about ending the Suns and Mercury’s campaigns, but he was quick to point out that losses as brutal as theirs should lead to introspection and sweeping changes if needed.

Booker demanded accountability after series loss vs. Wolves

Following Phoenix’s 4-0 loss to Minnesota in the first round of the playoffs, Booker called out the team’s leaders and pinned the blame on them for the humiliating defeat. He claimed that the veterans and coaching staff deserve the brunt of the blame for the team spectacularly flaming out after being touted as one of the favorites to win the title. In a fiery exit interview, the guard said,

“I hope everybody is feeling the same type of hurt and it has to be fixed. I have to be better, Kevin has to be better, Brad has to be better, coach has to be better. If we’re the leaders of the team, we can’t be out there unprepared.”

The Suns reacted to the loss by firing head coach Frank Vogel and hiring Mike Budenholzer to lead the team in the upcoming season. It remains to be seen if they have a better campaign under the former Milwaukee Bucks head coach and can exact revenge on the Timberwolves.