Timberwolves coach Chris Finch calls out referee Tony Brothers after his team’s Game 3 loss to the Spurs.
Finch called Brother’s conduct on the field “totally unprofessional.”
Brothers, the veteran NBA referee, and Finch got into a heated exchange during the timeout.
Minnesota Timberwolves coach Finch as players and staff separated the two, while Anthony Edwards pulled Finch away.
After the two clashes, a reporter asked Finch, saying, “I’m not sure I’ve ever seen players hold a referee back from their head coach before…”, to which Finch responded, “Pretty unprofessional, huh?”
He then launched a verbal attack on Brothers.
Finch explained that he was upset by what he perceived to be an intentional delay in granting a timeout.
“I wanted the timeout. I called it 3 seconds early and I wanted the timeout,” Finch said.
“I said ‘I want my 3 seconds back’… because he clearly heard me. He looked my way, ignored me, continued the play… almost cost us a turnover.
“So, and then you know, he lost it.”
“Then I went to ask him where the ball was going to be collected and he shouted at me. So totally unprofessional behavior on his part.”
On the other hand, in a post-match interview, Edwards downplayed the incident after the match, saying it was all part of “competing at the highest level.”
“We want to win. Finchy wants to win. Tony Brothers is Tony Brothers, we all love him, so everything is good here,” Edwards added.
Timberwolves star Anthony Edwards scored 32 points, but Antonio Spurs star Victor Wembanyama scored 39 to guide the team to a 115-108 triumph with a 2-1 series lead.
The fourth game of the Western Conference of the NBA playoffs will be played tomorrow, Sunday May 10, 2026, in Minneapolis.
