The fragility of contending in the NBA playoffs was illustrated in the hush of the Target Center crowd, in their collective eyes looking at the far end across from the Golden State Warriors bench, across from an NBA legend wearing street clothes instead of a team uniform.

Minnesota Timberwolves star Anthony Edwards exited with a sprained left ankle midway through the 2nd quarter against Golden State on Thursday, before returning for the second half of Game 2 of their second-round series.

Barkley accused Edwards of pulling off a Paul Pierce, which is a reference to the former Boston Celtics superstar's infamous wheelchair incident during the 2008 NBA Finals against the Los Angeles Lakers .