Derrick Rose continued to make his case for an All-Star bid and the Most Improved Player award on Sunday night, pulling the Minnesota Timberwolves from a potentially embarrassing loss, snatching a last-second game-winner against the Phoenix Suns. Rose scored 29 of his game-high 31 points in the second half and hit an 18-footer with 0.6 seconds to go, giving teammate Karl-Anthony Towns every reason to rave about his performance.

“Watching a living legend in Derrick Rose hit a shot like that, it's great,” said Towns, according to Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic. “Very emotional game for us. We wanted to win this badly.”

Derrick Rose calmly took over as the closer, facing Suns rookie forward Mikal Bridges, their best defender, in a clear-out isolation at the top of the 3-point line. The 2011 MVP quickly went inside the line, found his comfort spot and took a hard step-back dribble to the right, creating just enough separation to elevate above the 6-foot-7 Bridges for a vintage 18-foot fadeaway jumper that tickled twine.

Towns put up his usual double-double with 30 points and 12 rebounds, but it was Rose who made the shots that counted, going 12-of-24 from the field and 7-of-9 from the foul line.

This latest highlight only boosts his chances to become an All-Star starter, already getting the second-most votes as a backcourt member of the Western Conference.

Rose is putting up his highest scoring average (19.3 points) since the 2011-12 season when he first suffered a devastating knee injury that would change the trajectory of his NBA career.