The goal has changed for the Minnesota Timberwolves

For the third year in a row, the Minnesota Timberwolves won a playoff series last year. In fact, the Anthony Edwards era has been the most successful era in the history of the Timberwolves. However, last year marked the fourth straight year that the Wolves have been knocked out by the eventual Western Conference champions. This summer, Minnesota decided that they weren’t good enough as built and sent out Julius Randle and Naz Reid to acquire LaMelo Ball to raise the floor and ceiling of their already good offense. The Wolves are good but can they compete with what the top of the conference has to offer?

I was a fan of the LaMelo Ball deal for Minnesota. I haven’t been Ball’s biggest fan during his career but he was so good for the Hornets as the engine of their offense while playing winning basketball last season that you can see that he can play winning basketball. I like the swing by Minnesota. I talked a lot about it in the Ball trade breakdown but I really didn’t think that the price they paid was too high, the swaps they sent out aren’t needle movers in my eyes and they only send out one true first round pick. I didn’t love the three transactions they made later in the summer. Frankly, I just don’t think that Jonathan Kuminga is good. He was a disaster in the Hawks first round series last year and has shown that trusting him is a scary proposition. Trading Josh Green for John Konchar and Cody Williams is fine. Green has struggled the past few years and moving off of him is not a big deal. I would have rather kept Konchar over Williams. I get that Minnesota has a lot of guards and not a lot of wings but Williams has yet to prove he belongs on an NBA court and Konchar has done that. The combination of youth, size and being a former lottery pick are why Williams is on the team over Konchar, not what they have shown in the NBA. Also do they really need to start Kuminga? I am not a fan of his because what has he shown in the NBA other than being inconsistent with effort issues? These moves don’t change the fact that this is a really good basketball team.

The Wolves are built around their backcourt and I think the Ball and Edwards pairing could really work. Anthony Edwards has never played with a player like LaMelo Ball. A true lead guard who is an elite passer and shooter so he can set Edwards up with easier looks and be a true outlet for him when opponents double the Ant-Man. It makes the game so much easier to play for both of them. Edwards is one of the best players in the league. The way he has leveled up as a passer and playmaker over the past few seasons has really leveled up the Wolves offense. Of course he remains an elite scorer and now pairing him with Ball, gives Minnesota one of the most dynamic offenses in the league.

Minnesota is going to lean on their guard heavily this year because they are deep at that position. Edwards, Ball, Ayo Dosunmu, Bones Hyland and Terrence Shannon are all going to be key pieces for Minnesota. Donte DiVincenzo is also on the roster as he recovers from a torn Achilles and they could get him back at some point this season too. There are a plethora of ball handlers on this roster which should level up their offense. Their best lineups are going to have 3 guards in them at most times. That allows for them to have a lot of options for drive and kick opportunities to lead into another drive and kick. The Hornets offense was 13.1 points better with LaMelo on the floor than they were with him on the bench last season. That isn’t an accident. He is going to make the game so much easier for Rudy Gobert on that end as well. Gobert has never played with a guard like Ball, who is one of the best lob throwers in the league. It will make Gobert much better on that side of the ball while Gobert will help cover for LaMelo on the defensive end. Ball is a legit offensive engine and will make Minnesota’s offense so much better that the group that finished 14th last season. 

I think losing Randle and Reid are going to have an impact on the Wolves. Those guys were their primary fours and without them this group is much smaller than they were last year. Minnesota will miss Reid’s spacing and Randle’s ability to create his own shot and get to the hoop. Those guys are significant losses for Minnesota. However, I don’t think they’ll feel the loss of those guys on the defensive end. Minnesota finished 6th in defense last year and I think they will rank around that point again this season. Jaden McDaniels is an elite on ball defender and Gobert remains one of the best backline defenders in the league, even if he was played off the floor by Victor Wembanyama in the playoffs last year. Dosunmu has also proven to be one of the better defensive guards in the league and Edwards is a plus defender. Yes, Ball is a concern on that end and I don’t trust Kuminga in any aspect but this is a good defensive team, a really good defensive team.

I am a true believer that the Minnesota Timberwolves are really good. I think their offense will be as good as any the league has to offer and their defense will also be very good. To me, this is the 3rd best team in the west and I don’t think anyone else has that much of a case over them. However, it isn’t about being the 3rd best team in the conference for the Timberwolves anymore. They’re all-in, the Ball acquisition tells us that. They want to compete with the Oklahoma City Thunder and the San Antonio Spurs. The issue is that I don’t think that they are as good as either of those teams and I wouldn’t pick them to win a playoff series against either of them. However, if the Wolves can only face off with one of them, playoff series are weird and you never know what can happen. It will take some luck but I do think that Minnesota can make the NBA Finals this year, I just won’t be picking them to do so.

The Wolves have been to the conference finals in two of the last three years and have won five playoff series in the past three seasons. We have moved beyond just winning a playoff series or 2. The goal has changed, the goal is to win the whole thing. The Wolves have been too inconsistent in the regular season over this era. That also needs to change because the 6th seed just won’t cut it anymore. Neither will winning a round or 2 and being embarrassed as they get eliminated. The last major professional men’s sports team to win a championship in Minnesota was the Twins in 1991. The city of Minnesota is starving for a championship and that has to be the goal for this Wolves team. I am not sold that they are ready to do it.