Warriors vs. Timberwolves: A Potential First-Round Matchup?
Tomorrow the Warriors play the Minnesota Timberwolves, also known as the “Team That Picked Two Point Guards Before Stephen Curry.”
I’m sure they’re of hearing about it, and even more tired of seeing Ricky Rubio try to chase Curry around while the Warriors blow them out by 30+ and go on to win championships while they loiter in the lottery.
But I don’t think that’s necessarily going to happen this year. The resurgent Timberwolves, led by a vastly more aggressive Andrew Wiggins, an incredibly talented Karl Anthony-Towns, and a drastically improved shooting Ricky Rubio, have compiled a 4-3 record to start the season. Impressive wins against the Hawks and Bulls validate their record, and their young core will only improve as the season progresses.
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Bold prediction: the T’Wolves will nab the No. 8 seed in the playoffs this year. This has to do with somewhat of a power vacuum at that spot — the Warriors, Thunder, Spurs, Clippers, Rockets, Pelicans, and Grizzlies seem like locks to secure one of the 1-7 seeds, but there’s no certain eighth team — but it also has to do with their incredible young talent and potential that they’ve flashed so far. So this could be an early-season preview of a first-round playoff matchup.
And against the Warriors, I think some of the Wolves’ young talent is going to give them trouble. Festus Ezeli has been great filling in as the starting center — his defense against elite players like Andre Drummond was superb — but Towns has the shooting ability and touch to pull him away from the basket. Andrew Wiggins is an athletic monster with solid and improving touch, and the elite, long-armed defensive crew of Klay Thompson, Andre Iguodala, Harrison Barnes, and Shaun Livingston will have to maintain their high level of play to contain him. Ricky Rubio looks to be back after sitting out the last game with an injury, and he’s quite adept at running the offense and finding his young weapons.
Apr 11, 2015; Oakland, CA, USA; Minnesota Timberwolves guard Zach LaVine (8) smiles while talking with Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry (30) in the fourth quarter at Oracle Arena. The Warriors defeated the Timberwolves 110-101. Mandatory Credit: Cary Edmondson-USA TODAY Sports
If the T’Wolves do end up making the playoffs, and they play the Warriors in the first round, I don’t think that series will be much of a contest; the Warriors are simply too deep and Curry too good for a team like that to give them any trouble.
But on the second night of a back-to-back on the road? The Wolves have a couple of players — aside from the aforementioned Towns, Wiggins, and Rubio — capable of exploding: Zach LaVine and Kevin Martin. And they’re deeper than you think: LaVine, Gorgui Dieng, Nemanja Bjelica, Tayshaun Prince, and Tyus Jones round out a decent second unit. Could this be a “trap” game? Could the T’Wolves, bolstered by their home crowd, surprise the Warriors?
Perhaps, and, to me, it seems as though the T’Wolves has passed their days of swinging and missing in the draft; Towns looks like a star in the making, LaVine has flashed potential, and their acquisition of Andrew Wiggins was one of the shrewdest moves in recent NBA history.
Yes, they didn’t luck out like we did and get Steph Curry, the “Two-Time MVP” (what?! oh, another not-so-bold bold prediction); but they do have a very promising team in the making, a team we may very well see come June.