The Golden State Warriors still have work to do to advance past their first-round series against the Houston Rockets, having suffered a blowout 131-116 loss in Game 5 at Toyota Center on Wednesday.
However, the Warriors' path through the Western Conference has become clearer as the Minnesota Timberwolves sensationally secured their berth through to the second-round at Crypto.com Arena on Wednesday night.
LeBron James, Luka Doncic and the third-seed Los Angeles Lakers were ultimately no match for the size and depth of the Timberwolves squad, with a 103-96 win in Game 5 clinching a surprise 4-1 series victory.
The Warriors will play the Timberwolves in the second-round should they beat the Rockets
Minnesota will now await the result of the Golden State-Houston series, with little doubt that they'll be hoping it extends as far as a Game 7 on Sunday given the physical and hard-fought nature of the battle to date.
Should the Warriors make it past the Rockets with a Game 6 victory at Chase Center on Friday -- or a Game 7 win back in Houston -- it will make for a tantalizing second-round matchup full of storylines.
At the top of those would be a grudge match between Golden State veteran Draymond Green and long-time rival Rudy Gobert. The French big man was incredibly underwhelming through the first four games against the Lakers, but made up for it with a huge performance in Game 5.
Gobert had a monstrous 27 points, 24 rebounds, two blocks and was a game-high +18 in Minnesota's close out win, having done so despite entering averaging just 3.5 points and 6.3 rebounds during the series.
Green and Gobert have had a long-running feud as arguably the two greatest defenders of their generation, with the rivalry reaching a tipping point early last season when Green was suspended five games for getting Gobert in a chokehold.
Not that the 4x NBA champion needs any more motivation in trying to send Houston packing, but you just know that Green would be licking his lips at the thought of facing Gobert again across a full playoff series.
A second-round matchup would also see Golden State come up against former guard Donte DiVincenzo who left the team after one season in 2023, before being traded by the New York Knicks to the Timberwolves last October.
There's little point the Warriors putting any attention towards the Timberwolves just yet though, with the team needing to respond from Wednesday's disaster with a focused effort against the Rockets on Friday.
A Golden State win on Friday would have them head to Minnesota for Game 1 at Target Center on Monday, otherwise the winner of Game 7 on Sunday would face a short turnaround to seeing the Timberwolves next Tuesday.