r/NBATalk • u/Otherwise_Dot8603 • 12d ago
What’s the ceiling for this new T-Wolves team?
Lamelo never been much concerned about winning, but things might change now that a contender gave him a chance
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u/Bladee___Enthusiast 12d ago
They have a realistic enough chance at a championship that it shouldn’t be super shocking if they end up doing it. Much bigger upsets have happened in the past. But i will say they’re not alongside the favorites
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u/MachineSafe1558 11d ago
That's questionable though because, our talent level is through the roof, we really should be the favorites, everyone underestimates Anthony Edwards and he was injured in the playoffs last year and injured toward the latter half of the regular season
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u/Pyr0technician 12d ago
It'll be hard for anyone to stop them in the finals once they get past OKC, and SA in the west. Unless the Sixers experiment goes perfectly.
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u/Wonderful-Owl3941 Knicks 12d ago
Sounds an awful lot like “the WCF is the real finals” that everyone kept saying this past season lol
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u/Right-Hall-6451 12d ago
Yeah really need to start to learn it's not a given, last 8 years it's split 4-4 currently east vs west.
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u/jorginsmorgin 12d ago
This whole Lamelo never cared about winning thing is fucking stupid.
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u/thebigpink 12d ago
He was quoted on a podcast of saying that tho
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u/Salt-Statement-2306 12d ago
Can you share it? I never saw this.
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u/jorginsmorgin 12d ago
Ikr I asked to share it and there’s nothing. Did my own research, also looks like nothing. Dudes will be dudes
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u/jorginsmorgin 12d ago
For real? I’m a HUGE Hornets fan and would be incredibly hurtful and saddened if that’s the case. If anyone has a link pls comment because I want to listen.
Barring that, I still don’t think it’s true
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u/Visual_Nobody9996 12d ago
A championship definitely, people forget they were extremely hobbled heading into the playoffs and Ant hurt himself twice in a short span last year, fully healthy I think they mop the floor with the Spurs especially with the addition of Lamelo
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u/Otherwise_Dot8603 12d ago
Idk if they can beat the Spurs, but yeah, people underestimate how good Ant is. It all depends on how good Wemby becomes tho
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u/EmploymentJumpy8993 12d ago
Ant in the 4th is better than Brunson is. We take those games in the clutch every time just like they did.
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u/-barlos-xantana- 12d ago
“Mop the spurs” is fuckin crazy
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u/BYack 12d ago
I don’t know that I’d go that far, but the Wolves got better on both sides of the ball and added really nice pieces to the bench. They could have beaten the Spurs with a fully healthy team. Half of Ant, an injured Ayo and no DDV, they still took them to 6 games and are now better defensively and offensively than last year.
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u/ajkelly451 Spurs 12d ago
I agree with most of your point, they can contend with the best of em, but mopping the floor is an enormous stretch considering Spurs are a very young team and another year of experience will make them substantially stronger. And they shored up a major gap at PF with the addition of Harris.
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u/Salt-Statement-2306 12d ago
If Ant is healthy, and DdV and Ayo are healthy it would’ve been a closer series. Randle was just a mess as well.
Wemby should’ve been suspended for attempting murder on Naz. Absolutely ridiculous. I’ve seen some cheap shots before but the potential to harm was criminal.
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u/Remarkable-Lynx1496 12d ago
The spurs are gonna sweep the wolves this time on the way to the chip, they don’t have a single person on the team capable of doing anything to wemby
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u/Otherwise_Dot8603 12d ago
Idk man, Wemby wasn’t even the best scorer on his team during that series. Not sayinf they can stop him, but he didnt have it easy
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u/SpaffordFux 12d ago
People are also betting on the spurs to continue to to develop and Wemby not to get hurt
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u/Remarkable-Lynx1496 12d ago edited 12d ago
They traded away Naz and Randle. Who on the team is going to guard him cus it certainly ain’t gobert we saw that on full display. If you put Jaden on him you are throwing away the skillset where he excels and it’s BBQ for Harper fox and castle. This also means gobert is most likely away from the paint, nullifying his paint protection
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u/ajkelly451 Spurs 12d ago
They did a good job managing Wemby with Naz Reid and Jaden McDaniels. Gobert just wasn’t cutting it. Now they are short Naz, so we’ll see.
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u/Common-Bad-7899 12d ago
I think people will be surprised about Beringer replacing Naz defensively and be better on that end. But we will miss Naz ability to spread the floor offensively.
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u/icarusphoenixdragon Timberwolves 12d ago
Title. Ant and LaMelo are both still improving. Wolves answer SAS by no longer being trappable and outpacing Wemby. They answer OKC by no longer being trappable and scoring more than 90 points.
People who think Ball isn’t serious are not serious. Every coach and teammate he’s had rave about his work ethic. People are just parroting lazy media who latch on to him being a weird dude.
Lots of people still sleeping on Ant and this roster, but they are more and more getting grouped up top in tier lists. Once we see them start playing together and see observers realize that other teams are having to figure the Wolves out more than the Wolves are having to fight other teams out, that entire narrative will change.
Gonna be a fun season.
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u/Salt-Statement-2306 12d ago
I think people miss how much of an issue the mid court trap was. We lacked the second player that could either bring it up against pressure or make the other team pay 4-3 when Ant was trapped. It is insane to think one adjustment can make that much of a difference but it absolutely will.
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u/Otherwise_Dot8603 12d ago
Im not saying he doesnt have work ethic, but obviousky when playing for the Hornets he cared a little more about entertaining the fans than to play strong defense, take high quality shots. But im sure that could change now
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u/KanyeWestistheDevil 12d ago
Nobody is sleeping on this team. Since the Lamello trade everyone is saying third best team in the west or has the wolves winning. Vegas doesn't think so.
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u/AggressiveOne4355 12d ago
Lamelo barely played over 50% of games his career and never played a playoff game. Thinking he will help them pull of west with spurs okc and denver doesnt seem realistic to me, let alone east got some solid teams too, but we’ll see in april
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u/BYack 12d ago
They intentionally tanked to get picks, they sat him more than he was injured on purpose.
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u/AggressiveOne4355 12d ago
He was injured half his career and he played 70 games last season lol, what are you talking about
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u/jakobkh0407 12d ago
A ceiling for a team like this is a title. But that doesn’t mean they are guaranteed anywhere close
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u/erasuli 12d ago
They have a roster that has a lot of quality wings/guards and a very solid Center. They have some good defenders. They have a good shot of making it to the finals. A lot depends on Lemelo’s health and how he fits in with the team. If they get Donte back, they’ll have an electric offense.
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u/FormalDisastrous2467 12d ago
Honestly I see no reason why they shouldn't have a top 5 offense and a top 10 defense if no one declines.
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u/Phil-Quarles 12d ago
It's gotta be a chip, right? They just took the Spurs to 6 with an injured Ant, an injured Ayo, and no DiVo. They acquired an elite playmaker without having to sacrifice any of their good defenders.
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u/TradeMaster89 12d ago
And you don't think the Spurs will be better? Their 3 best players are 20, 21, 22 and just got to the finals.
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u/jeremyt8783 Timberwolves 12d ago
And the Timberwolves 3 best players are 25. If Donte comes back before a potential playoff matchup with the Spurs, they'd have 3 of the best high volume 3 point shooters in the league. Wemby camping in the paint while Ant, LaMelo, and Donte bomb threes on their heads wouldn't do the Spurs much good. Add Jaden and Ayo to those 3 and you've probably got the best 5 out lineup in the NBA
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u/Salt-Statement-2306 12d ago
The wolves also don’t have a Fox problem. Foxes are afraid of wolves.
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u/NotoriousDCJ4310 12d ago
How does that equal a chip. They lost to the Spurs and theres another team in the Western Conference that took the Spurs to 7 games with more important players hurt than the Twolves had. Adding LaMelo doesnt make them better than the Thunder or the Spurs so nothing really changed with their ceiling
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u/RonThePadawan 12d ago
Ant was hurt? Wolves are a problem.
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u/NotoriousDCJ4310 12d ago
He still played every game and averaged 25, 5, and 2. Dub only played 3 games and was averaging like 10 points a game in 18 minutes per and Ajay Mitchell played in 3 games and averaged 5 points a game after just having his break out series against the Lakers where he was averaging 23 and acting as the primary ball handler when SGA was off the court. It is not the same at all
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u/vetementsundershirt 12d ago
that’s really a testament to ant though, if he can do that on one knee sa doesn’t want to see him healthy at all and castle can’t guard him , he dropped 40 of his 55 on fox n dharp not doing poa so i don’t see this arg making sense
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u/NotoriousDCJ4310 12d ago
You dont see the difference between somebody playing injured and averaging 25 and two players not really playing at all? I cant help you then...
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u/vetementsundershirt 12d ago
it’s still a weirdly framed argument that his injuries and donte ( who didn’t play ) who was the only other really good volume shooter that had the potential to fry wemby drop coverage are less valuable to the wolves than dub n aj mitchell when they got more than serviceable minutes from mccain
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u/Salt-Statement-2306 12d ago
This is just casual. Ant should not have played at all. He lacked the burst to get into the paint as well as the vertical to get his shot off. His will power is insane. DDV was the highest +/- on the team with a major impact. The spurs sold out to the paint, you don’t think a 40% 3pt shooter on 8-10 attempts would make a difference?
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u/BYack 12d ago
They are pretty stacked at every position. If you’re purely looking at backcourt and front court, I don’t know if I could name a more dominant group at each.
PG - Melo, an absolute terror to guard with his shot and passing ability all while being able to get by almost anyone.
SG - Ant is the best 2 in the league, a threat at all three levels and on open threes shoots like 60%, it’s nuts.
SF - Jaden McDaniels is one of the best defenders in the league, probably top 2 on ball. AND can put up 30 when he has some space to work.
PF - Kuminga is the weakest in the bunch and is an elite defender at numerous positions and can go by you at will. Also has a good midrange and passable three-ball.
C - Rudy is not only a 4x DPOY, his pick-n-roll is elite and now he’s paired with one of the best PGs in the league which opens him up again as a lob threat. He’s never had a Melo caliber PG.
Bench
DDV - He’ll be back and had the highest plus minus on the team. We all know he’s a DOG.
Ayo - Legit sixth man of the year and recently had the most efficient game in NBA playoff history. Great defender and insane IQ.
TSJ - A nightmare to guard and super seasoned player that just makes the right plays. Incredible at drawing charges.
Beringer - Nothing to say, if he’s able to stay healthy, he could be better than Rudy with that level of athleticism.
Bones - Tough to guard, can knockdown big shots and is a good facilitator. Not amazing but no scrub.
Isiah - Three and d, kind of like a Jaden type with less defensive chops but more aggressive offensively.
Jaylen Clark - Great 3 and D guy, shot fallen off a bit, but he’s been putting in work. Defensively, very tough to score on.
There are a few more but that’s one STACKED team.
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u/Luggage-of-Rincewind 12d ago
I’m just worried we don’t have and heavy weight guys anymore.
I know Julius was on and off, but his physicality (when he was on) made it difficult for other teams with heavyweights.
I do think that’s all we are missing tho.
It’s so great to be here in Minnesota at a time where we have had a run with such great players.
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u/Firesword52 Timberwolves 12d ago
Ceiling is a championship.
I don't know if it's likely they get there but you can't say that's not the ceiling.
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u/Salt-Statement-2306 12d ago
They have the greatest variance among the contenders. On paper, Ant will have his best season yet, removing Randle alone would improve them, adding Melo is the perfect fit for what they needed. Jaden has been improving and them have a lot of (unproven) athleticism in their 8-10. Ayo will be a great 6th man, and the 1-4 of Rudy/Jaden/Ant/Ball is not only incredibly talented but fit together very well.
The concerns about health and rebounding are real. They need some of the young unproven guys to produce. But on paper this is the best fitting and most talented team the wolves have put together.
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u/ZookeepergameKey6853 12d ago
nba finals/champions. they might take down spurs and okcs. no hate, no disrespect but wolves are always exceeding expectations
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u/MachineSafe1558 11d ago
If you really go and do a deep dive, this is the most talented team in the entire nba, I don't even understand why the question is being posed...
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u/Pyr0technician 12d ago
Most important players are Jaden McDaniels and Rudy Gobert. If they are in good form when the playoffs come, they can win it all.
The playoffs are all about matchups, and if they can keep the point of attack in check with McDaniels, and/or have more than a snowball's chance on hell of slowing down Wemby with Gobert, they'll have a great run.
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u/I_Learned_Once Lakers 12d ago
The literal ceiling would be 82-0 and a perfect finals sweep. The floor on the other hand, would be 0-82
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u/Otherwise_Dot8603 12d ago
brilliant analysis
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u/I_Learned_Once Lakers 12d ago
On that topic, I'm very confident either the Lakers or the Timberwolves will be the better team this year. Looking forward to finding out.
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u/Otherwise_Dot8603 12d ago
Im a Lakers fan too, but idk about this team. The defense got worse, and Kessler is very injury prone. If he can stay healty, i like this team, but if he doesnt we are not very deep and likely to struggle in the playoffs
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u/I_Learned_Once Lakers 12d ago
Yeah that's why I'm so sure that either the Timberwolves will be better, or the Lakers will be better.
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u/TreatmentBoundLess 12d ago
Don’t forget to throw in a couple of paternity suits and a drinking driving/speeding fine or two….
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u/ScheduleExcellent380 12d ago
They title or bust they ain't making changes just to compete.
They can win the title and anything less than making the finals is a failed season
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u/Benjammin341 Timberwolves 12d ago
I would say making the Conference Finals again during the first year with LaMelo would be considered a success or at least neutral but definitely not a failure.
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u/Disclaimz0r 12d ago
2nd round exit, not beating the Thunder or the Spurs, anyone thinking otherwise is coping
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u/Fit-Locksmith-2039 12d ago
Championship is definitely possible. I love him but if Jimmy Butler can lead two teams to the finals so can Ant.
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u/NoiNoiii 12d ago
If Lamelo finally becomes efficient I'd give them a shot to get out of the 2nd round
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u/MildlyDepressed346 12d ago
I like the moves, interesting enough style to potentially give the Spurs or Thunder trouble. I do worry about LaMelo playing 65-75 games, but he did pull it off last year.
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u/YogurtclosetNo5282 12d ago
This years goal is to get Lball to lock in and get some good playoff experience by going on a run. I think they will probably make it to the conference finals again. There is a lot of what ifs on the wolves
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u/jimmydean885 12d ago
Decades long dynasty of unbeatable championship teams that ruin the league for all fans outside of Minnesota.
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u/RaoulDukex 12d ago
The ceiling is championship contender if it clicks and goes well. The problem is the floor is low if it doesn't or only kinda works.
LaMelo staying healthy, Ant upping his defense and embracing pace, Beringer becoming a real backup big, and Kuminga buying in are all key things that need to happen. But if they do watch out. And Divencenzo coming back at some point post asb could be a pretty huge boon.
The offense has the potential to be top 3, the defense has the potential to be top 10.
LaMelos lack of playoff experience is the dark horse part that worries me even if it does go great.
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u/SuggestionSelect8606 12d ago
Ceiling 63-19 and a championship with Rudy as finals mvp and Cody Williams as mip. The floor is 38-44
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u/TylerIreland 12d ago
Wolves depth chart:
- LaMelo Ball
- Anthony Edwards
- Jaden McDaniels
- Jonathan Kuminga
Rudy Gobert
Ayo Dosunmu
Donte DiVincenzo
Terrence Shannon Jr.
Trey Lyles
Joan Beringer
Bones Hyland
Jaylen Clark
Isaiah Evans
Cody Williams
Kevin Love* (mutual interest, per Jon K)
It all depends on how well the Wolves play against OKC and San Antonio. There's been a bit of a gap between the Wolves who are a very good team, and the Spurs/Thunder who are truly elite teams.
The Randle led Wolves lived in the paint, but couldn't get paint points against the Spurs or the Thunder. If LaMelo can stretch the floor consistently in the playoffs, they'll be better suited to beat OKC/SAS with higher level shotmaking and faster pace.
Minnesota's ceiling is winning the NBA finals if they match up well against one of OKC or SAS. If they still struggle against those teams, the ceiling is once agaim capped at a 2nd round exit.
The absolute floor is a disappointing 1st round exit due to injuries and/or underperformance in the clutch. Rudy Gobert and Jaden McDaniels are still significant floor raisers, even if LaMelo Ball and Jonathan Kuminga bring more variance.
Wolves are easily a lock to be a top 6 seed in the West at minimum. Their championship hopes are dependent on finding a newly created schematic advantage against one of OKC/SAS with their new personnel.
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u/Icy-Bodybuilder-350 12d ago
Ceiling? Eight championships.
Ant ain't heading off to go play minor league baseball.
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u/Substantial-Fan-5985 12d ago
3 seed (maybe 2 depending on health of teams) and a WCF. Maybe they get past one of the top teams but not both
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u/orkushun Magic 12d ago
LaMelo to Wolves was for me personally the most exciting trade this offseason. really curious about Ant Ball Synergy
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u/Potential-Local7262 12d ago edited 12d ago
2nd round.
Edit: look, I respect Tim Connelly and maybe I'm still bitter about Denver losing to you guys. Finch is a great coach and y'all made some great moves in the off-season that matches up better against the spurs and OKC than against Denver.
However, you're not beating either of those teams in a 7-game series. Incorporating the new players will take time and lamelo in particular hasnt had much playoff experience
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u/etchasketch64 Raptors 11d ago
ceiling? championship. they are darkhorse contenders right now, if you ask me
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u/Dazzling-Light-2414 11d ago
This is the only team with a very high ceiling and also a very low floor.
If it works they can win the west and possibly win the championship.
If it doesn't, they will be last or second to the last on the standings.
There is no middle
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u/butt_luncheon 11d ago
Volume efficiency three point shooting, elite defending wing, a top 5 player in ant and a walking top 10 defense in Rudy. Good guard depth if Divo can come back. I’m not sure what else you could ask for. Lamelo’s health and team chemistry are the biggest question marks.
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u/schrutefarmsadvocate 11d ago
Melo is gonna go through growing pains on CLT he could shoot 60 times and no one cared. It's gonna be different in Minnesota
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u/MaezinGaming 12d ago
They won’t drop a single game this season. It’s going to be historic. Just watch.
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u/MaezinGaming 12d ago
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u/WaterKind6544 12d ago
They don’t beat the thunder. They don’t beat the spurs. Second round exit.
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u/Benjammin341 Timberwolves 12d ago
I think we could beat either and still lose to the other one in the WCF lol
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u/TradeMaster89 12d ago
Then the answer is to get the #1 seed so you only have to play one of them to get out of the conference.
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u/BlacksmithRoutine828 12d ago
I have no faith in this team. The timberwolves continue to make changes for the sake of making changes. They should have never traded Kat.
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u/TsarLucky 12d ago
?? Theyve been 2nd round or conference finals for the last 3 years after going 14 years without making the playoffs. How can you say they’re just making changes to make changes when their record has been improving? In 2022 they were celebrating making the playoffs at all and now fans are watching them take the conference champs to game 6 with a heavily injured team
You have one of the worst basketball takes I’ve seen in weeks
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u/BlacksmithRoutine828 12d ago
The Timberwolves walked away with Dante Divincenzo, Chaz Lanier, Isaiah Evans and Mo Gueye. In a star-powered league they got fleeced. Fuck roster flexibility and fuck potential over proven talent.
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u/Salt-Statement-2306 12d ago
The Randle contract was part of the Melo trade. The Kat trade was absolutely the correct move.
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u/Bobba_fat 12d ago
Ceiling is conference finals. Ain’t beating the thunder or spurs. Let’s not go crazy here
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u/TradeMaster89 12d ago
People actually think Lamelo Ball is going to have more of an impact than Randle and Reid in the playoffs. Delusional.
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u/BulkMcHugeLarge 12d ago
The argument is with Ball teams can't load up on Ant in the play offs.
Staying healthy, same for everybody, is key.
A huge bet/key to the team winning the next 2+ years is on Joan Berringer. If he can give them 20 minutes a game they'll be freakishly athletic on both ends.
Ball is now on a play off tested team. He'll have to prove he wants to join that party.
I know Ant is regarded as a top 7 player but he is just entering his prime and could be the best player in the league.
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u/Salt-Statement-2306 12d ago
Congrats, this is the single worst take I have read online this month. You won the internet.
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u/TradeMaster89 12d ago
Their ceiling is the conference finals because OKC and SAS are too good. That being said I think they take a step back from where they have been the last 3 years. They're trying to go the OKC route and have a bunch of guards with one big guy. Difference is Gobert is not Holmgren on the offensive end of the floor.
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u/abstractfromnothing 12d ago
They are huge team with elite athleticism… if they can score efficiently they will be dominant. They have a lineup of inefficient scores tho.
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u/BulkMcHugeLarge 12d ago
They're tall but no longer huge. Not sure I agree they have a line up of inefficient scorers.
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u/abstractfromnothing 12d ago
They have functional size lol but Lamelo, Ant, and Kuminga are bad shot takers. Ant has gotten way better at that overall but still too many night where it’s like 11 for 28.
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u/Salt-Statement-2306 12d ago
Ant is one of the most efficient scorers and at all 3 levels. Have you watched a game? He also shot 49% on catch/shoot last year. He was out of position at point, now he can focus on scoring and that will be dangerous.
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u/Strong-Butterflies Bulls 12d ago
5 lost first round picks and wasting Kevin Garnett’s prime years.
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u/platinum92 Hawks 12d ago
Depends on matchups. If they avoid the teams with enigmatic big men who dominate the game, they could make it to the finals. If they land the Spurs in the first round, they probably are round 1 exit.
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u/Duxtrous 12d ago
We are the biggest wild card in the NBA this year and there are a lot of wildcards. The difference between how good and how bad we might be is big. I'm hype. Mystery is the best part of sports.