Minnesota Timberwolves schedule release: First half schedule is rough

The Minnesota Timberwolves schedule came out late last week, and outside of actual NBA games with real, live NBA audiences in mostly-full arenas, there’s a lot to look forward to this season.

The first half of the Wolves 2021-22 schedule is going to be a genuine challenge. But if head coach Chris Finch’s squad can make it through the holidays, they have a winnable back-half of games awaiting.

Minnesota Timberwolves schedule release: First half schedule is rough

The Wolves could easily start the season 3-0. They open with a home game against the Houston Rockets before hosting a pair of home games against the New Orleans Pelicans, who are in a similar spot as the Wolves coming out of last season, with a mostly young roster that underachieved and has a lot to prove.

A good start is always important, but it appears to be vital this year. Just peek ahead at the stretch that follows.

Eight of the Wolves’ next 10 games are against Western Conference playoff teams from last year, and the ninth is against the (now healthy) Golden State Warriors. Only a Nov. 1 home date with the Orlando Magic appears to be a game in which the Wolves will be favored to win.

The back half of November becomes a bit easier to stomach, with games against the likes of Sacramento, San Antonio, Charlotte, and Indiana. But as shortly after the calendar flips to December, the heat gets turned up again.

In fact, December is arguably the toughest month of the season for the Wolves.

Here’s the list of road games: Washington, Brooklyn, Portland, Denver, Dallas, and Utah — all playoff teams from a year ago, and all except for Portland will be expected to return to the tournament this spring.

The only obvious cellar-dweller on the home schedule in December is the Cleveland Cavaliers. Otherwise, it’s something of a gauntlet: Atlanta, Utah, the Lakers, Dallas, Boston, and New York. Every one of those teams, save for the Knicks, could make a legitimate case as title contenders this year.

Frankly, the Wolves could escape the month with a 4-10 or 5-9 record and feel just fine about themselves, provided they put up a decent enough stretch of play in October and November.

Minnesota Timberwolves schedule release: Second half lightens up considerably

However, the second half of the Wolves schedule should turn out to be much easier.

Clearly, we’re projecting a little, looking ahead five-plus months at teams that we haven’t seen take the court yet. But every year doesn’t necessarily feature non-playoff teams such as the Atlanta Hawks and Phoenix Suns jumping into the conference finals, so this is a relatively safe exercise.

January could be tough, but February, March and April are all winnable months.

In February, the Wolves start with a home date against the Denver Nuggets before a home-and-home against the Detroit Pistons followed by a back-to-back at the Sacramento Kings. Then, it’s off to Chicago and Indiana, and then home games against Charlotte, Toronto, and Memphis.

It’s conceivable that the Wolves could go at least 6-3 during that stretch against mostly non-playoff teams from a year ago.

Then, after hosting the Philadelphia 76ers (Ben Simmons revenge game??), the Wolves head to Cleveland to cap off the month with another likely victory.

March feels like a month that the Wolves could play to a draw, but things get much easier in April as the season winds down, with games against Houston, San Antonio, and Chicago among their final five contests.

Frankly, having the schedule flipped wouldn’t be the worst thing, allowing the young roster to gain early-season confidence. At the same time, last year’s Hawks started slowly and fired their coach while dealing with myriad injuries. Clearly, those trials helped them down the stretch and in the playoffs.

Perhaps the Wolves can battle through the winter with a decent enough record to give themselves hope as they hopefully clean up in February, March and April and finish the year strong enough to earn a playoff berth for just the second time in 18 years.