Minnesota Timberwolves are loaded for Grizzlies . . . , er, . . . bear.

Back to the drawing board

From the moment that the Minnesota Timberwolves were shown the door in the NBA Playoffs, the team has had to focus on those aspects where the team struggled. In the 2021-22 season, the Timberwolves were the top-ranked scoring offense, putting up 115.9 points per game. The second-ranked team, the Memphis Grizzlies, came in at 115.6 points per game.  The third-ranked NBA offense was that of the Milwaukee Bucks, a team that averaged 115.5 points per game.

But if you flipped that focus to opposing teams scoring, you will see that the Timberwolves were in a far different place. The top-ranked scoring defense, that of the Boston Celtics, allowed opponents to score just 104.5 points per game. The second-ranked scoring defense, the Dallas Mavericks, allowed just 104.7 points per game. The third-ranking NBA defense was that of the Golden State Warriors, a team that allowed just 105.5 points per game.

The NBA Championship series was held between the Celtics and the Warriors, two of the top three NBA defenses for the season.

That was no coincidence. Where did the top offenses rank defensively? The Timberwolves ended as the 25th-ranked defense. The Grizzlies ended as the 12th-ranked defense. Finally, the Milwaukee Bucks ended as the 19th-ranked defense.

The Grizzlies would advance to face the Golden State Warriors, a team that was as gently to them as the Grizzlies were to the Timberwolves, losing that series 4-2. The Warriors would advance and ultimately win the NBA Championship, again. The Warriors did so with outstanding defense, fantastic ball movement, and the ability to close out games when they needed to do so.