Respected ESPN Analyst isn’t a believer in the Minnesota Timberwolves

Off to a 2-1 start after their win on the road against the Thunder, the Minnesota Timberwolves are shaping up to be every bit as good as expected. Of course, they’ve had some early troubles as well, but there’s only a matter of time until they reach their full potential.

Currently tied for third place in the Western Conference, the Timberwolves have the talent to finish near the top of the standings, and many have predicted them to do just that.

However, there’s no great team without doubters. As much as Minnesota has potential to be high achievers, some have questioned whether they’ll actually end up reaching that potential.

You can count ESPN Analyst JJ Redick as one of those doubters. On his podcast “The Old Man and the Three,” Redick revealed his predictions for the 2022-23 Western Conference standings. Shockingly, he had the Minnesota Timberwolves finishing eighth, and barely sneaking into the playoffs.

Redick joins list of Minnesota Timberwolves doubters

JJ Redick isn’t the first person to voice their disbelief in this Timberwolves group, but his prediction is a shocking revelation nonetheless. If Minnesota were to do what Redick expects, they would actually finish lower in the standings than they did last season, when they had a record of 46-36 and finished seventh.

This pick is even more surprising given Redick’s wide-reaching knowledge of basketball. After a 15-year pro career, Redick has come into the media sphere and impressed everyone with his exhaustive hoops intelligence.

While the Western Conference is extremely stacked, leaving the Timberwolves so far down in the standings doesn’t seem like a wise pick. It’s certainly a rare miss for the likes of JJ Redick.

Timberwolves will go as Anthony Edwards goes, says Redick

But one of the main reasons Redick gave for his pick was that he thinks the Timberwolves’ success will hinge on the development of Anthony Edwards. “When we start talking about young players potentially making big jumps like we saw from Ja Morant last year … those teams’ ceilings, to me, are dependent on those guys making that year two or year three leap,” said Redick.

While his argument makes sense in theory, Redick presents his point as if to say he doesn’t believe Edwards will make that necessary jump this year. We’ve already seen signs that isn’t the case, especially given his back-to-back 30-point games against the Jazz and Thunder.

If the Timberwolves can continue to build off Anthony Edwards’ growing game, they’ll be in position to turn Redick’s guess into a freezing cold take. This could be a very fun prediction to revisit later in the season.