Timberwolves next opponent gave team control of own destiny

The Minnesota Timberwolves (40-40) have climbed back to .500 with a surprising win over the Brooklyn Nets (43-36) on the road on Tuesday, April 4, 2023. That win was impressive indeed, as it halted another three-game losing streak by the Timberwolves and managed to salvage faint hopes of at least competing in the NBA Play-In Tournament to try to earn a berth in the NBA Playoffs.

But not all of the Timberwolves’ future relies upon their own control, as the NBA Western Conference has a tightly packed group of contenders who are all in the hunt for postseason play. And so, the Timberwolves are down to two games, and since Wednesday, April 5, 2023, have autonomous control over their chances at making the NBA Play-In Tournament:

I like how things are setting up for the Timberwolves right now

Timberwolves final standings

But what of their final standings? Is there hope for a Timberwolves team that has seemingly taken two steps forward followed by two steps backward all season? I think so, yes. In fact, the Timberwolves will at least make it as far as the NBA Play-In Tournament this season. That’s quite a bit better than it appeared at one point in this adversity-filled 2022-23 NBA season, isn’t it?

Still, the dramatic finish seems to be the perfect finale to a drama-filled season, doesn’t it? After all, this is a team that played over half of the season without the benefit of arguably one of the team’s best players in Karl-Anthony Towns. It’s also a team that has had to recast the starting lineup at the point guard position at the NBA Trade Deadline, swapping PG D’Angelo Russell for veteran point guard Mike Conley. But even with all these changes, or in spite of them, the Timberwolves can compete in the NBA Playoffs if the dominos all fall the right way.

Let’s look at the final scenarios that await the Timberwolves.