NBA Draft: Red Hot Timberwolves topics for next 24 hours
By Bret Stuter
I: How much better have the Timberwolves become?
The toughest part for fans of gauging the improvement in the team is tracking that improvement throughout the course of last season. After all, it was not until the team traded for veteran point guard Mike Conley Jr. that the Timberwolves roster began to show up on both ends of the basketball court.
So all things remaining the same, we should and can expect improvement in the team simply from that fact alone. But that is just the tip of the iceberg.
We have to believe that this team will get more than 29 games out of Karl-Anthony Towns this year. That is a huge boost to the team from last year. And even the fact that the team endured so many injuries and still earned a playoff berth means quite a lot. Players who normally do not get many minutes were counted on to deliver, and did, under tough conditions. That experience from top to bottom on the roster now carries over to this year.
Familiarity will lead to success this year
One point that cannot be stressed enough is the fact that the Timberwolves were still making introductions to one another well into the start of the season. And that impacted how effectively this team could be coached and how well in-game adjustments could help the team.
This year, the players and coaches are all quite familiar with one another. And they are all compatible at a minimum, and optimally friendly with one another. That is a huge improvement over a year ago when the team not only contended with injuries but the fact that D’Angelo Russell was none too pleased to compete with Rudy Gobert. It was so bad for the Timberwolves that the team rerouted the point guard role through power forward Kyle Anderson.
No matter who the Timberwolves add in the 2023 NBA Draft, this team has every reason to be confident in a better season this year. But that is the entree for the Timberwolves.
light. Hot. 2023 NBA Draft: Timberwolves focus on a trio of rookies
The draft is the spice. It’s the draft results that will leave a sweet or sour taste in the mouths of fans. It’s the draft that will start the optimism or pessimism for this team as they turn to a new NBA season. Are you ready for the draft? Well ready or not, here we go . . .