Things are coming together at just the right time for the Minnesota Timberwolves. This team has won 15 of their last 19 games overall, and they are poised to be in excellent position for the playoffs. There is still a massive crunch in the standings, and nothing is concrete. But Minnesota has given themselves the chance to get a favorable path in the postseason.
Not many would have seen this coming at the end of February when the Timberwolves had dropped six of eight games and there was no guarantee they made it to the playoffs at all. But after recovering from some bad injury luck, Minnesota has been playing its best basketball of the entire season, and they have plenty of people to thank. One of the biggest names that points to their success? Julius Randle.
Let's be honest: Randle was dealt a tough hand at the beginning of this season. He was coming off a significant injury and was struggling to adapt to playing on a new team in a new system. Any player would have have trouble under those circumstances.
Julius Randle has been thriving as of late
But since he returned from his injury, Randle has been at his best since he first donned a Wolves uniform. Thursday night against the Memphis Grizzlies was the latest instance of him playing to his strengths nearly perfectly, showing off his scoring power and finding his teammates as well. Randle finished with 31 points, 10 rebounds and five assists. It was just the third 30-point game Julius has logged since arriving in Minnesota.
Of note is the fact that this game was perhaps the best Anthony Edwards and Randle have looked as a duo. It was only the second time that both of the two have both scored 30+ in the same game, with the first coming way back in Game 2 of 82 against the Sacramento Kings, in October.
The hope is that this trend can continue right on in to the playoffs, where Edwards and Randle can reliably be the Timberwolves' top two scoring options. This pairing has had their moments this season, but the fact that they are both performing at this level one week before the playoffs could be a great sign of things to come.