The Wolves lost a heartbreaker in their first play-in game against the Los Angeles Lakers. Conley hit three free throws with just one-tenth of a second left in regulation to send the game to overtime. Unfortunately, despite those heroics, the game still resulted in a 108-102 loss.
Minnesota responded as good teams do, thrashing the Oklahoma City Thunder in their next play-in game 120-95. The win was largely thanks to their dominant big-man duo, as Rudy and KAT combined for 49 points and 21 rebounds.
Facing off against the Denver Nuggets in the first round, the Timberwolves lost the series 4-1 against the eventual NBA champions. This may look like Minnesota was never in the series, but as Bruce Brown said, they gave the Nuggets their toughest competition through that postseason, all while missing Naz Reid and McDaniels.
Past failures paved the way for later success
So why is all this important to renewed expectations going into the 2024-25 season? This shows that despite their recent 56-26 finish, no one expected that kind of stellar campaign from the Wolves. So now with a proven championship contender, where does the franchise go from here?
A conference finals appearance in no way guarantees a return to that stage, but it provides optimism to a franchise that has long been craving to be one of the league's elite teams. Take the 2020-21 Atlanta Hawks for example. That squad made the conference finals built around a budding superstar and lost to the Milwaukee Bucks, who went on to hoist the Larry O’Brien.
Many thought with a young franchise cornerstone along with pieces that fit his playstyle, Atlanta would only build on the success they had. Yet three years removed from that success, the Hawks have descended into a perennial play-in squad that just landed the number one overall pick.
The Western Conference remains stacked
This is not meant to be pessimistic, but realistic. The league is more talented than ever, with several teams each year that could seemingly go on to win the NBA Finals.
The Timberwolves are in a loaded Western Conference, with teams like the Thunder, Kings, Mavericks, and Pelicans all improving this offseason. This doesn’t account for teams like the Nuggets, Suns, Lakers, and Clippers who were all just in the playoffs.