The Minnesota Timberwolves have been a force to be reckoned with in the playoffs thus far. Despite battling a major case of the injury bug and being labeled as underdogs in every game they've played, they embarrassed the Denver Nuggets in six games, and currently have a 1-0 series lead against the two-seeded San Antonio Spurs. The relentlessness and fight that this Wolves team is playing with has their fans dreaming big.
The last time a six-seed won a championship was in 1995, when Hakeem Olajuwon and the Houston Rockets reached the mountaintop.
The Wolves have a ways to go, but they're playing with a fearlessness and swagger that seems borderline untouchable right now. With Anthony Edwards and Ayo Dosunmu coming back into the fold, the Wolves will have even more confidence that they can do the unimaginable.
The Timberwolves have a "won't back down from anyone" attitude
If we've learned anything about this team so far, it's that they aren't scared of any team or any player. Two of the most telling examples of this are when Jaden McDaniels called out the entire Nuggets rotation by name as bad defenders, and then went on to drop his career-high 32 points in the closeout game to send them home.
The other example is in this ongoing Spurs series. After Victor Wembanyama set an NBA playoff record with 12 blocks, the Wolves said in their postgame interview that they will continue to challenge him and that they won't play scared when going to the rim. It's easy to become jumper-happy against Wembanyama, but playing fearless will get them further, because, as Terrence Shannon Jr said, he isn't going to block it every time.
The whole team plays with a chip on their shoulder
Maybe the biggest reason to believe this team will win the championship is that all of them are playing with something to prove. Rudy Gobert has been wrongfully disrespected by players and the mainstream media throughout his career. Julius Randle has been labeled a playoff dropper. Naz Reid lost his Sixth Man of the Year award to Keldon Johnson, his opponent in this series. Need I go on?
Bones Hyland nearly didn't have an NBA job last offseason. Mike Conley has gone his whole 19-year career without winning a championship. Ayo Dosunmu's hometown team traded him. Lastly, the entire roster takes every matchup personally. They see the media not picking them to win a single series, and every time they prove them wrong.
On paper, maybe they aren't the most talented team, and maybe they aren't a championship favorite. But the heart and passion this team plays with every game is something that wears down opponents.
Lots of people are saying that this Wolves team is destiny's team, but will they prove their believers right?
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