The NBA has been rumored to expand for some time now, with Seattle and Las Vegas being the two cities to add new teams. With the possibility of adding two teams in the Western Conference, one team would have to move East. The Minnesota Timberwolves have long been considered one of the most likely candidates for this shift.
On Monday morning, Shams Charania of ESPN reported that the NBA board of governors is set to have its first vote on expansion next week. Last month, Brad Townsend of the Dallas Morning News reported that this vote could happen in the summer. However, this vote appears to be happening sooner than expected.
Shams also noted that there's momentum to approve these two expansion teams. Furthermore, Charania reported that the Timberwolves and Memphis Grizzlies are the two main candidates to move East. By all accounts, this is great news for Timberwolves fans.
According to Shams, these changes likely wouldn't go into effect until the 2028-29 season. Still, the Timberwolves possibly only having two more years in the West is great news.
Switching conferences would be a game-changer for the Timberwolves
The Timberwolves have a clear case to move conferences; they're one of the closest teams to the East and often travel some of the most miles in the league. Furthermore, five Eastern Conference teams (Milwaukee, Chicago, Cleveland, Detroit, and Indianapolis) are closer to Minneapolis than Oklahoma City, which is the closest team to them in the West.
The Timberwolves appear to be on the brink of title contention. However, doing so in the West with the Oklahoma City Thunder and San Antonio Spurs is difficult (perhaps even an impossible task). Considering how young these teams still are, things are even more challenging. That's not even to mention that the best player in the world, Nikola Jokic, resides out West. Teams like the Houston Rockets and Los Angeles Lakers might not be title threats this year, but they certainly could in the future.
Frankly, it's impressive that the Timberwolves have made two straight conference finals runs. With Anthony Edwards entering his true prime, the Wolves will always have a shot to win at the highest level. Regardless, there's no denying that doing so in the East will be easier.
Of course, there are still plenty of good teams in the East. The Boston Celtics, Detroit Pistons, and New York Knicks lead the pack. With all due respect, toppling these teams is easier than beating the Thunder or Spurs. Realistically, the Wolves could rule the East if they do switch conferences.
There are still plenty of moving parts, and as noted, we are a couple of years away from adding these new teams. Nevertheless, this update on expansion is undoubtedly a positive sign for Timberwolves fans.