The play-in is upon us, and the Minnesota Timberwolves’ hopes of making the playoffs start with a contest against the newly healthy Los Angeles Clippers on Tuesday. Somewhat fortunately for the Wolves, they maintain their long-held position as the seventh seed in the West. That gives them the advantage of hosting the Clips in the Target Center, which has become an unwelcoming venue for Timberwolves opponents in recent vintage. Regardless of the result, this season is worth celebrating. It feels like a massive step in the right direction for a franchise that has spent much of the past two decades stepping in every direction but the right one.
In fact, this year’s turnaround has been one of miraculous fashion. Last season, the Wolves only won 23 games. Outside of the occasional fireworks by Anthony Edwards, the Wolves spent much of last year wallowing in abject obscurity. To many, it seemed, the Wolves were still a horrible franchise dealing with its latest mistake, trading valuable draft pick and future All-Star Andrew Wiggins for the oft-injured D’Angelo Russell. What a difference a year makes.
There is an energy about this team not unlike the energy surrounding the young and precocious Phoenix Suns after their stunning 8-0 run in the Bubble in 2020. The Suns had amassed 26 wins under first-year head coach Monty Williams entering the Bubble. That’s on pace for about 33 wins in a regular 82-game season. Before their Bubble performance, Phoenix’s play during the regular season was lackluster, and the young Suns looked like they had a ways to go before they were competitive. They traded for Chris Paul that offseason and their franchise’s outlook changed overnight.
When Chris Finch took over for Ryan Saunders in February 2021, the Timberwolves were in the midst of their own disappointing season. Minnesota finished the season on a 16-25 run in Finch’s initial stint with the team. It was an impressive accomplishment after the Wolves were only able to win seven games before Finch arrived. There is no confusion amongst the Wolves about how and why this team has improved so much. Many people around the team felt that they were ready to compete last year, but injuries, inexperience, and coaching instabilities hindered their ability to pull things together. Insert Finch, a few roster tweaks, and, voila, the Wolves are on the verge of the playoffs.
Like the Suns, bringing in a veteran point guard was one major move the Wolves made in the offseason. After the Wolves narrowly defeated the San Antonio Spurs — due to some late-game theatrics in a selfish attempt to get Edwards his first 50-point game — Karl-Anthony Towns was asked about ways that Patrick Beverley impacts the team defensively.
“I mean, I think a simple one is this: 23 wins last year, 46 wins this year. Impactful,” Towns said. “I don’t know what else to say. I mean, I think it’s pretty simple. The numbers speak for themselves. He does it all. He’s impacted our culture. Everything we wanted to do in the offseason when we were talking and everything as the leadership — just the way he’s instilled it in his own way has been amazing.”
Towns spoke glowingly of Beverley, his All-Defensive team candidacy, and everything he has done to help turn Minnesota’s fortunes around. “I mean, obviously his defense is first-team [All-Defense],” he said. “So I mean it’s not a question of what he can provide to a team. In the offseason, everyone thought it was kinda weird ya know, make a trade for Pat and look how it works out, perfect.”
Sure, Beverley may not have accrued the accolades or accomplishments that Chis Paul has amassed throughout his career, but the thing that links the two is the same thing that has helped the Wolves make a massive leap much as the Suns did. They’re both annoying as hell.
In all seriousness, aside from their shared propensity to get under their opponents’ skin, both players are similar in their mentality. They play every game like it matters, and they play to win. Towns and the Timberwolves have felt the Pat Bev effect.
“The winning he’s had in his career and he’s fortunate to [have] been on a lot of winning teams he brought the winning here,” Towns continued. “I mean, we could be up here all night giving flowers to Pat, but I think it’s pretty simple. The numbers speak for themself. His work speaks for itself, his character, his etiquette, his leadership, everything speaks for itself.”
The comparison to the Suns goes beyond one of Pat Bev and Chris Paul. Devin Booker and Karl-Anthony Towns have had parallels throughout their careers, going back to when they were teammates at Kentucky. I referenced an article written by The Ringer’s Dan Devine in which he compares the two, saying:
“In some ways, Towns has occupied the same space as his former Kentucky teammate and buddy Devin Booker: inarguably talented, but dismissed by some as a not-quite-star who puts up big numbers in games devoid of consequence on teams going nowhere. It took an undefeated run in the bubble, a subsequent sprint to the finals, and an even more impressive encore this season for Booker to get the flowers he deserves, and for some skeptics to admit that ‘He’s playing winning basketball now’ often really just means ‘His teammates and coach are better.'”
3-and-D extraordinaire Mikal Bridges and budding star Deandre Ayton flank Booker and Paul. With Jaden McDaniels working on his Mikal impression and Anthony Edwards’ star quickly dwarfing Ayton’s, the Wolves look primed for a postseason run. It would be a shock to see the Wolves make a run to the finals this year like the Suns did last season, but the foundation for a really good team is there. Beverley and Paul are on the back end of their careers, playing for teams that look to be competitors in the West for years to come.
