The 4-36 Detroit Pistons nearly humiliated the Minnesota Timberwolves on Wednesday night. Detroit whittled Minnesota’s double-digit lead down to six points with just under four minutes to play with a Jaden Ivey three. The Timberwolves had dismantled the Portland Trail Blazers and took care of the ascending Los Angeles Clippers. But they were in a dogfight against the Pistons, who are on pace to become the worst team in NBA history.
Still, a little distress from an opponent that wasn’t expected to be much of an obstacle is no problem for this Wolves squad. They quickly put the game out of reach with a few timely three-pointers before eventually notching their 29th win of the season, 124-117. But that poise under pressure against an inferior opponent hasn’t always been Minnesota’s M.O.
Last year, the Timberwolves couldn’t figure out how to beat the bad teams on the way to a disappointing 42-40 finish and first-round playoff exit. The Wolves were 25-22 against teams .500 and above but just 17-18 against teams below .500. They were 5-7 against the four worst teams in the league, including two losses to Detroit. But the struggles of a team missing Karl-Anthony Towns for 52 games and straining to integrate Rudy Gobert into the scheme seem to be a thing of the past.
Minnesota is a near pristine 12-2 against teams below .500 this year. If you chalk up the early-season losses to the Toronto Raptors and Atlanta Hawks to the randomness of a new season, they have no real bad losses on the resumé. The Timberwolves are a clean 4-0 with an average margin of victory of 11 points in games against the league’s clear-cut bottom five (the Detroit Pistons, Washington Wizards, San Antonio Spurs, Charlotte Hornets, and Portland Trail Blazers). That doesn’t include a pair of dominant wins against the Ja Morant-less Memphis Grizzlies — the first win by 22 points, the second a 24-point win.
These wins are part of why the Wolves have held the top seed in the Western Conference since November 19. They will also play an important part as the Wolves enter the second half of the season, with only three games separating the Wolves and the fourth-placed Clippers.
Suppose the Wolves had gone 4-0 against the 17-65 Pistons and 22–60 Spurs last season instead of 0-4. Then they would have been the fourth seed in the West and hosted a first-round playoff series. They could have potentially reached the second round for only the second time in the franchise’s 35-year history.
Instead, they lost to the Los Angeles Lakers in the first play-in game before beating the Oklahoma City Thunder in a do-or-die matchup and making the playoffs as the eighth seed. They went on the road, and the eventual champion Denver Nuggets handled them in five games. That’s the difference between taking care of business against the tanking teams and allowing them to do the one thing they don’t want to do — win and jeopardize their draft position.
The Timberwolves will have ample opportunity to pad their win total and beat up on the NBA cellar dwellers in the second half of the schedule. Minnesota has the third-easiest strength of schedule remaining. They have nine games remaining against the bottom-five teams: three against the Trail Blazers, two against the Wizards and Spurs, and one against the Pistons and Hornets.
Every game matters for a franchise looking for tangible playoff success for the first time in 20 years. The Timberwolves have hit every checkpoint of a team looking to contend for a title. But with the franchise history that the Wolves have, the naysayers will always be quick to doubt their legitimacy. The tough wins against the Boston Celtics, Philadelphia 76ers, and Nuggets feel good. But any bad losses to a tanking team will instantly wipe all the goodwill and good vibes away.
The Timberwolves are on pace to win just under 60 games this season and secure the top seed in the West for the first time since 2004. They posted the second-best record through 40 games in franchise history. (The Wolves were 30-10 through 40 games in 2001-02). They have three All-Star caliber players and arguably the most talented roster in the NBA. All signs point to one of the greatest, most cathartic years of basketball ever played in the Twin Cities since the Lakers left. But Wolves sickos know all the good vibes can be undone by one lackluster show against a team starting a bunch of anonymous players.
This Wolves team is maturing one step at a time. By vanquishing the bad teams early in the season, they’re giving fans hope for a brighter, less anxious future.
