5 bold predictions for the 2022-23 Minnesota Timberwolves
Expectations for the Minnesota Timberwolves are the highest they've been since Kevin Garnett, Latrell Sprewell, Sam Cassel and Wally Szczerbiak were starring inside Target Center, and with big expectations come bold predictions.
Here are five bold predictions for the 2022-23 Timberwolves.
1. Wolves win 60 games and are the No. 1 seed
Sixty wins seems crazy, but with arguably the most talented and deep roster in the entire league, this squad has the ability to dominate during the regular season. Sixty wins would top the franchise record of 58 set by the 2003-04 team and likely set the Wolves on top of the Western Conference.
There have been 12 teams to win 60-plus games in the past decade.
- Phoenix - 64 in 2021-22
- Milwaukee - 60 in 2018-19
- Houston - 65 in 2017-18
- Golden State - 67 in 2016-17
- San Antonio - 61 in 2016-17
- Golden State - 73 in 2015-16
- San Antonio - 67 in 2015-16
- Atlanta - 60 in 2014-15
- Golden State - 67 in 2014-15
- San Antonio - 62 in 2013-14
- Oklahoma City - 60 in 2012-13
- Miami - 66 in 2012-13
2. Wolves average 120 points per game
Crazy? Not really. They led the NBA at 115.9 points per game last season and they did that despite being one of the worst defensive rebounding teams in the league. With Rudy Gobert in the mix, the Wolves should limit second chances which in turn should lead to more offensive possessions.
And Gobert was sixth in the NBA in offensive rebounding last season, nearly a full offensive rebound more per game than Jarred Vanderbilt. All of that means more shots and more points for Minnesota.
Scoring has boomed in the NBA over the past decade, but only one team has averaged 120 points per game: the 2020-21 NBA champion Milwaukee Bucks, but they did that in a 72-game regular season.
3. Hello, Western Conference Finals
After experiencing how tough the playoffs are last season, there's no more excuses for the young-but-now experienced Timberwolves. It's Gobert's 10th year in the NBA, KAT's and D'Angelo Russell's eighth year and Year 3 for Anthony Edwards and Jaden McDaniels.
The West is stacked with the Warriors, Clippers, Suns, Grizzlies, Mavericks, Nuggets, Pelicans and Lakers. But if the Wolves earn the No. 1 seed, they'll be big favorites against the No. 8 seed and will again be favored in the conference semifinals.
It's not an easy road but if the Wolves stay healthy they'll only get better as the season goes along, and that means they could be an elite team capable of making a deep run in the Western Conference playoffs.
4. Wolves put 3 players in the All-Star Game
Gobert has been an All-Star the last three seasons and Towns has been an All-Star the past three seasons that he didn't suffer an injury. Both should be all-stars again, but who is the third?
Easy. Anthony Edwards.
Year 3 is when stars like Luka Doncic and Ja Morant took their teams to the next level, and there's no reason Edwards won't do the same for the Wolves. He's supposed to be the best player on the team and if he is he's a lock to be an All-Star.
Three players from one team is not unheard of. If fact, there have been a handful of times where four players from one team have made the All-Star Game, including in 2017 and 2018 when the Warriors sent Steph Curry, Kevin Durant, Klay Thompson and Draymond Green.
5. Jaylen Nowell wins sixth man award
Nowell has carved out a role as a backup guard and he's going to be one of the go-to scoring options virtually every time he's on the court. His ability to score from all three levels, which he's showcased this preseason, is going to be huge.
Nowell has lit it up this preseason, scoring 14, 13, 11 and 14 points, respectively, in four games. And he's taken 10-plus shots in three of the four games, so there's a clear signal that he'll be a gunner when he's on the court.
And if the Wolves are blowing bad teams away, Nowell will have an opportunity for more minutes to help pad his stats. That's a surface-y factor that shouldn't matter in the big picture, but it will help with voters who don't get to see him every game.
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Title: Bring Me The Sports co-owner, editor Email: joe@bringmethenews.com Twitter: @JoeBMTN Education: Southwest Minnesota State University Location: Minneapolis, Minnesota Expertise: All things Minnesota sports Nelson has covered Minnesota sports for two decades, starting his media career in sports radio. He worked at small market Minnesota stations in Marshall and St. Cloud before joining one of the nation's highest-rated sports stations, KFAN-FM 100.3 in the Twin Cities. There, he was the producer of the top-rated mid-morning sports show with Minnesota Vikings announcer Paul Allen. His radio experience helped blossom a career as a sports writer, joining Minneapolis-based Bring Me The News in 2011. Nelson and Adam Uren became co-owners of Bring Me The News in 2018 and have since more than tripled the site's traffic and launched Bring Me The Sports in cooperation with the Sports Illustrated/FanNation umbrella. Nelson has covered the Super Bowl and numerous training camps, NFL combines, the MLB All-Star Game and Minnesota playoff games, in addition to the day-to-day happenings on and off the field of play. Nelson also has extensive knowledge of non-sports subjects, including news and weather. He works closely with Bring Me The News meteorologist Sven Sundgaard to produce a bevy of weather and climate information for Minnesota readers. Nelson helped launch and manage the Bring Me The News Radio Network, which provided more than 50 radio stations around Minnesota with daily news, sports and weather reports from 2011-17.