Timberwolves will travel more than any other NBA team next season

The Wolves will get a lot of frequent flyer miles in 2024-25.

May 30, 2024; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; Minnesota Timberwolves head coach Chris Finch at a press conference before game five of the western conference finals for the 2024 NBA playoffs against the Dallas Mavericks at Target Center. / Jesse Johnson-USA TODAY Sports

The NBA released the entire 2024-25 schedule and it was exciting for the Timberwolves, as they will be regularly featured on national TV. However, they will also travel more miles than any other team in the league.

According to sports analytics database Positive Residual, Minnesota will travel 49,900 miles this season. The Phoenix Suns are the next closest at 48,900.

NBA 24/25, Most Miles Traveled (via @presidual)

1. MIN 49,900
2. PDX 48,900
3. SAC 47,500
4. GSW 46,100
5. LAC 45,600

26. PHI 37,900
27. CHA 36,000
28. WAS 35,400
29. DET 35,000
30. TOR 34,900

— Alan Horton (@WolvesRadio) August 17, 2024

The Timberwolves have always been one of the most eastern-based franchises in the NBA's Western Conference, along with the Memphis Grizzlies and New Orleans Pelicans. But while those teams play in a division with three nearby Texas teams, the Wolves are at least 800 miles away from every other team in the West.

If anything can be taken away from this, it's that the Wolves should be at the top of the list of teams to join the Eastern Conference if the NBA eventually expands with potential franchises in Las Vegas and Seattle. Their air travel would be cut down significantly if they were in the East with nearby teams like Milwaukee, Chicago, and Indiana.

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