HOOPSAHOLIC

It’s been a long time since basketball has been where it needs to be inside of Target Center in Minneapolis. In fact, it’s been a decade since the Timberwolves have been to the playoffs, and the “Big Ticket” aka: Kevin Garnett was still the best player in the Twin Cities when that happened (don’t forget Wally Szczerbiak). 

Though it’s been quite sometime since they’ve reached the mecca of the playoffs, the Wolves and their fan-base weren’t left without hope. They had a young, talented star in Kevin Love that was supposed to deliver the land of 10,000 lakes to the promise land, and no I’m not talking about the Mall of America. That all changed this offseason when Love decided that he wanted to be traded away from the organization that drafted him. Many think the Wolves are starting from scratch now that their best player is gone, but that really isn’t the case. After breaking down their roster, there are a few different things that I noticed that could play a big factor in where this team finishes at the end of the season. 

The T'Wolves have a plethora of young talent. I mean when you trade someone good, you’re going to get some good pieces back, right? That’s exactly what the Wolves did. In exchange for Love, they received the first pick from the last two drafts in Andrew Wiggins and Anthony Bennett. I know what you must be saying, “Wiggins is good, but Bennett has clearly been a bust in the NBA so far.” That statement may have some substance, but many young draft picks are chosen based on potential, and  Bennett still has plenty of that. Much of the criticism he's faced was that he wasn’t in good enough shape to play heavy NBA minutes, but that problem may have been resolved this offseason. Bennett had his tonsils removed, and has reportedly said he can finally breath the right way which should help his play. Also….. the Cleveland Cavaliers post and pre LeBron weren’t necessarly the cream of the crop when it came to developing players. Their franchise has had plenty of turmoil from their egotistic owner, to the inconsistency of the coaching staff. I mean what kind of organization fires Mike Brown and then re-hires him three years later? Then oh yeah fires him again after a year? Don’t forget that even their young phenom Kyrie Irving supposedly asked to be traded halfway through the season. This isn't about the Cavs, but what I’m getting at is that Bennett will have more opportunities to shine in Minnesota where he will face less pressure, and will have a head coach in Flip Saunders who is known for developing young players (ex: John Wall,  Garnett). 

Let's not forget about Andrew Wiggins. Yes, he was hyped as “Maple Jordan” before he even rocked the KU Blue, but I truly believe he can grow into being an NBA superstar. He has the frame and the athleticism to thrive in this league, and I definitely expect him to do so. I also think the whole "being the first, first pick to ever be traded before the season" will also serve as extra motivation for him. Hopefully we'll see the product we all hoped we would when he was emerging from high school in Canada. 

Another piece of young talent on this Timberwolves squad is Gorgui Dieng. Most of you may remember him from the NCAA Tournament a couple years ago when Dieng, along with Peyton Siva and Russ Smith led the Louisville Cardinals to a National Championship. Dieng was slow to get going during his rookie season, but he eventually started to flourish as the year went along. In the last two months of the season, Dieng averaged ten points and ten rebounds. Not bad for a rookie. Not to mention he's a stellar shot blocker, averaging two a game in the month of April. Let's also not forget how good Shabazz Muhammed was supposed to be. Last year he struggled to get going, only appearing in 37 games and averaging about three points. He was heralded similar to Wiggins coming out as the top high school prospect in the class of 2012, but after a bumpy year at USC he fell to the bottom of the lottery in last years draft and he's yet to recover from his free fall. If he can somehow blossom into the player we all thought he could be, the young talent on this T’Wolves team could be outright scary. 

The Timberwolves also have some veterans they can sprinkle in with the young talent. Let me go ahead and remind everyone that Nicola Pekovic is no scrub. The dude is a double-double machine and he can rebound with some of the best in the NBA. He’s a strong, Russian presence in the paint for the Timberwolves, and if he can stay healthy then look for him to increase his scoring average from 17 points per game to over 20 with the absence of K-Love. 

Then there's Ricky Rubio, the Spanish phenom. It didn’t seem like too long ago when all the hype was about a Steve Nash 2.0 playing over in Spain, and "just wait" until we see the next great passing point guard. I'll admit his passing ability is among the top in the league, but if he’s going to live up to any of his pre-NBA hype, he'll have to figure out how to make a jump shot. You would think NBA players wouldn’t struggle with something so simple as a mid-range jumper, seeing that they are in a gym shooting all day, but clearly that’s way over my head (do I sound like a frustrated Timberwolves fan?). But in all seriousness, Rubio is in the top half tier of NBA point guards and if they can find a consistent wing scorer then his assists will go up from 8.6 a clip. 

Along with Wiggins and Bennett, the Wolves were able to acquire Thaddeus Young from the Philadelphia 76ers in what could be the dark horse of the trade. Young was one of the few bright spots on a 76ers team that could go down as one of the worst in NBA history (maybe because they were purposely tanking). He averaged 18 points and six rebounds, and if he can duplicate that effort in Minnesota, the Timberwolves won’t be near as bad as I have them projected. 

Flip Saunders will be coming back down to the bench. Who was the coach when the Timberwolves last made the playoffs you might ask? The answer is Flip.  He was leading team filled with Sam Cassell, Latrell Sprewell, Wally Szczerbiak and Kevin Garnett to the Western Conference Finals. He was no stranger to the playoffs even when he left Minnesota. Flip was the coach of the Pistons after Larry Brown stepped down, and he went to few Eastern Conference finals with Chauncey BIllups, Rip Hamilton, Rasheed Wallace and Ben Wallace. 

The playoffs are a humongous stretch for the Timberwolves because they play in a stacked Western Conference, but to say they’re the worst team in the league isn’t giving them their due justice. They also have players such as Kevin Martin, Corey Brewer, J.J. Barea and Chase Budinger that should contribute this season. I truly believe that in two or three years this will be a team to look out for.