The NBA regular season enters the final sprint, as far as the current situation in the West is concerned, except for the Spurs and Rockets, other teams have the possibility of entering the playoffs, and the 13th Blazers are only 3.5 wins away from the 5th place Warriors. At this stage, losing a ball may cost several places, and winning a ball may not necessarily rise in the ranking. After the trade deadline, the Lakers have shown a rebound, a 6-3 record, and with James and Russell not playing most of the time, the excellent play of thick eyebrows has once again given Lakers fans hope. Whether the Lakers can make the playoffs depends not only on trying to win every victory themselves, but also praying that their opponents make mistakes. After the trade deadline, the Suns, Warriors, Mavericks and Clippers are highly anticipated.
Start with the rankings. The Warriors have a 34-31 record, ranking 5th in the West; The Timberwolves have a 34-32 record, ranking 6th in the West; The Lone Ranger's 33-32 record, ranked 7th in the West; The Clippers have a 34-33 record and are 8th in the West. These four teams are only 1 win away! Starting from the 9th place Pelicans, all the way to the 13th place Blazers, there is only 1 win difference, but there are 5 teams, including the Pelicans, Jazz, Lakers (31-34), Thunder, Blazers. This ranking makes the Western competition clear: the top four in the West, the Nuggets' top position is unbreakable, and although the Grizzlies Morant is suspended indefinitely, they are indeed ahead of the large army behind them for a lot of games, and they can't fall unless they lose a streak; The Kings and Suns have been steady, and the Suns haven't lost since Durant's comeback!
So, 9 teams, from the Warriors to the Blazers, have to compete for 4 playoff tickets. If ranked according to strength, the Warriors, Lone Ranger, and Clippers should all be in the top 8, but now they are mixed in with a Timberwolves! After the trade deadline, the Timberwolves had a period of pain, losing 5-4, losing to the Grizzlies, Wizards, Hornets and Warriors, but in the last three games, they beat the Clippers, Lakers and Kings on the road in a row! Simply put, if the Timberwolves squeeze into the top six, it means that at least one team of the Lone Ranger, Clippers, and Lakers is out of the playoffs! Are the Timberwolves capable of getting a piece of the cutthroat Western Conference playoff competition? Speaking from last summer.
In the offseason, the Timberwolves traded 10-for-1 and sent Beasley + Beverley + Kessler (22nd pick in last year's first round) + Vanderbilt + Polmaro + 23 years + 25 years + 27 years + 29 years (top five protected, the other three years unprotected) first-round pick + 26 years first-round swap pick, got Gobert. There is no doubt that the deal was a failure, because Gobert's average of 13.6 points + 11.6 rebounds per game could not match the value of the chips sent on the one hand, and on the other hand, it directly hollowed out the future of the Timberwolves. Of course, the Timberwolves' twin towers didn't work well! In order to make up for their own mistakes, the Timberwolves continued to trade with the Lakers and Jazz before the trade deadline, and the Lakers sent Wilson + Jones + Anderson + 27 years first-round (first four picks protected) and got Russell + Beasley + Vanderbilt.
The Timberwolves also got Conley, Alexander Walker, and three second-round picks in the deal. This deal for the Timberwolves, while sending away Russell's time bomb, the purpose of getting Conley is to activate Gobert, and the Timberwolves add a stable possession point to completely liberate Edwards. The Timberwolves are not losing money on this deal. Take the last three games as an example, against the Clippers, Conley led the team of 6 people to double, and all teammates can take care of it; Facing the Lakers, although the thick eyebrows cut 38 points, the Timberwolves came off the bench to perform better, Gobert also bombed 22 points and 14 rebounds, and the Timberwolves won again; In a game with the Kings, the Timberwolves played against the Kings, who were the first in the offensive league, and the team scored a double-double, Conley scored 24 points + Edwards 27 points, and made 20 three-pointers, but the Kings lost 20+ of the 4.
To put it simply, the Timberwolves have a veteran who focuses on tandem after getting Conley, and the team floor is raised. And the biggest advantage of the Timberwolves is that they have become the nemesis of the Lakers and Clippers! This season, the Timberwolves double-kill the Lakers; 2-1 against the Clippers. Although he has gone a lot of instant combat power, flank Daniels has limited opponents to hit the top five in the league and has grown into a top 3D! Of course, the Warriors also face the challenge of the Timberwolves, after all, they are only 0.5 wins ahead of the Timberwolves, and the Timberwolves have a more consistent road record. Because of the existence of the Timberwolves, the entire situation in the West has been disrupted, and the Lone Rangers and Clippers behind them, including the Lakers, and the Warriors in front of them may be squeezed down if they are not careful.
And the Timberwolves have good news. Downs, who previously suffered a third-degree strain on his calf, is about to return to the team after more than three months of suspension. Towns is the absolute core of this team, and the Timberwolves' two-tower lineup, although crowded inside, is difficult for opponents to score easily under the basket, and the efficiency of the frame is very high, which is also the biggest advantage of the Timberwolves. When it comes to the Timberwolves team, the ceiling is certainly not high, and in the past few years, it has been a playoff round at most, but they can often explode at the end of the season. The Lakers really need to be careful, no one wants to see the Clippers, Lone Ranger, and Lakers compete for two playoff tickets in the playoffs.