2020-2021 Season
The Minnesota Timberwolves were downright awful in the 2020-2021 season. There is no denying that. They started the season 2-0 including a win over the future number one seed Utah Jazz which gave the fan base hope that this may finally be a successful season. You shouldn’t have gotten your hopes up Wolves fans. The team disappointed once again. Let’s take a look at how they may fare in the 2021-2022 season.
The Core
Karl-Anthony Towns: Make no mistake, just because the Timberwolves have been bad for the past few years doesn’t mean Karl-Anthony Towns isn’t an elite player. He is and it’s a shame he doesn’t get the recognition he deserves because he plays for a small market team who hasn’t had much success lately. Expect another all-star caliber season from the Timberwolves star center.
Anthony Edwards: Anthony Edwards blossomed in front of our eyes toward the end of last season. He quickly became the Timberwolves second best player as a rookie. Some of his stats from March through the end of the season include 24.3 PPG, 5.3 RPG, 3.5 APG while shooting 46.3% from the field and 35% from three. For any player those are solid numbers but for a rookie? That is downright impressive. Expect Edwards to blossom even more in year two.
D’Angelo Russell: Russell had an injury-riddled 2020-2021 season. He only appeared in 42 games although he averaged 19 PPG and 5.8 APG in those 42 games. If he can stay healthy he should have a solid season as the Timberwolves point guard.
Offseason Additions
Patrick Beverley. The Timberwolves traded away Juancho Hermangomez and Jarrett Culver for point guard Patrick Beverley who should add much-needed toughness and defense to the team. The Wolves often rank among one of the worst teams in the league in defense however Beverly will be able to provide some much-needed stability on that end of the floor for the Timberwolves.
Offseason Losses
As mentioned above, the Timberwolves traded away Juanch Hermangomez and Jarrett Culver this offseason but both players were pretty much non-contributors to the team so that trade should not negatively impact the Timberwolves too much. The worst loss of the offseason was the loss of the number seven overall draft pick. When the wolves traded for D’Angelo Russell, they had to give up their 2021 first-round pick to Golden State which ended up being number seven overall. This cost the Timberwolves a chance to add some young talent to an already
Prediction
As previously stated, the Minnesota Timberwolves have consistently stunk for the past decade. This year has the potential to be different. They have two franchise cornerstones in Karl-Anthony Towns and Anthony Edwards that may be able to carry them to the postseason this season. My prediction is the Timberwolves sneak into the play-in tournament as the tenth seed this season. Anthony Edwards is providing a swagger and energy that Minneapolis hasn’t had since Kevin Garnett which will help propel the Timberwolves into the postseason in the 2021-2022 season.
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