The Minnesota Timberwolves were hosting a pivotal game against the Los Angeles Lakers. The Target Center was packed. The energy was unreal. The Timberwolves needed a win to stay in the mix for a spot in the play-in tournament. The Lakers just needed a win to save their season.
Something had to give and on this night, it wasn’t going to be the Timberwolves.
Of course, this isn’t describing the Wolves’ 123-111 loss to the Lakers on Friday night. It’s a microcosm of how much things have changed from one year ago. The Wolves and Lakers entered Friday night’s game both needing a win but instead of peaking, the Wolves continued to feel the ups and downs that have accompanied an underachieving team.
Let’s flashback to that fateful night in March 2021. The Wolves had been weighed down by decades of frustration and were making a run toward the playoffs. The Lakers’ All-Star roster was weighed down by its own disappointment. This was a chance for a coming out party for the Wolves and they took advantage in dominating fashion.
The Wolves clobbered the Lakers 124-104, but they didn’t just beat the Lakers, they humiliated them. Karl-Anthony Towns searched for a draft after a Russell Westbrook airball. Patrick Beverley plugged his nose in disgust over the Lakers’ play. It got to the point where Stephen A. Smith cried foul on national television. It was a pure demolition of one of the NBA’s most prestigious franchises.
This was also a shot of adrenaline for Timberwolves fans. The win over the Lakers set the tone for a sprint toward the playoffs, where they defeated the Los Angeles Clippers in the play-in tournament and took the Memphis Grizzlies to six games in the first round.
One year later, the Wolves had an opportunity to do the same. They were coming off a pair of wins on the road against the Golden State Warriors on Sacramento Kings. They almost came away with a third in their loss to the Phoenix Suns.
With Towns’ return from a calf injury and an automatic playoff berth within reach, the Timberwolves felt like they were peaking with the Lakers coming to town.
Unfortunately, things didn’t play out that way. The Wolves took a 10-point lead into halftime but imploded in the second half. They shot just 32 percent from the floor opting to take wild heaves at the basket as opposed to running their offense. They allowed the Lakers to take a 24-2 run in the third quarter and wrote another frustrating chapter in a frustrating season.
Every time the Wolves appeared to take a step forward, they stumble over themselves. When Towns returns, Naz Reid breaks his wrist. When they beat a playoff team like the Warriors, they lose to a fringe playoff team like the Lakers.
The end of their season could hold another roller coaster for Timberwolves fans even with matchups against the Portland Trail Blazers and San Antonio Spurs on the way. Although both teams are on their way to the draft lottery, the Wolves have a 2-4 record against those teams.
Then again, the Wolves could also drop those games but look like a team to be reckoned with when they face potential playoff teams, Brooklyn and New Orleans.
This season was always going to be a test for the Timberwolves with the addition of Rudy Gobert, but many expected it to lead to a higher seed in the Western Conference. Instead, they’re 39-39 with the possibility of needing to win two games just to get into the playoffs.
A win over the Lakers could have put their stamp on a season that has had plenty of ups and downs. Instead, it put them in danger of missing the playoffs altogether.
