The Minnesota Timberwolves have strong goals to contend for an NBA Championship moving forward. A couple of Western Conference Finals appearances behind Anthony Edwards saw the franchise looking to add more help. Acquiring LaMelo Ball via trade in the offseason added to the hype of fans and media for this upcoming season. However, one noteworthy name doesn’t believe in them and stated why.
NBA pundit Stan Van Gundy named Minnesota when asked about an overrated Western Conference team, with the following logic:
“You know, everything I read, most people are saying, ‘Oh, Minnesota’s better.’ I just don’t see that at all. I think they’re going to be fun to watch with that backcourt. I think they’ll put some points on the board, but I’m not sold on them.
I’m with you that they’ll be in the top six because I just don’t know if there’s anybody else, but I think they’re a pretty solid sixth, in my opinion. Now, could they catch the Lakers? Yeah, because as I said, I see a lot of variance there. But other than that, I mean, I don’t see them as good.”
Van Gundy flat out said he doesn’t understand why people believe the Timberwolves will be better. Ball was categorized as a fun player but not someone who will help them win by the former coach. The Los Angeles Lakers were the only team in the top six that Van Gundy believes Minnesota can pass.
Understanding Why SVG Has Little Hope For Minnesota Timberwolves
The overall point made by Van Gundy focused on popular belief that Minnesota has improved. Many pundits believe that adding another creator in Ball will give Edwards more help to at least pose a threat to the Oklahoma City Thunder and San Antonio Spurs.
Van Gundy’s point is that they are neutral to last season and will not improve. Losing Julius Randle and Naz Reid to add Ball drastically changed the front court. Reid and Randle provided more size to always give the Timberwolves two strong rebounders on the court.
More pressure is on Rudy Gobert now to be the only noteworthy big man on the roster. Jonathan Kuminga joined the team as power forward and must improve a lot to get anywhere near Randle’s production.
Where Should The Timberwolves Be Ranked?
Over/under metrics and general betting odds have Minnesota ranked anywhere between the third and sixth seed. The Lakers, Denver Nuggets, and Houston Rockets are the three teams in the same tier with the Timberwolves behind the top two favorites.
Van Gundy believes they should be ranked sixth, but most prediction outlets have them in the top four. Elite defender Jaden McDaniels had a strong offensive postseason last season to make many fans expect more out of him in a bigger role.
It is impossible to forecast which teams will thrive until seeing them play regular season games. Edwards being such a transformative superstar for a franchise gives them a great x-factor. Minnesota fans should be excited, but Van Gundy represents the dark cloud that could present real doubt.
NBA Pundit Calls Timberwolves Overrated “Solid Sixth Seed”