Guide to faking the 2022-2023 Wolves season - Axios Twin CitiesLog InLog InAxios Twin Cities is an Axios company.
How to fake it this Wolves season
D'Angelo Russell, Rudy Gobert and Anthony Edwards. Photo: Jordan Johnson/NBAE via Getty Images If you've been in an NBA slumber for the past 17 years, that's OK. The Timberwolves have been mostly asleep, too. What's happening: For the first time since the mid-2000s, the Wolves are finally good — and not just in a one-off way like in 2018, when He Who Shall Not Be Named (OK, Jimmy Butler) gave the team one good year before acting like a child and . So welcome back, bandwagon fans. Here's your guide to faking it this season. State of play: Coming off an exciting but disappointing playoff appearance last season, the Wolves went all-in by trading for Rudy Gobert, a shot-blocking center from France.With Gobert, Anthony Edwards and Karl-Anthony Towns, the Wolves boast three of the top 25 players in the NBA, .The Wolves may have given up too much for Gobert — several first round draft picks and fan favorites Patrick Beverley and Jarred Vanderbilt. But let's not think about tomorrow. Let's enjoy the good times right now. What to expect: If healthy, this Wolves team is a lock for the playoffs again. But nobody really knows how high their ceiling is.Gobert and Towns form twin towers, which should be good in the regular season, but could be a liability in the playoffs when opposing teams go small and make the Wolves' big guys chase faster players around the perimeter. Why it matters: In the grand scheme of things, a sports team's success doesn't matter. But when an NBA team gets really good, it can bring a community together. Look at what happened in Milwaukee during the Bucks' 2021 title run, when tens of thousands of fans watched games outside in their "." What could go wrong: It's Minnesota sports, so this season could easily go sideways. Towns was hospitalized with an that caused him to lose almost 20 pounds, Edwards has had , and point guard D'Angelo Russell is known to for stretches. What to know: Been a while since you've visited Target Center? A few tips:For those below zero nights in January, you can get into the arena via skyway. Download an Check out Axios' at the the arena this yearBest pre-game happy hour: .Good post-game spots: , or perhaps the new Tipoff: Tonight, 7pm, vs. Oklahoma City, Target Center. Get more local stories in your inbox with .Subscribe Support local journalism by becoming a member. More Twin Cities stories
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