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Credit: Jesse Johnson-Imagn Images\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tCredit: Jesse Johnson-Imagn Images\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n
The Minnesota Timberwolves are back in action on Friday<\/a>, after over a week off for the NBA All-Star Break. Anthony Edwards returns with his first All-Star MVP award<\/a>, with aspirations for so much more.<\/p>\n Head Coach Chris Finch spent his break figuring out how he can lead the Timberwolves beyond the Western Conference Finals, where they\u2019ve been eliminated from championship contention<\/a> two-straight postseasons.<\/p>\n Minnesota Timberwolves looking at huge second half<\/p>\n At 34-22, Minnesota holds the 6th seed in the West playoff bracket, which is where they finished 2025, lining them up for a similar second half to what we saw one year ago.<\/p>\n But do the MN Timberwolves stand a real shot to make the NBA Finals for the first time ever as an organization. They\u2019ll do so after, president of basketball operations Tim Connelly failed yet again to reel in a superstar who can take backcourt pressure off Anthony Edwards.<\/p>\n We all on @Kalshi<\/a> now pic.twitter.com\/cCNGxfLWO8<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 Giannis Antetokounmpo (@Giannis_An34) February 6, 2026<\/a> <\/p>\n In 2025, he swung and missed on Kevin Durant. This time around, it was Giannis Antetokounmpo who narrowly evaded the Wolves\u2019 grasps<\/a>. So, Connelly settled on a couple of deals with Chicago that sent out Rob Dillingham and Mike Conley, in two separate deals that eventually landed them two-way combo guard Ayo Dosunmu.<\/p>\n Conley\u2019s exit was for luxury tax relief. He was traded again, before eventually being cut. That allowed Minnesota to re-sign their veteran point guard of the past three seasons off the buyout market Tuesday.<\/p>\n ESPN Insider: Timberwolves are NOT championship contenders<\/p>\n Unfortunately, if you trust NBA insider Tim MacMahon (ESPN)<\/a>, those moves won\u2019t be enough to put Minnesota over the top. On Get Up Tuesday, MacMahon made it very clear that he does NOT have the Wolves on his list of legitimate NBA title contenders in 2026.<\/p>\n His argument is pretty solid, too. If Tim Connelly is so desperate to add talent, it means he doesn\u2019t believe Minnesota has a championship team, as constructed, either. And if the Timberwolves\u2019 own PoBO doesn\u2019t have faith\u2026 why should we? <\/p>\n Is the third time the charm for the Minnesota Timberwolves to get out of the West this summer and play for an NBA title\u2026?@BannedMacMahon<\/a> says no, and that Tim Connelly doesn’t believe in the team he’s built either.<\/p>\n “This is actions over words, [and Tim Connelly thinks the\u2026 pic.twitter.com\/bSRr6XhvOs<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 Minnesota Sports Fan (@realmnsportsfan) February 17, 2026<\/a> <\/p>\n \u201cThis is actions over words, [and Tim Connelly thinks the Wolves] need to get another superstar to pair with Anthony Edwards. That\u2019s why they went after Kevin Durant\u2026That\u2019s why they went after Giannis\u2026To acquire that second superstar is extremely difficult to do without draft picks, but clearly that\u2019s the way he\u2019s evaluating this team. The Timberwolves deserve the respect of being two consecutive conference finals, so you can\u2019t just leave them out of the conversation of Western Conference contenders, but it\u2019s not like the last two conference finals in the west were competitive series. I don\u2019t see the Timberwolves as a real threat to come out of the West this season either.\u201d<\/p>\n Tim MacMahon<\/a><\/p>\n In support of MacMahon\u2019s argument, it\u2019s worth noting that the Timberwolves no long roster Nickeil Alexander-Walker, who played a massive role in last year\u2019s playoff run. They do have Ayo Dosunmu, who they acquired<\/a> at the trade deadline, but he\u2019s yet to prove anything in the postseason, hardly the addition that was desired<\/a>.<\/p>\n Anthony Edwards is having the best season of his career. Averaging 29.3 points per game<\/a>, and shooting 49.3% from the field. If the Minnesota Timberwolves are going to prove Tim MacMahon and other doubters wrong, he will have to be the best player in the 2026 NBA Playoffs.<\/p>\n ANT’S ASCENSION CONTINUES \ud83d\udcc8<\/p>\n Anthony Edwards through 4 games this postseason:<\/p>\n \ud83d\udc1c 29.8 PPG At his best when the lights are brightest \ud83c\udf1f pic.twitter.com\/tB4W9PN7zW<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 NBA (@NBA) April 29, 2025<\/a> <\/p>\n Summer provides opportunity for MN Timberwolves<\/p>\n If the Wolves prove MacMahon right and come up short again, Tim Connelly will have some difficult choices to make this offseason. At that point, anybody not named Anthony Edwards \u2014 including Chris Finch, Julius Randle, Rudy Gobert, Jaden McDaniels, Naz Reid, etc \u2014 could be on the chopping block.<\/p>\n The Milwaukee Bucks may be more willing to trade their superstar over the summer, should they fail to land the No. 1 overall pick in the draft lottery and\/or fail to make the playoffs through the play-in tournament, out East. We already know that, if they do, Connelly will be first in line to re-open conversations.<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tMentioned in this article: NBA Finals<\/a> Tim MacMahon<\/a> <\/p>\n More About:Minnesota Timberwolves<\/a><\/p>\n Add MinnesotaSportsFan as a preferred source on Google. \t\t\t
\ud83d\udc1c 7.8 RPG
\ud83d\udc1c 5.8 APG
\ud83d\udc1c 43.2 3P%<\/p>\n![\"Add](\"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/google_preferred_source_badge.png\"){kind=icon}
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