Prediction: 36-46
I predict that absent any serious injuries, the Timberwolves will finish the regular season 36-46, 10th place in the Western Conference.
Last season, it seemed Ryan Gomes was the only player who delivered season-long solid performances to complement Al Jefferson. Off-season moves and a healthy Foye gives the team the potential for Gomes, Foye, Miller and others to contribute all season long with Big Al. The team’s surprise 6-2 preseason record gives me hope that the team will make significant strides in ’08-’09. Go Wolves!
Alec Schimke/Timberwolves Press
Prediction: 36-46
The Timberwolves are a completely different team this season and that’s a good thing. They have gotten rid of some characters in Marko Jaric and Antoine Walker and have added two solid players in Kevin Love and Mike Miller to take some of the pressure off of Big Al. Unfortunately they play in the Western Conference where competition is fierce. The Timberwolves should be in the mid 30’s in the win category but don’t be surprised if this team wins 40-42 games as they do have the offensive firepower to win some games. Ultimately the success of this season depends on the growth of its young core, specifically Foye, Brewer, and McCants.
Britt Robson/The Rake- On The Ball
Prediction: 30-52
That is probably a lowball estimate, but I worry about the Wolves playing smallball again with Jefferson at center and Gomes at power forward; about Corey Brewer being given enough rope on offense to hang himself; and about the ability of management to be as patient with top pick Kevin Love as they have been with McCants, Foye and Brewer before him. Jefferson, Miller and Gomes is a nice, reliable core. The biggest X factor is Foye’s ability to play the point in a manner that maximizes the virtues of both himself and the team. If Randy Wittman is serious about defense being the priority, we’ll see Jason Collins and perhaps even Mark Madsen a lot more than most expect this season. Time to demand offensive consistency from McCants–and ignore the psychological gyrations required for him to produce it–and cut Love some slack. Finally my pet fantasy for this year’s Wolves is a go-go second unit of Telfair, McCants, Love, Brewer, and either Rhino or Mad Dog backing up a large, slow and steady starting five of Jefferson, Collins, Gomes, Miller and Foye.
Prediction: 33-49
33 wins, which is a significant jump from a year ago, but not close to what Kevin McHale expects. McHale thinks this team can win 40-43 games which makes him more delusional than the Republican base who think they can win this election. Rumor is, McHale would like to coach again, so the pressure is on Randy Wittman, who hasn’t shown us any evidence that he can win games on a regular basis.
They still don’t have a point guard which will hurt, plus the Western Conference is stacked again. I do like the fact that they finally have a plan in place. They’ll have cap room in 2 summers, but it’ll take work to convince a meaningful free agent to come here, but at least they’ll have that room, plus a handful of #1 choices next June.
Prediction: 33-49
This record would represent a 50% increase in wins over last season, which would be a pretty significant improvement for the Wolves. However, if you break down last year into two parts, you’ll notice that the Wolves started the first half of last season 7-34, and finished up the back end at 15-26. When you double up that second half run, the team is already at 30-52 before you factor in Miller, Love, and general player improvement into the equation. With that in mind, this sizable increase in wins might actually be too low of a prediction, but I’m certainly not ready to drink Kevin McHale’s 42-40 Kool-Aid.
Prediction: 35-47
The Wolves are probably a year or two away from making the playoffs, but they should be an improved team this season. Al Jefferson is poised for an all-star year and he should face fewer double- and triple-teams, with Mike Miller joining 3-point threats Randy Foye and Rashad McCants. Add in rookie forward Kevin Love and the Wolves will have plenty of scoring options, but improvement on the defensive end is the real key to their season.
Prediction: 36-46
My best guess: 36-46. Here’s why: This team wasn’t a 22-victory team last season. Remember they won five times in their first 39 games, 17 in their last 43. Add Mike Miller and Kevin Love and give them a full season with a healthy Randy Foye and the range is anywhere from 33 to 38 victories, so I’ll play it safe and go pretty much smack in the middle.
Jon Krawczynski/Associated Press
Prediction: 35-47
With the way the Timberwolves finished last season, coupled with the additions of Kevin Love and Mike Miller should make the team much-improved this season. Miller’s presence on the perimeter and a healthy Randy Foye from the start will give the Timberwolves one of the more entertaining offenses in the league. Just how much they improve this season will be determined by how Jefferson, Love and the rest of the crew handle the defensive end.
Jon Marthaler/Twolves Blog and TNABACG
Prediction: 32-50
Last year was a tough year for the Timberwolves, we all know that. But here’s the thing: if you look down that roster, if you glance at who’s going to be playing big minutes for the Wolves this season – the team really hasn’t changed that much from the guys who went 22-60 last year. Seven of the top eight guys are back from that team; basically, the Wolves have replaced Marko Jaric with Mike Miller and Kirk Snyder with Kevin Love. While there’s no doubt that both of those moves are upgrades, how many wins are they really worth? Two? Three?
Over the second half of last season, Minnesota was 15-26. I think they’re a good bet to put together two halves like that this season, and I’ll throw in a couple of wins for Miller and Love and predict a 32-50 year.
Prediction: 30-35 wins
Last Spring Kevin McHale predicted the Wolves might improve by 20 games this year compared to last year because of the growth of the young squad. I am not nearly that optimistic for the Wolves. I think they will win between 30-35 games this year, as they still learn to play together. Until the best players on the team begin to show that they can play defense as a unit, this team cannot take the next step and make it into the play-offs. I think from the start the team will be much more fun to watch this season.
Prediction: 33-49
Why?: The opening two months of the schedule are particularly cruel, since more than half of their opponents during that span made the playoffs last year. And it doesn’t let up. Aside from a brief break in January, every other month of the season has far more playoff teams than patsies on the calendar. Such are the growing pains of a rebuilding team in the Western Conference. Sure, they’ll surprise a few talented teams and make quick work of lesser squads, but in the end it’ll only add up to another lottery ticket. Which isn’t necessarily a bad thing. Right Kevin?
Prediction: 30-52
Prediction: 30-52
I believe the Wolves will finish with around 30 wins this year, but with the way the Western Conference is stacked up, its going to be tough to get there. I really like the Mike Miller acquisition, and I’m willing to play the wait-and-see game on Kevin Love because he was an outstanding college player at seems to really care about winning and giving an all-out individual effort. Randy Foye, Rashad McCants, and Sebastian Telfair, to an extent, have something to prove in what could be make or break years for them. We’re still at the beginning stages of the rebuilding process, but those are all reasons to be enthusiastic about this season.
Stephen Litel/Downtown Journal
Prediction: 35-47
Steve Aschburner/SportsIllustrated.com and MinnPost
Prediction: 33-49
An improvement of 11 victories is no small accomplishment in the NBA, especially when the team hasn’t traded for or drafted a franchise player (and no one suggests Kevin Love is ready to assume such a role). Usually, you need to add a David Robinson or a Jason Kidd for any leap in the standings beyond that. Remember, too, that every extra Wolves victory has to come at some other team’s expense — and the Western Conference, particularly, is still a killer. But I do buy some of the strategic thinking about better spacing around Al Jefferson with Mike Miller’s outside shooting, Jefferson’s potential to work in tandem with Love and what seems like Randy Foye’s inevitable improvement as a playmaker as long as he stays healthy.
Steve Marsh/Minneapolis St. Paul Magazine
Prediction: 40-42
Look at our conference–the balance of power is changing, with Phoenix, Dallas, and San Antonio all getting older fast while potentially corrosive free agent drama looms in Utah and Los Angeles. The Wolves are young, but by adding Mike Miller and Kevin Love to a roster that includes an improving Mike McCants and Randy Foye, we have four potential 40% three-point shooters this year–a great chance to improve on our woeful recent perimeter play. That touch is going to give Al Jefferson the room down low to make the All-Star team this season. I realize we have some major issues, chiefly defense (Jefferson must be improved) and how exactly to use Love in our system (it’s going to take the first couple months, but with his hand strength and positioning, he just might develop into a Luis Scola with serious range by the end of the year). So everything has to go right for this team to win 40 games, but I suspect the Wolves might surprise people and challenge for one of the last play-off spots in a suddenly weakened Western Conference.
Prediction: 34-48
Coming off the worst season since 94/95, Kevin McHale said he saw no reason why the Wolves couldn’t improve by 20 wins to 42. That would put them above .500. It’s a nice goal, but with Utah, Portland and Denver in the Division (not to mention the Lakers, San Antonio, Houston, Phoenix and New Orleans in the same conference) it’s going to be tough for Big Al and Co. the break the .500 mark. But on the plus side, the core (albeit a somewhat shaky one) has had some time to gel and the team is coming off a strong finish from last season. Upping the win total by 10-15 games is far more likely than the 20 game swing McHale’s hoping for.