Timberwolves NBA Championship Odds: Will Minnesota Follow Up Play-In Success?

Minnesota Timberwolves NBA Championship Odds

Minnesota Timberwolves Analysis

The Timberwolves have been one of the pleasant surprises this year in the NBA as they have made massive improvements on both ends of the court. Offensively, they improved from 25th in Offensive Rating (110.1) last year to seventh (114.7) in Offensive Rating this year. Defensively, they rose from 27th (116.2) to 13th (111.6).

The offense has been surging the last third of the year as the Wolves have the third-best Offensive Rating since the All-Star break (120.1) and have a 15-8 record over that span.

This is only the second time in the last 16 years that the Wolves have been among the top 15 teams in the NBA in both Offensive and Defensive Rating (excluding garbage time, per Cleaning The Glass).

The Wolves play an aggressive trapping defense that has forced the second-highest Turnover Rate (16.2%) in the NBA, excluding garbage time per Cleaning The Glass. They are also aggressive on the other end in crashing the glass as they have the seventh-highest Offensive Rebound Rate in the league.

The Wolves really showed their potential in the NBA Play-In Tournament against the Los Angeles Clippers. Despite not having Karl-Anthony Towns, their leading scorer, they pulled out a close win. Their matchup with the young Memphis Grizzlies is one of the most anticipated of the postseason and will be a true test of this team's growth.