Bill Simmons released an “NBA power poll” on his latest podcast, and he wasn’t too kind to the Minnesota Timberwolves. He ranked them as the 21st-best team in the NBA, placing them in a category called “panic time.” Lest you think The Sports Guy is kicking the Wolves while they’re down – they just lost Karl-Anthony Towns to a calf strain – he’s been saying it’s panic time for a while.
Still, it’s not great that his tune hasn’t changed on the Wolves. Worse yet, he presented a doomsday scenario.
Simmons takes a pot shot at Alex Rodriguez at the end because he was a star for the New York Yankees. However, I’m not sure he fully tied the two together. The typically conservative Wolves took a big swing on Tim Connelly, wooing him from Denver. In turn, Connelly made the blockbuster move for Gobert. It feels like they were making a splash as the team was transitioning to new ownership to create some buzz after years of sub-.500 play.
If Simmons’ scenario manifests, and the Wolves gave up the Victor Wembanyama pick for Gobert, 30, it could set an already woebegone franchise back significantly.
Fortunately, that scenario feels unlikely. The Wolves have maintained a .500 record while integrating Gobert, and it’s possible that Gobert, Anthony Edwards, and some of Minnesota’s shooters could see a spike in production with Towns out. Unfortunately, it looks like the Wolves could experience a significant decline after going on a five-game winning streak and may have made a blockbuster trade only to become a .500 team.
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