The NBA regular season wraps in a very fitting way for the Timberwolves.
Lurking Sunday is a home game against New Orleans that could determine whether Minnesota needs to win one play-in game to reach the playoffs, or two. Such a game would be an exciting conclusion to the 82-game campaign in front of a packed home crowd. The Timberwolves have fared well in high-stakes square-offs against high-level competition throughout the season.
But, before the Wolves take part in such a high-stakes duel, they must first take care of lesser competition the day prior.
Minnesota controls its own destiny in its pursuit of a top-eight seed. But, assuming the Pelicans take care of the short-handed Knicks on Friday, the Timberwolves must first handle their business against a bad team Saturday before earning their must-see matinee.
If Minnesota doesn’t beat San Antonio on Saturday in Austin, Texas, Sunday’s game could be rendered moot from the Wolves’ perspective, and they could be locked into the No. 9 seed before tipoff. Beating the Spurs may seem like — and should be — a small task, but those types of matchups have been anything but for Minnesota this season.
The flummoxing shortfall against tanking Portland last weekend was the worst loss to date, but was just the latest example of the team’s ineptitude when it comes to disposing of the NBA’s cellar dwellers. If you’ve been paying attention, you know the numbers by now: Minnesota is 5-10 this season against the NBA’s five worst teams. They’ve lost multiple times this season to the Blazers, Hornets, Pistons and, yes, the Spurs.
In one of those victories, San Antonio quite literally ran Minnesota off the Target Center floor.
There were times this season when the Wolves may have wanted to convince themselves they’ve moved past that wart, but last Sunday’s stunner was a stark reminder that’s not the case.
“Not versus teams like that. We always fall short, it seems. It always haunts us,” star guard Anthony Edwards said last week. “It’s just a level of respect for the game. You’ve got to treat every game the same, and that’s something that we lack.”
Kyle Anderson noted players across the league will tell you how easy it is to get up for games against the likes of Denver and Golden State, Lebron James or Kevin Durant.
“But you have to have the appropriate fear in this league and a respect for, I don’t want to say these type of teams, but the teams that ain’t doing so well,” Anderson said. “We got to be able to handle business.”
Timberwolves coach Chris Finch said the issues could be mental or physical. But what it comes down to, he noted, is not making the extra efforts when that is what’s required.
“When you need to make three, four efforts and you only make one or two, it’s not enough against a team that’s making all the effort necessary to win the play or to win the game,” Finch said. “When you don’t play hard and you don’t make all the efforts, you don’t disrespect your opponent, you disrespect yourself. That’s the worst thing.”
That can’t happen Saturday. It shouldn’t, not with all that’s on the line. But the loss to Portland carried similar stakes. That was essentially the nail in the coffin of Minnesota’s hopes to avoid the play-in tournament altogether. Even knowing that, the Timberwolves failed to come out with the requisite juice to down an inferior foe early.
For one of the first times this season — in, really, its final opportunity — Minnesota needs to take charge against a bad team and keep the pedal down before someone like San Antonio develops enough interest late to make a run at a rare victory.
It’s past time for the Timberwolves to show they’ve matured, even just a little bit.
“We talk about it and we want to be on it,” Anderson said. “We just got to go out and execute it. We have to.”
