The weekend was not a good one for the Timberwolves. After seeing acknowledged leader Jimmy Butler go down with a knee injury, they prepped themselves for the worst; given their luck, (or, rather, profound lack thereof), the development seemed to dash all hopes of a playoff run. In fact, heads were held so low that news of him suffering from a tear in his right meniscus — instead of to his anterior cruciate ligament — elicited sighs of relief. He has already had surgery, and is expected to be back in action before the end of the regular season.
Despite the unforeseen turn of events, the Timberwolves have reason to be confident of their chances to make the playoffs for the first time since 2004. They’re third in the highly competitive West with 18 games left to play, as good a spot as any to weather the short-term storm. Moreover, they have another All-Star in Karl-Anthony Towns to lean on, with such notables as Andrew Wiggins, Jeff Teague, Taj Gibson, and Jamal Crawford lending support. And it certainly helps that former Coach of the Year Tom Thibodeau is at the helm.
On the other hand, Butler’s importance to the Timberwolves’ cause cannot be overemphasized. He’s not just their leading scorer; he’s likewise their defensive anchor and, even more importantly, the foundation of their crunchtime stands. Given his unparalleled two-way play, it’s no wonder he sports a positive-15.1 net differential, which is to say they’re otherworldly when he’s on the court, and atrocious when he’s not. There’s also the not-so-small problem that the schedule presents; they may provisionally have homecourt advantage in the first round of the playoffs, but the gap between them and the 10th seed in the conference is small enough to be overcome in the homestretch.
In other words, the Timberwolves figure to be just fine once Butler convalesces, but will have to make sure he still has something to return to in the interim. It’s a tall order, to say the least, but one that Thibodeau is banking Towns & Company will be ready for given their association with their temporarily fallen leader. Presumably, the latter’s unquestioned work ethic and positive locker-room influence will have already rubbed off on them — enough, at least, to tide them over until he’s back.
Will the Timberwolves manage to stay the course? The answer won’t just determine if they’ll get to the playoffs. It’ll also underscore how ready they are for the challenges to come.
Anthony L. Cuaycong has been writing Courtside since BusinessWorld introduced a Sports section in 1994. He is the Senior Vice-President and General Manager of Basic Energy Corp.
