Other teams mostly have stars and a well-established structure, hoping to strengthen at some point.
The biggest growth point for the Timberwolves next season is: hoping that the star who is already good enough can reach a higher level.
Last season, the Timberwolves lost 1-4 in the Western Conference Finals for two consecutive years.
is already the best record in team history - after all, KG has only led the Timberwolves to the Western Conference Finals once before, in 2004 - but Edwards is obviously not satisfied with this.
For two consecutive years, Edwards jumped over the old legends - Durant, Jokic, LeBron, (injured) Curry and Jimmy - and then lost to Luka and Alexander.
——In 2012, the Thunder's three young players also surpassed Dirk, Kobe, and the Spurs' GDP, and then lost to LeBron.
Edwards is probably more than satisfied with this?
He has proven that he can be the ace card of the Western Conference Finals team. What is his current identity as the Timberwolves? Size + running, a pack of wolves rushing, their posture has been finalized.
The next changes, probably?
Need a second unit ball-handling spot?
Clark replaced Walker and became the team's king of destruction?
Use TJ Shannon's breakthrough and Dillingham's ball-handling to develop offensive ideas other than Edwards and Randall?
On the defensive end, especially when Gobert is away, play more actively: give young people like Maidan more opportunities to counterattack?
But generally speaking, the system of Gobert + Randle/Reed + Maidan + Wentz + point guard is difficult to change for a while.
Gobert's offense has been ridiculed all year round, but this fact cannot be changed: in the past two seasons when he was healthy, the Timberwolves had the second-highest 56 wins in the Western Conference Finals, and then 49 wins in the Western Conference Finals - both the highest since the KG era. Last season's regular season +-, he was second on the team. He controlled rebounds, protected the rim perfectly, and blocked shots. When he defended Luka in the playoffs last season, he allowed Luka to make 7 of 17 shots; when defending Alexander, he allowed Alexander to make 9 of 24 shots; LeBron and Reeves combined for 11 of 38 shots from him.
A small data comparison: When faced with a direct pick-and-roll attack last season, Jokic lost 0.92 points per round, Zubac 1.07, Chet 0.92 - Gobert 0.57: He is the root of the big tree in the Timberwolves' defense.
But as long as he is still there, the team's offense will inevitably be contained. So last spring, when he was absent and the Timberwolves deployed Conley + Wentz + McGrady + Reed + Randle / Clark for a winning streak, people thought:
Did the light Timberwolves rush in, did they make a head start?
But the regular season is very long: the Timberwolves still need Gobert - a bit like five years ago, the Lakers knew that letting the thick eyebrows stand at 5 can release the full strength of the Lakers, but in the regular season, they still need to let McGee/Dwight stand at 5.
Gobert is the lower limit of the Timberwolves, but he also drags the Timberwolves heavily, preventing them from taking off wantonly.
When Reid's playing time exceeds that of Gobert, the Timberwolves will probably be able to play, for example, the momentum of the Grizzlies - but how stable can the Timberwolves' defense be when Gobert is away?
Maidan is the first +- player in the Timberwolves playoffs. If Gobert is the lower limit of the Timberwolves' defense, Maidan is the upper limit. On the defensive end, he is Edwards' Pippen: leading and holding the ball, chasing off the ball, protecting the basket, rotating, and destroying. He is omnipotent, dense and fast, crisp and tough, like a perfect piece of chocolate crispy lemon cake, with all the textures you desire. Bai Bi's slight flaw is his ability to prevent back-ups: in this era, there are not so many back-up masters to pry him.
But on the offensive end, Maidan is not Pippen yet. He has played in the NBA for five years, but I still can't see clearly what he should be and what he can be.
Fixed-point three-pointer? He doesn't allow it. Weak side cut? Amazing, but didn’t fight much; counterattack? That's good, but the Timberwolves don't have that many chances to counterattack.
If he has no ability to hold the ball, then the Timberwolves can probably let him continue to be a 3D. But he seems to have a little ball-holding ability but not much, and a little ball awareness but not much. When he plays well, you will feel that he should be Edwards' Pippen; but most of the time, his offense is like Edwards' Ariza - and he does not have a stable three-pointer.
So McDan, probably, should be the Timberwolves' third leader.
Who is the second master? Randall...
Randall was pretty good in the regular season last season - so-so three-pointers, efficient basket attacks, pass instigation, passing the ball, controlling rebounds, and working hard to protect the basket (as long as he happened to be under the basket); then in the playoffs, he relied on "Those who are stronger than me are not as fast as me, and those who are faster than me are not as strong as me."
Then he rushed into the Thunder crowd in the Western Conference Finals and had 15 assists and 18 turnovers.
Randall is 30 years old, and it is difficult to expect him to emerge from his cocoon and become a butterfly again. The newly signed Naz Reid and him can probably maintain the Timberwolves' style of play and the thickness of the forward line - Reid can shoot three-pointers to attack the weak side and switch defenses to maintain the length of the forward line. He plays a 4-body-3 style but can also switch to guard the 5th position. This is the general explanation of this era - and if Reid's defense is better, it will be 180 million in five years.
Digression: When Gobert and Reid were on the same court last season, they beat their opponents by 12 points every 100 possessions.
The current situation is: Randall is the second leader and Maidan is the third leader. But Randall doesn't look like the second in command of a championship team.
The ideal situation is: McDan's offense can improve to the point where he surpasses Randall to become the second leader and averages 20 points per game: only then can the Timberwolves take off. Can
come true? have no idea.
The next two questions: Point guard? Edwards?
These two can actually be the same problem.
Conley is 38 years old. He could still set the plate last season, but he couldn't be used in high-intensity games.. Are the Timberwolves counting on DiVincenzo, Dillingham or Hyland to take over?
Or...counting on Edwards' own growth?
For two consecutive years, Edwards relied on the impact of a rocket car to surpass the old legends (Durant, Jokic, LeBron, Jimmy, (injured) Curry). He shot a historic long-range performance and is the best player in the league at bombing the basket. The combination of three-pointers + attacking the basket with the ball is the most vigorous vitality at the moment. He took over for the third consecutive quarter in the Warriors series. In the game that sent the Warriors away, at 68-66, Jimmy just responded with a mid-range shot to tie the game at 68. Edwards went straight to the basket and stayed in the air. "I raised my left hand and thought about whether to pass it to Gobert or let's go for a layup." He scored, added free throws, and roared. That was a turning point in the momentum of the whole game.
This is an existence like Dr. J/Jordan/Carter, "one goal destroys the opponent's soul."
Legendary wrestling superstar Randy Orton had previously given Edwards the title of "Legend Killer". This kid is rebellious. He beat Durant, Booker and Jokic last year, and Luka LeBron this year. He likes to go up against him the most. This is also where he is most like a young Jordan (or even a young Tyson): devouring the other person's mood and using it as his own food.
But...
In the series against the Thunder, it showed: in the only game he won, he exploded in the first quarter to widen the point difference; in other games, he was wrapped up by the Thunder. In Game 4, the Thunder used five players to take turns against Wentz in the first half, blocking and prohibiting Wentz from going to the line, forcing him to shoot from the wing and causing him to make mistakes. The Dortmunds know it well, "We know that Wentz is going to shoot a three-pointer from the top of the arc, or break through the top of the arc to score from the bottom corner."
That day, Alexander made 6 of 9 long-range shots. Wentz went 0 for 1 from the field.
Edwards' opponents for two consecutive years are Luka and Alexander, the league's top ball-handlers at the moment: Edwards is not inferior in scoring and single defense, and is more visually tough; but Alexander and Luka are more cunning and slippery:
They are better at using pick-and-rolls, and can rely on sudden stop-and-go rhythm changes to dismantle defenses, distribute the ball, and find shooting opportunities for their teammates and themselves. Compared to the two swimming fish that can manipulate the opponent's defense during offense, Edwards is still a one-shot deal:
Opponents don't know what Luka and Alexander are going to do, but they know what Edwards is going to do - although they often cannot guard against the latter.
In any case, the past two years are still the best in the history of the Timberwolves, but the next step forward is nothing more than Gobert's role, as well as the transformation of McGrady and Wentz.
A friend who followed Edwards on his trip to China told me:
Edwards is extremely self-disciplined, from diet to exercise. He has a full schedule and works outside of sleeping hours, but he still brings a trainer. Occasionally after dinner, he will suddenly ask the bodyguard/trainer, "Come on 25!" and then the two of them do 25 push-ups on the spot.
He has tried all kinds of Chinese food, but he is not used to hot pot.
The lines are a bit thick. It is supposed to be a serious occasion to sell sneakers, but occasionally I just wear slippers when I am happy.
Compared with the old stars who come and go often, he is more childish: he talks endlessly when talking about watching pandas, and when it comes to the things he likes - rapping and dancing - he talks eloquently and can't stop, even if the interview time is exceeded.
Edwards lost to Luka in the 2024 Western Conference Finals - Luka had 23 three-pointers in five games, and Wentz had 13 three-pointers in five games - so Wentz practiced hard in the summer of 2024, and scored 320 three-pointers in a single season in the 2024-25 season (only Curry and Harden have scored more in a single season). Of course, before last season, he complained that only Jordan had the skills of the previous generation of players, which caused great dissatisfaction with the Assassins and Magic. The result of the battle against the Thunder showed that he lacked the distribution of assassins and magicians.
He lost to Alexander in the 2025 Western Conference Finals - he made 14 mid-range shots and 23 assists in the entire series, while Alexander made 29 mid-range shots and 41 assists. In the summer of 2025, Edwards was said to be practicing hard again, saying that he watched a lot of Jordan and Kobe tapes.
Will his mid-range shooting and handling of double attacks improve as rapidly as his three-pointers last season?
Most other teams have established stars and a well-established structure, hoping to strengthen at some point. The Timberwolves are rare: counting on their star player to reach the next level.
However, this hot-blooded fool accepted the truth: maybe he really can do anything.
Mini-game recommendations:Granny Halloween House