In Minnesota, the Timberwolves are on the verge of being eliminated. With a 3-2 deficit against the 2nd seeded Grizzles, the odds are stacked against them to win the series.
Still, they’re feeling pretty good about where they stand. In a recent chat with the media, Wolves young guard Malik Beasley put it plainly when asked about Friday’s Game 6.
“We’re waiting for tomorrow, then it’ll be a Game 7 and then go straight to Golden State. That’s how we feel. We feel confident and ready to get it done.”
“We honestly think it should be 4-1 right now. We should be resting just like Golden State. We made some mistakes. We’re a young team. We got to learn from it and bounce back. We feel confident and we’re going to get tomorrow and take one game at a time”
Malik Beasley at Timberwolves practice today: "We’re waiting for tomorrow, then it’ll be a Game 7 and then go straight to Golden State. That’s how we feel. We feel confident and ready to get it done."
— Dane Moore (@DaneMooreNBA) April 28, 2022
On paper, the Wolves have no reason to be confident. They’re the lower seed who will have to win the next two games to advance to the next round. The franchise has an ugly playoff history that involves more failures than wins.
Yet, the Wolves have a certain level of fight and faith in them that is hard to ignore. After winning the play-in and securing a spot in the postseason, they celebrated like it was an NBA Championship.
Patrick Beverley went on to explain why:
“Obviously, you know, playing a team where you put blood, sweat, and tears into… I didn’t want to make it about them but it kinda was. I’m just fortunate, man, we came together as a team… it’s so much more than a business than what it really is. You all understand that wen you give your heart and soul to a team and you took a team to a place they’ve never been. It’s not to rain on the Clippers or anything, it’s all about the Minnesota Timberwolves, but it just feels good. It feels good man. It really does.”
The Wolves might have already won the series had they not made some crucial mistakes down the stretch of some of these games. Instead, they’re down 3-2 with their season on the line.
For a team with so little experience in this environment, it’s hard to say how they will respond. But if they can back up their words with real action on the court, this series may have some more surprises in store for us all.
