If you’re a Timberwolves fan this was a weekend to kick back and rejoice. The Wolves went 3-0 prior to the break winning at LAC and in Portland twice. We then got to see Antony Edwards declare himself the best player in the world while our Coach Chris Finch got the love he deserves. I have been really critical of Chris Finch on this blog this season to my defense being a contending NBA head coach isn’t easy (otherwise Doc Rivers would still be in Orlando, Boston, Los Angeles, Philadelphia, and not getting owned on First Take by JJ Redick.) However with Finch he had to work for his one opportunity starting when he lost the D3 national championship as a player in 1991, then coaching in England, Germany, Belgium to finally the G league. He was then an NBA assistant for four different teams (Hou, Den, NO, Toronto) before he was hired to take over a 7-24 Timberwolves team midseason in 2020-2021. Unlike Doc Rivers who has spent the past month reminding us how hard it was taking over a team midseason he took the team over and built a culture that has led us to back to back playoff appearances and the best record in the West at the break. Finch said to the media that he never expected to be here and that is the kind of stuff that not only makes a great movie but also makes him the perfect coach for the Timberwolves.
Antony Edwards clearly agrees and you can see the love he had throughout this weekend even if Finch couldn’t convince him to shoot right handed in the skills competition. Edwards lived his best life in Indiana as he stated he wanted to be in a High School Musical remake and after a bad All Star Game he said what we were all thinking “For me, it’s an All-Star Game, so I don’t think I will ever look at it like being super competitive.” I saw Kendrick Perkins and Former Timberwolf Austin Rivers ripping this take on NBA Today yesterday which just reminded me how they were never close to even be asked to wipe up the sweat during the game and their opinion on this matter doesn’t matter. In the end these guys give us their bodies and minds from September-June playing basketball so I am ok if we need to have a break without someone being a psychopath like Kobe or MJ.
KAT dropped 50 in the game which sounds impressive but also shows how far the league has to go in fixing in the game. The biggest Timberwolves news came in the fact that Mike Conley agreed to a team friendly extension 2 years 22 Million. This pretty much locks Mike in at point guard for the forseeable future and moves his timeline up to Rudy’s contract wise. Personally I think it is a great move but I know the twitter GMs are saying he is too old. The Wolves play the Bucks on ESPN Friday Night and then battle Brooklyn Saturday Night in the Target Center.
West Coast Hoops 