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5 reasons Minnesota Timberwolves must hire Tom Thibodeau

By John Buhler

Apr 23, 2015; Milwaukee, WI, USA; Chicago Bulls head coach Tom Thibodeau calls out during the third quarter against the Milwaukee Bucks in game three of the first round of the NBA Playoffs at BMO Harris Bradley Center. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Hanisch-USA TODAY Sports
Apr 23, 2015; Milwaukee, WI, USA; Chicago Bulls head coach Tom Thibodeau calls out during the third quarter against the Milwaukee Bucks in game three of the first round of the NBA Playoffs at BMO Harris Bradley Center. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Hanisch-USA TODAY Sports /
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April 5, 2016; Oakland, CA, USA; Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry (30) shoots the basketball against Minnesota Timberwolves guard Andrew Wiggins (22) during overtime at Oracle Arena. The Timberwolves defeated the Warriors 124-117. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports
April 5, 2016; Oakland, CA, USA; Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry (30) shoots the basketball against Minnesota Timberwolves guard Andrew Wiggins (22) during overtime at Oracle Arena. The Timberwolves defeated the Warriors 124-117. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports /

1. Will get Minnesota into the Western Conference Playoffs.

Minnesota holds the longest active playoff drought in the NBA. The Timberwolves haven’t made the Western Conference Playoffs since Garnett was in his prime, taking Minnesota to the 2004 Western Conference Finals, only to come up short versus the Los Angeles Lakers.

The Timberwolves, in their 27-year history, have only made the Western Conference Playoffs eight times (1997-04) and that needs to stop. Besides defense, Thibodeau knows how to get his team into the NBA Playoffs. All five of his Bulls teams made it to the Eastern Conference Playoffs on the backbone of great defense and All-Star play from guys like Derrick Rose, Joakim Noah, and later Jimmy Butler.

While 29-53 seems a long way away from playoff contention, the 2015-16 Rockets stumbled into the 2016 Western Conference Playoffs with a .500 record of 41-41. Sometimes even sub-.500 teams qualify for the postseason in the NBA.

Could year one with Thibodeau at the helm be enough to make the Timberwolves 12 games better, finish at .500, and fight for a seventh or eighth-seed in the West? Absolutely, especially if the West remains top-heavy again next year with juggernauts like Golden State and San Antonio winning close to 70 games apiece.

Minnesota is one of a few teams in the NBA that would benefit exponentially by making the NBA Playoffs. Surely it will be a more difficult challenge than with the roster he inherited in Chicago after two years of Vinny Del Negro running the team, but if anybody can get the 2016-17 Timberwolves into the NBA Playoffs, it has to be Thibodeau. If he wants to be the next head coach in Minnesota, the Timberwolves organization should have hired him yesterday.

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