Since their founding in 1989, the Minnesota Timberwolves have never received the love and admiration of other teams around the league. Nor have they truly built a consistent winner, save for some solid teams in the early 2000s anchored by Kevin Garnett and Sam Cassell. Even though they reached the Western Conference Finals in 2004, it never felt like the Wolves had that “signature moment” That changed in 2024, when the Timberwolves knocked off the heavily-favored, defending World Champion Denver Nuggets in seven games in the Western Conference Semifinals by winning Game 7 on the road. After years of things never going Minnesota's way, they pulled off the shocking upset.
- Andrew Bassan
Birds Watcher Contributor
Best fan moment of the year
Game 7. And specifically, the second half of Game 7. The Nuggets raced out to a 15-point halftime lead and, as everyone expected, seemed well on their way to winning the series. But the Wolves outscored them 60-37 in the second half. With 3:07 left in the game, budding superstar Anthony Edwards drilled a 3-pointer to put the underdog visitors up 10. And at this point, NBA fans could feel it — the Wolves were having their moment.
How this fandom is changing sports
The Wolves performance in the 2023-24 season changed the NBA — it put the Wolves on the map as a true title contender for the first time in two decades, and transformed the outlook on Anthony Edwards from solid NBA guard to potential face of the league. It is no secret that the remaining active faces of the league -- LeBron James, Stephen Curry, Kevin Durant -- will be retiring in the next few seasons, and Anthony Edwards has made sure that he, and the Wolves, can participate in the next wave of NBA greatness.