Editor’s note: Mike Conley is one of the best sources of information in the NBA.
Entering his 19th NBA season, the 38-year-old Timberwolves point guard has seen it all and has the knowledge and willingness to explain what’s taken place and what’s to come with the media and, thus, the fans. That breadth of insight and analysis extends from the on-court Xs and Os to team dynamics and development.
Conley is just as good at explaining why two teammates came to blows in the middle of a timeout as he is on what the team needs to do to decode a switch-heavy defense.
So who better to sit down with twice a month to tackle different topics ranging from the Timberwolves to the NBA at large to, well, Mike Conley, than Conley himself?
This is the third season of Conley’s Corner.
Conley’s Corner: Turning the page
Mike Conley was overtaken by tears last May as he left the floor following Game 5 of the Western Conference Finals in Oklahoma City.
It had happened again. For the second straight year, the Timberwolves were denied on the doorstep of the veteran floor general’s first-ever NBA Finals appearance.
Minnesota Timberwolves guard Mike Conley speaks with referee Tyler Ford (39) during the first half of Game 1 of an NBA basketball Western Conference Finals playoff series against the Oklahoma City ThunderTuesday, May 20, 2025, in Oklahoma City. (AP Photo/Nate Billings)
Minnesota felt as though it let an opportunity slip through its fingers in 2024 against Dallas. The Wolves had home-court advantage in that series, and allowed themselves to get beat by the Mavericks’ two best players in critical spots too many times in succession.
The loss to Oklahoma City was different. The things that got Minnesota to the West Finals no longer worked against the Thunder. The Wolves simply weren’t good enough in key areas to hang with the eventual champs. That was apparent by the series’ end.
And yet, this loss hit Conley harder.
Last season was following a script – of a movie, of champions of years past. You get knocked down in pursuit of the pinnacle one year only reach the mountaintop the next.
“The second time in a row is like, ‘Oh, we learned something from last year.’ You look back at all those teams, this is how it happened,” Conley said. “It’s part of the deal, and we’re just next in line. Let’s do it.”
It didn’t work out that way.
“Frustrating,” he said.
Conley said his emotions as he left floor were “probably the most real for me” than they’d ever been. He knows how precious opportunities to contend for a championship are. Minnesota missed out on another one. Suddenly, a flood of emotions and thoughts entered his mind, ranging from how far he has come as a player to now to wondering if he’d get another real shot at a championship.
Black hole
Conley likens the hours following a playoff exit to the immediate aftermath of a minor car accident.
“It happens and you’re like ‘What just happened? That was scary,’ ” he said. “You start thinking about all the things that could have been or not been, and you’re just thankful — but you’re like, ‘Whoa, that was crazy.’ It’s like that kind of shock.”
Then it hits you: The season is over. Players like Conley are so goal-driven that during a season, few thoughts enter their minds beyond what they and the team can do to improve their chances of claiming a championship. He calls these eight-to-nine months “like a black hole.”
“You just go in, and then when it’s done, it clicks and you’re out and you’re like, ‘What just happened?’ ” Conley said. “Like, I was just gone for six months, you know what I mean? You’re in a trance state for a while.”
So, what happens when you pop back out and realize you didn’t complete the ultimate mission?
“It’s tough to get through all those emotions, all those things that may be hovering in the background that you don’t let get to you. So, you feel something,” he said. “Like, ‘Was that my last game?’ Whatever it is, whatever your situation is. All those thoughts, feelings rush in.”
They multiply for Conley with each passing season. He knows how hard it is to play into May and June. The Timberwolves have similar designs this season, but there are no guarantees in sports. So, when you get close, you feel like you have to finish the job. And when you don’t, “real grief” is waiting for you on the other side.
“It’s depressing,” he said. “I’m sure people can’t relate, but not too many guys get the chance to play in the NBA, and when you get that opportunity like we do, and you come up short, it’s like real depression for like weeks.”
Back to work
You won’t see Conley out enjoying himself in public shortly after a playoff exit.
Minnesota Timberwolves guard Mike Conley (10) dribbles down the court during the first half of an NBA basketball preseason game against the Indiana Pacers, Tuesday, Oct. 7, 2025, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Abbie Parr)
“I don’t want to be seen out eating. I don’t want to go nowhere,” he said. “It’s almost like an embarrassment. I don’t want to be seen by anybody. You just feel so terrible about the situation.”
So, Conley goes back to the place he knows best, the gym. There, he can bury himself in his work. Just 36 hours after that last game, he was at the Wolves’ practice facility. At 7 a.m. Anthony Edwards was there, as well.
“You can’t run from (the hurt). You’re going to feel that way anyway,” Conley said. “The best way for me is always to try to get right back into my routine.”
“Every time you’re in the weight room, every time you’re shooting or something, you’re like, ‘Man, I’m not going to miss this shot again,’ ” he added. “It just kind of gets you going forward toward another year. It’s probably why I keep trying, year after year: to give myself another chance.”
It’s why retirement isn’t an option. Ending the pursuit short of the ultimate destination would require some emotional management training.
“I don’t know how to cope, bro,” Conley joked. “I’ll be around. Even if I don’t play a minute, I’m just going to be around. I’ll be dressed up, in my routine, doing what I do until I somehow get a ring.”
The chase continues
The birth of a new league season brings the NBA Draft, Summer League and a fresh cycle. That’s when Conley feels himself turning the page and transforms thoughts from “What went wrong?” into “How can we improve?”
But that’s in July, at which point it’s time for him to begin gearing up physically for the upcoming campaign. Inevitably, he’s confronted with the fact that he spent most of his true “offseason” wallowing in his disappointment.
“Before I knew it, it was August and I was coming back (to Minnesota) for my kids to start school,” Conley said. “It just happens really quickly. If I could get out of that (rut), I could enjoy my summer a lot more.”
But it seems as if Conley’s only chance to break the cycle is to break through and win that elusive first title. So, the chase continues into Year 19. Conley joked that he now checks in with his body in the morning in the same way people open their car hoods to inspect the engine.
“I’ll be like, ‘This don’t work today. My ankle don’t work today. My knee don’t work today. My hip, my back, whatever — something random,” Conley said. “And I’m like, ‘Forget it.’ I’m still going to go down (to the facility) and do what I’ve got to do and get after this thing again.”
“Because the thought of the goal, achieving the goal, is so great to me that is just pushes me to want to do it more, regardless of how I feel.”
Aches and pains don’t compare to the agony of an unrealized dream.
“Hopefully, I ain’t got to feel that again,” Conley said. “Hopefully, we can figure it out.”
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