Tim Connelly made a major splash on July 1, 2022, when he traded a number of draft assets along with a rolodex of role players to acquire Rudy Gobert in a trade with Utah.
It was an all-in type of move, which was a curious decision given that … the Timberwolves didn’t appear to be in an all-in position. Not back then, anyway.
Anthony Edwards was 20 years old at the time. Jaden McDaniels was 21. They’d just experienced their first playoff series when Connelly walked in the door and immediately pulled such a large trigger.
The stated logic at the time was that Gobert would help raise Minnesota’s floor to the point where the likes of Edwards and McDaniels would make playoff runs every single year. Experience is the most valuable teacher. And that has largely come to fruition.
But there was another benefit for Minnesota in stacking its roster at the time it did: It’s better to surround your star player(s) with an elite supporting cast too early rather than too late.
Because time does come for all, as Minnesota has witnessed firsthand over the past two postseasons.
Kevin Durant clearly didn’t have the same athletic pop, and was a bit of a glorified jumps-hooter, in last year’s first-round series. The same was true to a degree with LeBron James in Minnesota’s first-round series last month against the Lakers.
The decline is understandable for both. James is 40 years old, Durant 36. Steph Curry was still playing at a superstar level for Golden State at age 37, but he may miss the remainder of these Western Conference semifinals with a hamstring injury.
Curry said it’s the first hamstring injury of his career. He’s perhaps the best-conditioned athlete in basketball, but he was also taxed to the max down the stretch run of the season during which the Warriors attempted to win every game to dodge the play-in tournament, ended up in it anyway, then advanced to a grueling first-round matchup with Houston that went seven games.
It hardly feels like a coincidence that two days after playing 46 minutes in a Game 7, Curry suffered a soft-tissue injury at Target Center. The body can only endure so much as it ages, even as athletes attempt to push the bounds of logic.
Jimmy Butler built up a reputation of “Playoff Jimmy” for his spectacular postseason performances, carrying the Heat deep into the playoffs on multiple occasions. He tried to put on the cape again for Golden State in Game 4 on Saturday — delivering a dominant first three quarters to put the Warriors in a position to win even without Curry — but it was quite apparent the 35-year-old wing wore down by game’s end.
He went just 1 for 7 in the final frame. Draymond Green is 35, as well.
Meanwhile, Anthony Edwards played all 24 minutes in the second half on Saturday and appeared to only get stronger as the game wore on. The same was true in Game 4 against the Lakers.
Edwards is young and spry, as are most of his teammates. Outside of 37-year-old guard Mike Conley — who, likely not-so-coincidentally, got hurt in last year’s playoffs — Rudy Gobert is the oldest member of Minnesota’s rotation at just 32.
The Wolves are built to endure the duration of the marathon that is the NBA Playoffs. They aren’t affected by the every-other-day nature of these series. While youth may work against Minnesota in some of these matchups, so many other key factors are in its favor. The Timberwolves and Oklahoma City are the two clear favorites to advance to this year’s West Finals, and they’re both flush with young talent.
And by opening Edwards’ championship window so early in the guard’s career, the Timberwolves are giving their best player as many bites at the apple as physically possible.
That matters, because as the last two playoffs have shown, windows of championship contention end for teams and stars alike. You can’t kick seasons away while planning for “the future,” because you never know when injury or age will derail your best-laid plans.
Better to try to win now, versus assuming you’ll do so later.
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