After many changes in the offseason, Wolves look to push for playoffs

It’s that time of the year; after waiting since the end of April, the Wolves are finally back.

However, this time the team looks a little different. This time around only two of the five original starters will be returning.

It all began on April 11th, when the Wolves unleashed their new logo. Soon to follow, the stadium designs and renovation as well as the new jerseys all started to become a reality.

On June 22nd (NBA Draft), the Wolves made a blockbuster trade, it sent Zach Lavine, Kris Dunn and the number 7 pick in the draft (Lauri Markkanen, center, Arizona) to Chicago in exchange for three time all-star Jimmy Butler, and the number 16 pick (Justin Patton, center, Creighton).

“I feel that Jimmy Butler on the Timberwolves, automatically adds 20 wins to the season. He is a top 10 player in the league, his defensive game is unbelievable and matches perfectly with Coach Tom Thibodeau’s defensive mindset,” said Justin Reifsteck, senior.

Not too long after, the Timberwolves traded Ricky Rubio to the Utah Jazz for a 2018 protected first round pick. This trade opened up cap space for the Wolves, and they didn’t take long to use it.

The Wolves quickly signed Jeff Teague, point guard, who used to play for the Indiana Pacers, to a three-year, $57 million deal. The next move the Wolves did was to sign Jamal Crawford, shooting guard, who used to play for the Los Angeles Clippers, for a two-year $8.87 million deal.

These two signings really helped fill open spots in the Wolves lineup. They now have a solid starting point guard who can shoot the ball and pass, unlike Rubio who wasn’t a big threat to shoot. It also gives us some depth on our bench, they now don’t have to solely rely on Shabazz Muhammad, small forward.

The other move the Wolves made was the signing of Taj Gibson, power forward, who used to play for the Oklahoma City Thunder. The Wolves signed the 32 year old to a two-year $28 million deal. This addition reunited Gibson, Butler and Thibodeau after not being together since 2015 when they were all in Chicago with the Bulls.

Now the Timberwolves are in position to make a push for the playoffs for the first time since 2004.

Tonight at 8:30, the Timberwolves will kick off the season in San Antonio, Texas vs the Spurs. Luckily, for the Wolves, the Spurs will be without their star forward Kawhi Leonard for this matchup, as he is nursing a quadriceps injury that has kept him out of the entire preseason.