In the second round of the 2024-25 NBA Playoffs, the Minnesota Timberwolves and Golden State Warriors will fight for a spot in the Western Conference Finals. Keep reading for a preview and prediction for this series. And make sure you check out our NBA Playoffs Betting Guide, which will serve as the hub for all of our postseason betting content!
Timberwolves vs. Warriors Series Preview
The Warriors were favored in their opening-round series against the second-seeded Rockets, but that isn’t the case here. While Golden State prevailed against a solid Houston team, the Warriors did have their struggles. Golden State had an offensive rating of just 111.7 over seven games. That would have been good for only 22nd in the NBA during the regular season. And while people might want to point to the fact that Houston was fifth in the NBA in defensive rating (110.3) this year, Minnesota was sixth in the league (110.8). Also, after the Timberwolves started the season 8-10, only three teams in the league gave up fewer points per 100 possessions than the Timberwolves (111.1) the rest of the way.
Minnesota just has the ability to do a lot of the things Houston did last series. The Timberwolves have one of the league’s best interior defenders in Rudy Gobert, and they also have a bunch of athletic perimeter players that take pride in playing defense. On top of that, Minnesota is extremely well coached on that end of the floor.
The one thing the Timberwolves don’t have is an Amen Thompson to put Stephen Curry in jail for 48 minutes. But Minnesota is better equipped to defend the rest of the Golden State lineup. The team also has some guys that will make Curry fight. Anthony Edwards could be one of them. He never backs down from a tough assignment. Nickeil Alexander-Walker and Donte DiVincenzo should also be able to do some good work on Curry.
The Timberwolves are also a much better team than the Rockets offensively, and that’s why I believe this series spells trouble for the Warriors. Minnesota is going to have no problem getting into the mud with Golden State, and Houston took that championship core to seven games doing that. However, the Rockets didn’t have the necessary shot-making required to finish the job. The Timberwolves do.
Edwards just averaged 26.8 points, 8.4 rebounds, 6.2 assists and 1.2 steals per game in a series win over the Lakers, and he’s going to have a real shot at being the best player on the floor in this series. Edwards has just been tremendous when attacking the basket, and we know he can knock down triples off the dribble. Of course, it’s fair to point out that Los Angeles didn’t have a rim protecting center in the back of the defense. But you know what? Golden State doesn’t really have a trustworthy big man either. Draymond Green is an elite small-ball big, but I’m not sure he’s going to be able to get up and stop Edwards from scoring at the basket.
The Warriors also have to worry about Julius Randle’s ability to score in isolation. Randle played the best basketball of his career against the Lakers, averaging 22.6 points, 5.2 rebounds and 4.4 assists per game. He also shot 48.1% from the floor and 39.3% from 3, and his play on the defensive end was spectacular. Well, let’s see what the Warriors can do to stop him. If they put Green on him, they’ll be leaving Gobert to be guarded by somebody that’s way too small. We saw how that went for Los Angeles in Game 5, when Gobert looked like prime Shaquille O’Neal. And if Green guards Gobert, that means Randle will be going to work against Jimmy Butler, who isn’t big enough to stop the Wolves forward from barreling his way to the basket.
Realistically, a lot was made of the way Houston’s double-big lineup of Steven Adams and Alperen Sengun was able to dominate Golden State last round, but any traditional frontcourt pairing can do damage against this undersized Warriors team. So, look for Randle and Gobert to cause all different kinds of problems for Golden State, and that won’t change when Naz Reid checks into the game.
Considering all of that, it’s hard to imagine the Timberwolves not advancing to the Western Conference Finals, and that doesn’t even factor in the rest advantage. Minnesota had nearly a full week of rest to get ready for this series, and Golden State had only one full day before Game 1. That’s tough considering how physical the Warriors’ first-round series was. And it’s not like Golden State’s all that young or healthy. Curry is dealing with a brutal thumb injury, Butler hasn’t looked the same since suffering a hard fall in Game 2 and there are other players in the rotation that are banged up. How much will the Warriors have left in the tank by the time Game 4 rolls around?
I’m already pretty invested in Minnesota to win the Western Conference. I have them at 14-1 (0.5 units) and 20-1 (0.5 units) to win the conference, but I’m adding a pretty big play here. I think Minnesota should be closer to -220 in this series.
Best Bet: Timberwolves To Win (-170 – 2.5 units)
