2024-25 Western Conference Finals Preview: No. 6 Minnesota Timberwolves vs. No. 1 Oklahoma City Thunder

2024-25 Western Conference Finals Preview: No. 6 Minnesota Timberwolves vs. No. 1 Oklahoma City Thunder

The conference finals tip off Tuesday, starting with the Western Conference with the No. 6 Minnesota Timberwolves and the top-seeded Oklahoma City Thunder. The Wolves are still hunting for their first-ever NBA Finals appearance, while the Thunder haven’t made the NBA Finals since 2012, a five-game loss to the Miami Heat.

Who do we have advancing to the big dance? Let’s dive into our full series preview below!

GAME	DATE	MATCHUP	TIME (EST)	TV
Game 1	Tuesday, May 20	Timberwolves @ Thunder	8:30 p.m.	ESPN
Game 2	Thursday, May 22	Timberwolves @ Thunder	8:30 p.m.	ESPN
Game 3	Saturday, May 24	Thunder @ Timberwolves	8:30 p.m.	ABC
Game 4	Monday, May 26	Thunder @ Timberwolves	8:30 p.m.	ESPN
Game 5*	Wednesday, May 28	Timberwolves @ Thunder	8:30 p.m.	ESPN
Game 6*	Friday, May 30	Thunder @ Timberwolves	8:30 p.m.	ESPN
Game 7*	Sunday, June 1	Timberwolves @ Thunder	8 p.m.	ESPN

What to know about the Minnesota Timberwolves:

Starters:

• Mike Conley
• Anthony Edwards
• Rudy Gobert
• Jaden McDaniels
• Julius Randle

Key Reserves:

• Nickeil Alexander-Walker
• Donte DiVincenzo
• Naz Reid

The Minnesota Timberwolves are back in the Western Conference Finals for the second consecutive season, this time going through the Los Angeles Lakers and Golden State Warriors in 10 combined games.

Minnesota’s five-game series victory over Golden State in the West Finals was without Stephen Curry for all but 13 minutes due to a hamstring strain, which was very unfortunate for the entertainment value. Though it still shot 38.2 percent from 3-point range and forced turnovers on 17.7 percent of the Warriors’ offensive possessions; it wasn’t always pretty, but the Timberwolves still playing exceptional basketball on both ends, taking care of the injured Warriors missing their best offensive player.

Anthony Edwards has averaged 26.5 points, 8.0 rebounds, 5.9 assists and 1.5 steals on 44.5 percent shooting and 38.5 percent from 3-point range. It took him a little while to find his rhythm, but he didn’t look back after he found it. Though the team’s biggest X-Factor has been Julius Randle, who’s having the best start to a postseason in his career.

What to know about the Oklahoma City Thunder:

Starters:

• Shai Gilgeous-Alexander
• Luguentz Dort
• Jalen Williams
• Chet Holmgren
• Isaiah Hartenstein

Key Reserves:

• Alex Caruso
• Cason Wallace
• Isaiah Joe
• Aaron Wiggins

The Thunder were the most dominant team in the NBA all season and now make their first Western Conference Finals with this core of Gilgeous-Alexander, Holmgren and Williams, among others.

Their West semifinal against Denver unexpectedly went seven games, but they blew the doors off Nikola Jokic and the Nuggets in Game 7, winning 125-93. They limited the Nuggets to just 39.3 percent shooting and just 22.7 percent from beyond the arc.

Shots haven’t quite fallen at the rate that they did during the regular season, but the Thunder offense is still a machine behind likely MVP-winner Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, who averaged 29.7 points, 6.4 rebounds, 6.6 assists and 1.6 steals on 52.9/33.3/82.5 shooting splits against the Nuggets. It wasn’t a perfect series for Oklahoma City’s shotmakers, but Gilgeous-Alexander was still exceptional inside the arc over the series’ final three games.

Minnesota’s defense is far sturdier than both Memphis’ and Denver’s, so I’m very fascinated to see OKC’s plan of attack and the adjustments made.

Nikola Jokic wants Nuggets to add more depth this offseason

Biggest Questions:

1. Can Minnesota limit turnovers?

The Oklahoma City Thunder was one of the most disruptive defenses in the NBA this season behind Caruso, Gilgeous-Alexander, Wallace, Dort, Holmgren, J-Dub, etc. They have very few–if any–true weak links defensively, forcing turnovers on nearly 20 percent of possessions this postseason. Minnesota, meanwhile, has the sixth-highest postseason turnover rate with a below-average mark during the regular season. The Thunder are excellent at generating offense off their defense. Can Minnesota keep it together and limit the live-ball opportunities that Oklahoma City will inevitably generate? That’s the big question.

2. Can Julius Randle continue his postseason breakout?

As I mentioned above, Randle is having a phenomenal postseason. So far, he’s averaging 23.9 points and 5.9 rebounds on 50.9 percent shooting and 34.5 percent from long range; over his first 15 postseason games, he was averaging just 17.1 points on 34.4/28.3/75.6 shooting splits. I don’t love this matchup for him, but how he fares against Chet Holmgren, Isaiah Hartenstein and Jalen Williams, among others, could be the biggest swing factor for Minnesota’s hopes at making the NBA Finals.

3. Can Oklahoma City get back on track from beyond the arc?

According to NBA.com’s shot tracking data, the Thunder were the fourth-best spot-up shooting team in the regular season, canning 39.4 percent of their 28.2 spot-up attempts per game. During the postseason, they’re shooting just 32.1 percent on catch-and-shoot 3s. This series will be disgusting (in a bad way) in the halfcourt on both sides. The team that wins the 3-point battle typically wins in the modern-day NBA, which is shocking, I know. The Thunder are shooting 26.3 percent on open 3s and 37.2 percent on wide-open 3s, which is classified as the closest defender being six feet or further. Positive regression should come, but will it be enough?

Prediction: Thunder in 7

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