The Minnesota Timberwolves added LaMelo Ball to play alongside Anthony Edwards this summer. The question going into the season is whether that is enough for them to move up in the Western Conference.
Former NBA coach Stan Van Gundy is the latest to weigh in, and delivered quite the bold take.
Stan Van Gundy Makes Bold Prediction About Timberwolves
Van Gundy led the Orlando Magic to the 2009 NBA Finals and now works as an analyst for Prime Video’s NBA coverage. He agreed that Minnesota would finish in the top six, saying he wasn’t sure any other team would take the spot. He did not rank the Wolves any higher than that.
“I think they’ll put some points on the board, but I’m not sold on them. I’m with you that they’ll be in the top six because I just don’t know if there’s anybody else, but I think they’re a pretty solid sixth in my opinion,” he said on ‘The Zach Lowe Show.’
“Now, could they catch the Lakers? Yeah, because as I said, I see a lot of variants there, but other than that, I mean, I don’t see them as good as Denver or Houston and nobody’s close to San Antonio or Oklahoma City,” Van Gundy added.
He said the Wolves could catch the Los Angeles Lakers, citing the uncertainty he sees around the Lakers. Apart from that, he put four teams ahead of Minnesota.
Former NBA champion Brendan Haywood took a more optimistic view earlier this month. On the “Finding the Seams” podcast, he said there was no reason Minnesota couldn’t be the third-best team in the West, behind the San Antonio Spurs and Oklahoma City Thunder. He also asked why the Wolves couldn’t finish ahead of the Denver Nuggets and Houston Rockets.
The five teams Van Gundy put ahead of Minnesota are the same five that finished ahead of it last season. The Thunder (64-18), Spurs (62-20), Nuggets (54-28), Lakers (53-29) and Rockets (52-30) all finished above the Wolves. Minnesota was sixth at 49-33, matching its 2024-25 record and finish.
In the playoffs, Minnesota beat the Nuggets in the first round. The Spurs then eliminated the Wolves in six games in the conference semifinals.
Minnesota got Ball from the Charlotte Hornets as part of a four-team trade. The Wolves sent Naz Reid, a 2033 unprotected first-round pick, three first-round pick swaps and three second-round picks to Charlotte. The same deal sent Julius Randle to the Brooklyn Nets.
Ball averaged 20.1 points, 4.8 rebounds and 7.1 assists in 72 games for the Hornets last season.
Coach Chris Finch said the parity in today’s NBA gives any team that keeps contending a chance, and that he believes Minnesota is that kind of team.
The Wolves open the regular season Wednesday at the Miami Heat. It is still unknown whether the Ball-Edwards backcourt can lift them past the five teams Van Gundy has ahead of them, or whether they finish sixth for a third straight season.
This article originally appeared on Pro Football Network.