Q-was-here wrote:So we have three straight wins against Western Conference teams ahead of us in the standings: Denver, Portland, and now the Clips. And Portland lost again tonight and Phoenix is down in the 3rd, so we are right in the playoff mix with a bunch of other teams.
I'm glad the Wolves are in the playoff mix. The bad news is that the Wolves are in 11th place with the Lakers nipping at their heels a half game behind in 12th. Then again, the good news is that the Wolves are only 1.5 games behind the Warriors for the coveted 6th spot to secure a place in the playoffs without going through the play-in tournament. Obviously, this is not where the Wolves front office or the fans who liked the Gobert trade expected this team to be. But the last three games have been a positive sign and KAT will probably be returning some time this month.
I expect the Wolves to pass the Jazz and Blazers in the standings. The talent gap between the Wolves and those two teams is too big for the Wolves to remain behind either one. The Suns really look out of sorts and only a game ahead of the Wolves so I can see the Wolves passing the Suns in the standings at some point this month. The Wolves could pass the Slippers and replace the Warriors 6th position in the standings, but that will depend a lot of the health of Kawhi, PG and Curry. I still expect the Kings to start faltering. Doncic has single-handedly elevated the Mavs into the 4th spot. I question whether that's sustainable given the overall lack of talent on that team.
I don't see the Wolves cracking the top three this season, but the top 4 finish many were counting on is definitely plausible.