The NBA released the 2012-2013 schedules earlier tonight and theย Minnesota Timberwolvesย will play on national television (ESPN & TNT) six times during the season.
This is exciting news for a franchise that will feature star playersย Ricky Rubioย andย Los Angeles Lakers, along with the 2011 #2 overall pick Derrick Williams and second year head coachย Rick Adelman. And these national games arenโt against any scrubs either. The Tโwolves will be playing the best teams in the Western Conference. They have two games against theย Oklahoma City Thunderย andย Los Angeles Lakers, and one each with theย Los Angeles Clippersย and San Antonio Spurs.
The Tโwolves were in the thick of the playoff race last season before their point guard (Rubio) suffered a torn anterior cruciate ligament against the Lakers. From that point on the Tโwolves slowly drifted back in the playoff picture until Love suffered a concussion that knocked him out of the last few games of the season. Minnesota finished 26-40, missing the playoffs for the eighth straight season.
But president of basketball operations David Kahn has made a lot of moves this off-season in hopes of improving this team and making them a playoff contender. They addedย Chase Budinger,ย Brandon Roy,ย Alexey Shved, Dante Cunningham, Greg Steimsma, and Andrei Kirilenko to go with Love, Rubio and Williams. Rubio will be out until November, recovering from ACL surgery, but it has been reported that he is โahead of scheduleโ.
Only time will tell. If the TโWolves can count on anything this season, it will be that they will have the chance to showcase their team and talent to a national audience.
Thatโs something they couldnโt count on a few years ago.
