Reason for Optimism

As it stands this very moment, the Minnesota Timberwolves are still only 1 game behind Houston for the #8 spot in the West, a game and a half behind Dallas at #7, and only 2 games back from Denver at #6.  On the flip side, Portland, Phoenix, and Utah are all within a game of Minnesota, with Golden State only 2 behind.  In a shortened season, literally every single game is going to make a significant difference in the chase for that playoff spot which seemed to slip a little from the grasp of the Wolves on Friday night with 16 seconds left.  Only 4 games now separate #6 through #14 in the West with a little over 1/3 of the season to go.  Without Ricky Rubio's presence these final few weeks, I wondered if it's even worth it to consider a playoff run at this point, especially after the performance on Saturday night against the Hornets.

Breaking Down the Remaining Schedule

Living in a state where my favorite baseball team won 38.8% of their games, and my favorite football team won 18.7% of their games; I have to say it feels pretty good to say that my favorite basketball team is .500 at the All-Star break and within 1 game of a potential playoff spot.  As you would expect in a 66-game condensed schedule that almost feels like an MLB regular season, the first half absolutely flew by.  Knowing that sometimes a 5 day break can do weird things to a team, let's take a look at the remaining schedule and try to figure out what to expect from these last 32 games.  Will the Wolves continue to compete like they did in the last week winning 4 out of their last 5?  Or will they run out of gas in the end and miss the playoffs for the 8th straight year?

Can Kevin Love and Ricky Rubio lead the Wolves to the Playoffs?