Timberwolves vs. Thunder | NBA Playoff Preview & Analysis
Written by: Varun Sharma
Last Update: Tue May 20, 2025, 2:38 pm ET
Read Time: 5 minutes
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The 2025 NBA Playoffs are officially underway and today we're here to talk about the Western Conference Finals between the Timberwolves and Thunder.
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Timberwolves vs. Thunder | Western Conference Finals
The TWolf Towers
Thunder Up
The second round's come to a close and the Thunder now sit in the Western Conference Finals. After a 68-win season, a first round sweep and now a Game 7 win under their belt, Oklahoma City rolls into this one with a plethora of experience. Oklahoma City's MVP, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, is averaging 29.0 PPG to go along with 6.4 APG and 5.9 RPG. He's shooting 48% from the field and still getting to the line for 8.7 FTA per game.
It was Oklahoma City's No. 2 that was in question, Jalen Williams. He was great against Memphis, averaging 23.3 PPG and shooting 53% from the field, but against Denver he struggled. Averaging just 16.5 PPG in Games 1 to 6, JDub was struggling to put the ball in the net. That all changed in Game 7.
Williams scored 24 points, grabbed 5 rebounds and dished out 7 assists. He played just 33 minutes in what turned out to be out a blowout win and that's exactly the JDub the Thunder will need against Minnesota.
Raised by Wolves
The Timberwolves are back in the Western Conference Finals and a big reason is because of the guy they traded for, Julius Randle. Randle's averaging 23.9 PPG in the postseason and he only got better against the Warriors. Randle's 25.2 PPG felt wildly more important than Ant-Man's 26.2 PPG. He shot 53% from the field and led the Timberwolves with 7.4 APG.
Anthony Edwards leads the Timberwolves with 26.5 PPG in the postseason and he's shooting 47% from the field and 39% from beyond the arc. He's been fantastic this year and it's why he's now in his second straight conference finals at just 23 years old.
Timberwolves vs. Thunder | Game Information
Matchup Information
Games 1 & 2
- Location: Paycom Center; Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
- Date: Tuesday, May 20, 2025 | Thursday, May 22, 2025
- Tipoff: 8:30 P.M. EST
Games 3 & 4
- Location: Target Center; Minneapolis, Minnesota
- Date: Saturday, May 24, 2025 | Monday, May 26, 2025
- Tipoff: 8:30 P.M. EST
(6) Minnesota Timberwolves vs. (1) Oklahoma City Thunder | Regular Season Matchups
- Timberwolves (131) @ Thunder (128) – 2/24/25
- Thunder (130) @ Timberwolves (123) – 2/23/25
- Thunder (101) @ Timberwolves (116) – 2/13/25
- Timberwolves (105) @ Thunder (113) – 12/31/24
NBA Series Odds
Minnesota Timberwolves (+300)
Oklahoma City Thunder (-375)
Betting Odds
Odds via BetOnline, an industry leader in the sports betting world.
Series Bets
Minnesota Timberwolves +1.5 Games (+132 via BetOnline)
Minnesota's gone 8-2 to start the postseason and it's been a long list of players that have helped them get here. The Timberwolves depth has been on display all throughout the postseason, but now they face a Thunder team that may just be a little bit deeper.
Minnesota's got the second best defense among all teams in the postseason, allowing just 101.1 PPG and holding opponents to 43% from the field. Wings like Jaden McDaniels, Anthony Edwards, and Donte Divincenzo make it easy to defend and when you've got a guy like Rudy Gobert in the paint; it's no surprise they rank No. 2 among all playoff teams in points allowed in the paint.
Julius Randle has been outstanding not only on the offensive end, but defensively he's been Minnesota's most intimidating matchup. Randle saw 40 minutes of matchup time, guarding Lebron James in Round 1. He held LBJ to 40% from the field and 23% from beyond the arc. In Round 2, it was Draymond and Jimmy Butler.
Randle held Dray to 37.5% from the field in 24 minutes of matchup time and contained Jimmy Buckets to 1/13 (7.7%) from the field in just 11 minutes of matchup time. He's been great on both sides of the ball and if this is the Julius we're going to see moving forward, I think the Timberwolves may be looking at their first NBA Finals in franchise history.
Don't forget to sprinkle the Timberwolves to Win the Series at (+300).
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