MINNEAPOLIS — The NBA has crowned a different champion in each of the last eight seasons, and the Minnesota Timberwolves enter 2026-27 convinced they are next in line.
The streak runs from Toronto in 2019 through the Lakers, Milwaukee, Golden State, Denver, Boston and Oklahoma City to New York, which ended a 53-year wait for a title last season. A ninth new name would extend the most balanced stretch the league has seen.
Minnesota has been knocking. The Wolves have 24 playoff wins across the past three seasons, third-most in the league behind the Knicks and Thunder with 33 apiece, and have won five postseason series in that span after taking just two in their first 34 years. They reached the West finals in 2023 and 2024, then went 49-33 last season and fell in the conference semifinals.
This summer the front office swung big again, sending Naz Reid and Julius Randle out in a five-team trade to land point guard LaMelo Ball. Ball and Anthony Edwards are both 25, and Jonathan Kuminga, Isaiah Evans, Trey Lyles and Cody Williams also joined a roster anchored by four-time Defensive Player of the Year Rudy Gobert.
Edwards, a four-time All-Star and Olympic gold medalist, averaged a career-high 28.8 points last season and was a Clutch Player of the Year finalist. With Ball handling more of the ball, he figures to see more catch-and-shoot looks; he made 49.6% of those 3-pointers last season, best among 308 qualifying players.
The competition is crowded. Miami paired Giannis Antetokounmpo and Klay Thompson with Bam Adebayo, Philadelphia added LeBron James and Jaylen Brown, and Detroit returns as last year’s top seed in the East. Minnesota opens against the Heat on Oct. 21.
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