How Western Conference teams are trying to mimic the Wolves to stifle the Nuggets

Last season one of the biggest stories in the NBA was how Tim Connolly went from the Nuggets to the Timberwolves and built a roster specifically designed to take down Denver. Connolly, of course, was the GM of the Nuggets who built their championship core only to leave for the T-Wolves in 2022.

When he got to Minnesota, he knew that he would have to create a team that had the size to trouble Nikola Jokic and the Nuggets. He did just that by acquiring Rudy Gobert and pairing him with Karl-Anthony Towns. With another stout big in Naz Reid off the bench, the Wolves had the ability to have two bigs on the court at all times; one to guard Jokic and one to protect the rim.

I’m sure by now everybody knows what happened; the Wolves smothered the Nuggets with size and were able to beat them in an epic seven-game series. They used KAT and Naz to body up the Joker and let Gobert essentially play goalie.

The strategy was very effective, but obviously hard to replicate. The Wolves paid handsomely to bring that collection of talent together and it was still just barely enough to get the job done. There aren’t many players in the league who could form that kind of big-man combo to make it work.

Thunder trying to copy the Wolves’ strategy?

But at least one other team has seen the blueprint and is trying to join the party; the Oklahoma City Thunder. OKC got the top seed in the West last season and eventually lost to the Mavericks in round two.

The Thunder had a stacked roster but their achilles heel was size in the frontcourt. In the offseason, they went out and addressed that issue by adding one of the marquee free agents, Isaiah Hartenstein.

Hartenstein was a big bruising defender and rebounder for the Knicks last season and played a pivotal role in their success. Now he’s joining one of the top teams in the West and has made them a favorite.

OKC has a lot of versatility and lineup options, but one thing they’ve opened up is the ability to play big. When they match up with Denver, they can have Hartenstein body up Jokic and free up Chet Holmgren to roam and protect the basket. 

This deadly combo of size and strength is similar to what the Wolves have, but the rest of the Thunder roster is better and deeper. There’s no guarantee that it will work out, but one thing is clear; to win in the NBA, teams are going to need size. The Wolves put that on display, and now others are trying to join the fray. The Nuggets better be ready.