LOSING BLOWS LIKE THE COLD MINNESOTA WIND

by Jordi Scrubbings, The Serious Tip

Seventy is a magic number in the NBA. Just as 70 wins signifies an all-time great winning season, 70 losses is indicative of the worst of NBA seasons. Only four teams have lost 70 games in recent NBA history: the 1986-87 Clippers (12-70), the 1997-98 Nuggets (11-71), the 1992-93 Mavericks (11-71), and the 1972-73 Philadelphia 76ers who had only nine wins to their 73 losses. This year, however, a new face is attempting to avoid the dreaded scar of the 70-loss season.

Like the arctic frost that seizes the state throughout the winter, a depressing grip of ineptitude has strangled the Minnesota Timberwolves this season. This frigid blast has caused the entire community to yearn for respite. Thirty-three games into the 2007-08 season and the Timberwolves have amassed only four wins. Even the pathetic duo of the New York Knicks and Miami Heat have double that amount. The T'Wolves' dubious trajectory has them on course to win a grand total of 10 games, only one better than the historically woeful 76ers.

So what does the future hold for the suffering Timberwolves of Minnesota? If history is a guide, after the dark, cold night there does indeed arrive a warm, comforting day. On average, teams losing 70 games have made the playoffs five years later. The longest wait was eight years by the 1992-93 Mavericks, while those record-setting horrible 76ers not only made the playoffs three years after losing 70, but they made the NBA finals after the fourth year. Of course, it doesn't hurt that the 76ers rebuilt their team with such prominent NBA names as Henry Bibby (father of Mike), Joe Bryant (father of Kobe), Doug Collins (of recent announcing and coaching fame), World B. Free (the coolest name in NBA history), and Hall of Famer Dr. J, Julius Erving. So although the harsh winter gale of losing may have frostbit this season for the Minnesota Timberwolves, the future may indeed be much warmer for the budding nucleus of Al Jefferson, Randy Foye, Rashad McCants, Gerald Green, and Corey Brewer.