The Dallas Mavericks shocked the world by making it to the NBA Finals.
It’s not that it was a surprise to see a team led by Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving making it far in the playoffs, but they weren’t a top-seeded team at any point in the season, and it took some big in-season trades for them to hit their stride.
Notably, both the Oklahoma City Thunder and Minnesota Timberwolves were pleasant surprises, and it seems like they’re both going to be very good for years to come.
That’s why Donovan Mitchell wouldn’t be shocked to see either team going the distance next season.
Talking on the Million Dollaz Worth Of Game podcast, the Cleveland Cavaliers picked the Thunder or the Timberwolves to make it out of the West next year (via NBA Central).
Donovan Mitchell is picking the Thunder or the Wolves to make the Finals in 2025
“I would say it’s probably gon’ be Minnesota or OKC. I think Minnesota, they some dogs. I think they figured it out too about themselves. They made some trades and made some different acquisitions… pic.twitter.com/yYk6XSXSkZ
— NBACentral (@TheDunkCentral) August 6, 2024
He argues that the Timberwolves have ‘some dogs,’ and they figured out just how competitive they could be.
As for the Thunder, he believes people are underestimating the kind of defensive impact that Alex Caruso could make on that team.
He talked about how they already have some great defenders like Cason Wallace, Lu Dort, and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, so they should be able to lock up all teams in the league as well.
Anthony Edwards is already one of the faces of the league, and the Thunder were the youngest No. 1 seed ever, so none of these teams are going away any time soon.
Whether they’ll be able to reach the ultimate stage as early as next season remains to be seen.
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