60 Fun Facts About Minnesota Timberwolves

In which year did the Timberwolves begin play as an NBA expansion team?

They joined alongside Orlando; Charlotte and Miami had started a year earlier.

What is the name of the Timberwolves' home arena in downtown Minneapolis?

The team played its first season in the Metrodome before moving into the new arena in 1990.

Which name lost to 'Timberwolves' in the 1986 vote among Minnesota's 842 city councils?

'Timberwolves' won by nearly two to one; Minnesota has the largest wolf population in the lower 48 states.

Which NBA franchise left Minneapolis in 1960 and kept its lake-inspired name in its new city?

The Minneapolis Lakers were named for the state's lakes and kept the name in Los Angeles.

Which Pistons forward, the Wolves' first expansion pick, refused to report and was traded?

Fresh off a title, he had no interest in an expansion team and was sent to Philadelphia.

In which venue did the Timberwolves play their first season, drawing a record 49,551 for the home finale?

They drew more than a million fans that year, an NBA record, despite going 22–60.

Which Wolves guard won the 1994 Slam Dunk Contest in Minneapolis with his 'East Bay Funk Dunk'?

The between-the-legs dunk was one of the few highlights of a 20–62 season.

In 1994 the original owners nearly sold the Timberwolves to a group planning to move them to which city?

NBA owners rejected the move and Glen Taylor stepped in as lead investor.

Which owner bought the Timberwolves in 1994 and kept them until selling to Alex Rodriguez and Marc Lore?

His sale to Rodriguez and Lore was agreed in 2021, collapsed in 2024, went to arbitration and was finalised in 2025.

With which pick did the Timberwolves select high-schooler Kevin Garnett in the 1995 draft?

He was the first player drafted straight out of high school in two decades.

Whom did the Timberwolves trade to Milwaukee on draft night 1996 for the rights to Stephon Marbury?

Marbury forced his way out in 1999, refusing an extension because he wanted to be a team's biggest star.

How many million dollars was the six-year contract the Timberwolves gave Kevin Garnett in 1997?

The deal made the Wolves the poster child for reckless spending during the 1998 lockout.

Whom did the Timberwolves get from New Jersey in the 1999 Stephon Marbury trade?

The deal also brought a first-round pick that became Wally Szczerbiak.

Which guard, killed by a drunk driver in 2000, got the Timberwolves' first retired number?

His No. 2 has hung from the Target Center rafters since 2000; Kevin Garnett's 21 is scheduled to join it in 2027.

A voided deal with which forward cost the Timberwolves three first-round picks and a $3.5 million fine in 2000?

The NBA also suspended GM Kevin McHale for a year; the penalty was originally five first-rounders.

Which two veterans, acquired in 2003, helped Kevin Garnett's Wolves reach the conference finals?

Cassell hurt his groin doing his 'big balls' dance in Game 7 against Sacramento and barely played against the Lakers.

What was the Timberwolves' record in 2003–04, when they earned the top seed in the West?

Garnett won MVP that season, averaging 24.2 points, 13.9 rebounds and 5.0 assists.

Which team beat the Timberwolves in the 2004 Western Conference finals, their first?

Even Phil Jackson said a healthy Sam Cassell might have swung the series to Minnesota.

Kevin Garnett's leap onto the scorer's table in 2004 came after a Game 7 win over which team?

It followed the franchise's first playoff series win, over Denver, in the previous round.

Which future Rookie of the Year did the Wolves draft sixth in 2006, then trade for Randy Foye?

Roy signed back with Minnesota in 2012 for a brief, injury-shortened comeback.

To which team did the Timberwolves trade Kevin Garnett in July 2007?

The seven-player-and-picks haul was the largest package ever traded for a single player, and Garnett won the title in his first season away.

Whom did the Timberwolves draft third in 2008 and trade that night to Memphis for Kevin Love?

Mike Miller also came to Minnesota in the deal.

Kevin Love's 31-point, 31-rebound game in 2010 was the NBA's first 30-30 game in how many years?

Later that season he ran his double-double streak to 53 games, the longest since the merger.

How many consecutive double-doubles did Kevin Love record in 2010–11?

He passed Moses Malone's post-merger mark and Garnett's team record of 37 along the way.

What was Kurt Rambis's record in two seasons as Timberwolves head coach before he was fired in 2011?

His 15–67 first season was the second-worst record in the league.

Ricky Rubio's 2012 rookie season ended with an ACL tear in a collision with which player?

The Spanish point guard had finally arrived from Spain two years after being drafted fifth overall in 2009.

Which team received Kevin Love in the 2014 three-way trade that brought that year's No. 1 pick to Minnesota?

Love joined LeBron James and Kyrie Irving and won a title in 2016.

Who was the first Timberwolves player to be named NBA Rookie of the Year?

He won it in 2014–15 despite the team going 16–66; Towns repeated the feat the following year.

What nickname was given to the young duo of Zach LaVine and the 2015 Rookie of the Year?

LaVine won the 2015 Slam Dunk Contest as a rookie; the pairing ended with the 2017 Jimmy Butler trade.

Whom did the Timberwolves take with their first ever No. 1 overall pick, in 2015?

He was traded to the Knicks in 2024 for Julius Randle and Donte DiVincenzo.

Which Timberwolves coach, who died of Hodgkin's lymphoma in 2015, is honoured with a nickname banner in the rafters?

He coached the Wolves from 1995 to 2005 and returned in 2014; the team wore a 'FLIP' patch all of 2015–16.

Which coach had been a Timberwolves assistant from 1989 to 1991 before returning in 2016?

He was fired in January 2019, two months after trading Jimmy Butler to Philadelphia.

Which star did the Timberwolves get from Chicago in 2017 for Zach LaVine, Kris Dunn and the seventh pick?

He led the team to its first playoff berth in 14 years, then forced a trade to Philadelphia the following November.

How many seasons long was the playoff drought the Timberwolves ended in 2018?

They clinched on the final day with a win over Denver, then lost to Houston in five.

Whom did the Timberwolves select first overall in the 2020 draft?

The Georgia guard became the franchise's all-time leader in three-pointers in January 2025, passing Karl-Anthony Towns.

Which coach, hired from Toronto's staff in 2021, led the Wolves to the 2024 and 2025 WCF?

He replaced Ryan Saunders midseason in February 2021.

From which team did the Timberwolves acquire Rudy Gobert in July 2022?

Gobert won a record-tying fourth Defensive Player of the Year award with Minnesota in 2024.

Which fan favourite, signed undrafted out of LSU in 2019, won the 2023–24 Sixth Man of the Year award?

He anchored the bench of the 56-win team that reached the conference finals.

The Wolves' 2024 sweep of Phoenix was the first sweep in the history of what?

Anthony Edwards's play in the series drew Michael Jordan comparisons, including from Jordan himself.

By what score did the Timberwolves win Game 7 in Denver in 2024 after trailing by 15 at halftime?

The win came exactly 20 years to the day after their previous conference finals berth.

Which team ended the Timberwolves' 2024 conference finals run in five games?

A year later Oklahoma City beat them at the same stage, also in five.

Which two players came to Minnesota from the Knicks in the 2024 trade of the Wolves' All-Star centre?

A first-round pick was also included in the deal.

For roughly how much did Alex Rodriguez and Marc Lore's group buy the Timberwolves?

The deal, first agreed in 2021, went through arbitration after Glen Taylor tried to cancel it in 2024.

Which WNBA team is the Timberwolves' sister club, included in the 2021 ownership deal?

The Lynx also play at Target Center and have won four WNBA titles.

The Wolves' 2018–19 'City' uniform paid tribute to which Minnesota musician's album?

The Prince-inspired look returned in the 2025–26 season.

Which two ABA teams played in Minnesota between the NBA's 1960 departure and the Timberwolves' arrival?

The Wolves have worn throwback uniforms honouring both short-lived franchises.

What is the name of the Timberwolves' mascot?

Team lore says he learned the game with a basket made of pine cones and birch bark before migrating south to the Twin Cities.

Where did the Timberwolves open the 1999–2000 regular season with two 'home' games against Sacramento?

They later played a regular-season home game in Mexico City in 2014.

What was the Timberwolves' record in 1991–92, the worst in the NBA that season?

They matched the 15–67 mark under Kurt Rambis in 2009–10.

The 2020–21 Timberwolves 'City' uniform paid homage to what state symbol?

Its aurora green trim and star sat above the abbreviation 'MINN'.

On which style of floor did the Timberwolves begin playing in 1996, alongside their new black-and-blue look?

An updated version of that maple parquet returned with the 'Classic' black uniforms in 2024–25.

Kevin Garnett returned to Minnesota in a 2015 trade from which team?

He waived his no-trade clause and put the No. 21 back on, then retired in 2016 after 21 seasons.

Whom did the Timberwolves beat for their first ever win, on November 10, 1989?

They had lost their debut in Seattle and their Metrodome home opener to the Bulls before the 125-118 breakthrough.

Who led the 1989-90 expansion Timberwolves in scoring with 23.2 points a game?

The team went 22-60 yet set an NBA attendance record by drawing more than a million fans to the Metrodome.

How much did Edward Villaume's group raise in a week in 1994 to keep the Timberwolves in Minnesota?

NBA owners had already rejected a proposed sale that would have moved the team to New Orleans.

Which team received Christian Laettner when the Timberwolves traded him in 1995?

Laettner and Sean Rooks went out for Andrew Lang and Spud Webb, clearing the way for rookie Kevin Garnett inside.

Which forward-guard headlined the package the Wolves got from Boston for Wally Szczerbiak in 2006?

Mark Blount, Justin Reed, Marcus Banks and two second-rounders also came over in the January 26 deal.

Against which team did the Timberwolves set a franchise record of 143 points in March 2014?

That 2013-14 team won 40 games and had the league's best point differential, yet still missed the playoffs for a tenth straight year.

Whom did the Timberwolves receive from Golden State for Andrew Wiggins in February 2020?

Russell was Karl-Anthony Towns' longtime friend; months later the Wolves used the No. 1 pick on Anthony Edwards.

Whose franchise record for made three-pointers did Ant Edwards pass in January 2025?

Edwards passed Karl-Anthony Towns with his 976th career three in a 133-104 win over Denver, finishing with 34 points.