Wolves win 4 in a row. - wolvesjr34's Dynasty

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Wolves win 4 in a row.

Posted on May 20, 2011 at 08:08 AM.

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Timberwolves Surge.

When the Minnesota Timberwolves lost their season opener to the Sacramento Kings by a single point the long time suffering fans held some optimism that the young pups would at least be competitive this year. That was all they could hope for, right? Wrong.

The Wolves responded to their opening night loss with wins over Milwaukee and Memphis, which again could be considered feasible by a young improving team striking at the right time. The Florida road trip would sort the men from the boys thought, right? Wrong. Minnesota went into the Heat�s house and scrapped out a victory that shocked the nation then backed it up with a four point victory over Orlando. Had we entered the twilight zone? Another win against a highly fancied opponent in Atlanta and all of a sudden every one was paying attention.

Embarking on their second road trip of the season the Wolves went into Houston to take on a struggling Rockets team, and fell flat on their faces. Nothing went right and the basketball viewing public all exhaled, the old Wolves were back, right? Wrong.

The Lakers were the next team the young pups had to face and years of being mocked by Kobe Bryant must have surely hit home, because they left Staples Center with a 17 point victory and some serious momentum, which helped them defeat Sacramento in the second of their season series matchups. Still, the pundits believed this surging Wolves team would eventually fall back into old habits. A high scoring loss to the Knicks, who lost Stoudemire early provided the Wolves motivation for the week just gone.

November 14th, 2010: Minnesota 120 defeated Atlanta 105.
November 15th, 2010: Minnesota 100 defeated Charlotte 91.
November 17th, 2010: Los Angeles Clippers 97 lost to Minnesota 99.
November 19th, 2010: Los Angeles Lakers 89 lost to Minnesota 120.

Atlanta has eight wins and five losses on the season, two of those to these upstart Wolves. The Lakers have started slowly with six wins and seven losses, but were probably counting on two wins over Minnesota by this time in the season. The Clippers are eight wins and six losses and could have so easily defeated the Wolves in their matchup, being as much as 20 points up midway through the second quarter.

The match against the Clippers could well be a playoff matchup for the Wolves if they keep their play up, as the Clippers look an impressive team and the Wolves have surprised everyone. The Lakers are looking old and just not the team they were last season. Minnesotans have enjoyed the recent results between the two teams.

So what exactly have they put in the water up in Minnesota? Perhaps the answer lies in the growing bond between the teams second year point guard Jonny Flynn and dunk champion Isaiah Rider, who struggled to find his feet during the first three weeks of the season while his team thrived. His play improved dramatically in conjunction with Flynn�s ability to get him the ball in good positions during the past week.

Rider�s stat lines:
V Atlanta: 43 points (17-22 FG), 4 rebounds, 4 assists, 2 blocks and 1 steal
V Charlotte: 23 points (9-21FG), 3 rebounds, 5 assists, 2 blocks
V LA Clippers: 23 points (11-18), 3 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 steal
V LA Lakers: 35 points (13-19), 2 rebounds, 11 assists, 4 steals

Rider rises up against Charlotte

Rider was named player of the game in all four games and is starting to show greater consistency and better shot selection. His game against the Clippers was ugly, but he did come up with the game winning dunk. Rider is starting to exert himself and demand more touches, never mind the electrifying effect he has on the crowd with his high flying dunks and dagger three�s. The Wolves are going to continue to surge and Rider will be an integral part of how far the Wolves go as he is the one with the true X Factor.

Flynn flies for the dunk against the Clippers

Flynn�s stat lines:
V Atlanta: 13 points, 20 assists, 2 steals, 1 turnover
V Charlotte: 11 points, 11 assists, 2 steals, 6 turnovers
V LA Clippers: 10 points, 15 assists, 1 block, 1 turnover
V LA Lakers: 17 points (5/6 3P), 15 assists, 4 turnovers

Love looks to score against Lakers

Other key games from Wolves players:
V Atlanta � Webster: 14 points, 4 rebounds, 2 steals (3/5 3P)
V Charlotte � Love: 13 points, 8 rebounds, 1 block
V LAC � Love: 15 points (7/7 FT), 6 rebounds, 3 assists, 4 blocks
V LAL � Love: 18 points (2/3 3P), 6 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 steals

Bledsoe slams one home against Charlotte