It\u2019s been clear for a while now that the Minnesota Timberwolves own real estate in Charles Barkley\u2019s head. Granted, it\u2019s not a sprawling estate given the size of Barkley\u2019s brain, but it\u2019s there. Somewhere along the line, somebody from Minnesota must have cut Chuck off in traffic, stiffed him on a golf bet, or maybe just served him bad walleye at a charity dinner, because the guy cannot stop dumping on the Wolves.<\/p>\n
And here\u2019s the thing: we get it. We know the history. From the day Kevin Garnett first slipped on a Celtics jersey until the day Anthony Edwards got drafted, the Wolves were basketball wallpaper. We had the Dark Ages of Jonny Flynn over Steph, the Kevin Love empty-calorie All-Star years, and the Jimmy Butler practice apocalypse. We were Charlie Brown lining up the field goal kick for nearly 20 years, only to have Lucy yank the ball every single time.<\/p>\n
But this isn\u2019t 2011 anymore. Back-to-back trips to the Western Conference Finals later, and we\u2019re not the punchline franchise. We\u2019re the team with that guy \u2014 Anthony Edwards, the next megastar. We\u2019re the team with competent ownership. We\u2019re a legit contender. The receipts are there.<\/p>\n
This week, Barkley was on Bill Simmons\u2019s podcast talking LeBron, Luka, and NBA relevance. Out of nowhere, Chuck swerves off the road and drops a backhanded drive-by on the Wolves, saying the Lakers haven\u2019t been \u201crelevant\u201d since 2020, punctuating his case with the fact that they just recently lost in the first round\u2026 to the Timberwolves, who, in his words, \u201caren\u2019t relevant themselves.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
Wait, what? By that logic, I guess Steph Curry and the Warriors weren\u2019t relevant when the Wolves sent them fishing. Same for Nikola Jokic and the Nuggets, who were on the wrong end of a 20-point Game 7 comeback the year prior. Kevin Durant, swept out of the playoffs by Ant and friends, must be irrelevant too. Somebody get KD on the line and tell him Charles says he doesn\u2019t count.<\/p>\n
Because nothing screams \u201cirrelevant\u201d like consecutive Western Conference Finals runs.<\/p>\n
The Thunder, Nuggets, and\u2026 Rockets?<\/p>\n
Chuck\u2019s official West power rankings: Thunder (fair), Nuggets (hmm\u2026), and Rockets (wait, what?).<\/p>\n
Nobody\u2019s questioning OKC. They\u2019re the defending champs and SGA just had the kind of season that makes you wonder if he was created in a lab to play in this era. Totally relevant.<\/p>\n
The Nuggets? Great team, world-class player in Jokic, but\u2026 the Wolves have beaten them six straight times (seven if you count Summer League, and yes, I\u2019m counting Summer League, because I\u2019m shameless and need every bullet for this argument). The Wolves were literally built by former Denver exec Tim Connelly to take down Jokic. And so far, it\u2019s working.<\/p>\n
And then\u2026 Houston? Yes, they traded for Kevin Durant. Yes, it made headlines. But if you think \u201cadd KD and stir\u201d equals automatic contention, then you\u2019ve clearly havent been paying to Brooklyn and Phoenix during the past five years. Durant\u2019s not the same guy anymore, and the Rockets gave up meaningful pieces like Jalen Green and Dillon Brooks to get him. That\u2019s not a free upgrade. But sure, let\u2019s bump Houston into the \u201ccontender\u201d tier and call Minnesota irrelevant.<\/p>\n
Look, we know what this is. Chuck and Shaq have made careers out of dismissing today\u2019s stars, and the Wolves are easy pickings. Ripping Rudy Gobert is a running gag, Ant is still too young to command the kind of universal respect Jokic or Steph has, and Minnesota isn\u2019t exactly a ratings magnet.<\/p>\n
But here\u2019s the secret: Wolves fans love this. There\u2019s nothing better than that \u201cnobody believes in us\u201d energy. If Barkley wants to keep lobbing lazy insults, fine. That\u2019s fuel. Every time he goes on national TV and mutters \u201cthe Wolves ain\u2019t relevant,\u201d it just makes it sweeter when Ant drops 40 on KD and Houston or when Rudy erases Jokic for the eighth straight time.<\/p>\n
So pile it on, Chuck. We\u2019ll take the hate, add it to the stack of disrespect, and shove it back down your throat come April. Because for all the irrelevant chatter, there\u2019s nothing irrelevant about the Timberwolves beating teams people actually call contenders.<\/p>\n
And when Hennepin Avenue is hosting its first Finals parade? I\u2019m saving a front-row seat for Charles Barkley, just so he can explain again why we don\u2019t matter.<\/p>\n