The Minnesota Timberwolves won their play-in game on Tuesday night, securing the seventh seed in the West and only their second playoff appearance in 17 seasons.
It was a huge deal for the team and the fans in the stands – and they made that very obvious.
Following the win, the team was parading around the court, throwing jerseys to the fans and celebrating as if they just won the NBA Finals.
This reaction garnered some heckling from viewers and other NBA analysts.
They saw it as over-the-top and premature and a bit silly but one NBA great thinks it was perfectly appropriate.
.@jj_redick was not a fan of the jeers made towards the T-Wolves 🗣️
(via @OldManAndThree) pic.twitter.com/LYOCAdPQE9
— ESPN (@espn) April 14, 2022
Speaking on his The Old Man & The Three podcast, former NBA star JJ Redick commented on the celebration.
“The city cared, the fans cared, the team cared, the players cared. And we’re going to make fun of that?” Redick said.
Does he have a point?
What’s The Big Deal?
Reddick makes a lot of sense: why are we making fun of a team that is happy about its success?
Winning an NBA game isn’t easy in the best of circumstances and taking down a team in the super important play-in game is even harder.
That’s a big deal and it’s even bigger considering the team’s history.
The Timberwolves have been trying to get to this point for years and many people never thought they would.
Even at the beginning of this season, there were plenty of people who didn’t think the Timberwolves would get close to the playoffs.
Yet they have surprised everyone and have worked hard and surpassed expectations.
So of course they’re very excited about this victory.
Yes, it’s a bit premature because there is still more work to be done – they could easily get swept in the first round.
But Minnesota should be proud of what they’ve achieved and they can dance and cheer about it all they want.
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