Entering the Minnesota Timberwolves' first play-in game in franchise history, they struggled mightily at the early juncture of their match against the Los Angeles Clippers. The inexperience seemed to creep into a high-pressure situation, but Minnesota was led by D'Angelo Russell and Anthony Edwards in the phenomenal comeback of the Timberwolves and securing that seventh seed in the NBA playoffs.

They move onto their first seven-game playoff series against the sensational Memphis Grizzlies. This will be a battle of the young guns led by Edwards and Karl Anthony-Towns versus Ja Morant and Jaren Jackson Jr. The playoff intensity and playing under the bright lights will start intensifying right from the onset in Game 1, so these two squads must be more than ready to step up the plate in the playoffs. Thus, here are three bold predictions for Minnesota for this upcoming series against Memphis.

Timberwolves Predictions Against Grizzlies

Vanderbilt, McDaniels get more minutes due to their defense

A Chris Finch-led squad is known to maximize their potential offensively because of his incredible schemes and ability to raise the confidence of all his players. Guys like Edwards and Russell are known to rack up a bunch of points every night, but it is still on the defensive end where the Timberwolves must emerge as a better group to sustain their success for the long run.

The answer to that persisting issue would be utilizing effectively the tandem of Jarred Vanderbilt and Jalen McDaniels. Any NBA fan would know that the main weakness of Towns' arsenal would be his lateral quickness and defensive awareness. That was exposed by Tyronn Lue and the Clippers as Towns racked up several fouls that affected his aggressiveness on defense, so Vanderbilt and McDaniels will likely receive more playing time if Finch prioritizes the defense of Minnesota when Towns cannot stay on the flooor.

Russell averages over 25 points for this series

Even during his Los Angeles Lakers days, Russell supporters have been experiencing a rollercoaster ride in terms of his numbers. Consistency has been a real issue with Russell, especially with his efficiency and initiative to contribute on other facets when his shot is not falling. With Dillon Brooks likely to matchup on Edwards, Ziaire Williams or Desmond Bane will have the main responsibility of containing Russell.

The skill level of Russell to maneuver through the defense of Williams or Bane would be magnificent as he would be fantastic with his in-between shots and floaters that would force Jackson Jr. and Steven Adams to get out of the paint and provide some help defense. Moreover, Russell will be an instrumental factor in decreasing his turnovers as well because the Grizzlies thrive on a faster pace when they force turnovers and tally a ton of fast break points.

Edwards plays better than Morant in the series

The immense success of Memphis this year has also been far more impressive because Morant has missed over 20 games this season, but that has not been cause of concern at all. The problem is all those contests were in the regular season, wherein opponents are different every night. With Morant just recently returning from another injury, he is still in the process of finding his groove at the highest stage of the NBA.

That will cause a few struggles for Morant to flourish every game in this series, thus making it highly likely for Edwards to have laser focus and the spectacular mentality of leading the Timberwolves. The slashing and leaping ability of Edwards would be a superb asset that would force defenses to continually adjust. The knee soreness of Edwards toward the end of the regular season does not seem to bother him as this will be the year wherein Edwards elevates himself in the upper echelon of guards in the NBA.

This Minnesota-Memphis series will be one of the most entertaining ones because of the relentlessness and eagerness of these youthful individuals to experience playoff basketball. It is on a whole different level to play in front of the national for every game, but these two organizations are more than primed and ready to live up to the hype and emerge as a contender against the usual teams that compete in the playoffs.