Through the high variance, malaise, and short spurts of expected dominance — leading to a somewhat mixed bag of results — the Phoenix Suns were able to make the climb from Play-In realms to the Western Conferences top-6.
Their reward? A round one bout the defensive-minded, physical, eager, league’s best and most stingy defense, in the 3rd seeded Minnesota Timberwolves. They’ve seen a surge in connectedness, organization, and identity that saw them spend a good majority of the season as the 1-seed, and enter the playoffs with confidence, after enjoying the 2nd most wins (56) in Timberwolves franchise history.