After trading star forward Kevin Love to the Cleveland Cavaliers, it's hard to consider the Minnesota Timberwolves a contender in the Western Conference. But what the Wolves lack in experience, they make up for it with youth and energy and that was on full display Tuesday at their "Dunks After Dark" showcase.
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In a similiar ilk to a college basketball team "Midnight Madness" event, Minnesota players took the court at around 12:01 a.m. on Tuesday at the Taylor Center on the campus of Minnesota State University, Mankato, according to NBA.com.
Roughly 4,500 students and fans filled the arena when the doors opened at 11 p.m. and the event began with music and dancing.
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The event started with the team doing three- and five-man weaves up and down the court. They then split into three six-man teams to play three 12-minute scrimmages. Point guard Ricky Rubio and number-one overall pick Andrew Wiggins were paired together on the same team, and the duo wasted no time hooking up for a couple alley-oops:
Second-year swingman Shabazz Muhammad also showed off his leaping ability with a posterizing one-handed slam over Rubio:
After the scrimmages were over Wiggins and fellow rookies Zach LaVine and Glenn Robinson III participated in a freestyle dunk exhibition to entertain the crowd. Here's LaVine throwing down a nice between-the-legs dunk:
And Wiggins with a windmill slam:
With so many young players the Timberwolves might not be successful right away, but the athleticism and energy they showed at "Dunks After Dark" should give fans a reason to be excited about the team's future.
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