Editing Minnesota Timberwolves (section)

====2003–04 season: Western Conference finals appearance====
In 2003, [[Rob Babcock]] was promoted to vice-president of player personnel. He and general manager [[Kevin McHale (basketball)|Kevin McHale]] made a series of strong off-season moves in an attempt to get the team over the hump and beyond the first round of the playoffs. They made two important trades, sending away forward [[Joe Smith (basketball)|Joe Smith]] and guard [[Terrell Brandon]] in a multi-player deal for [[Ervin Johnson]], [[Sam Cassell]] and embattled guard [[Latrell Sprewell]]. They also signed sharp-shooter [[Fred Hoiberg]], and former first overall pick [[Michael Olowokandi]] as free agents, with both becoming key contributors during the season. The Timberwolves rounded out their bench by signing veteran role players [[Trenton Hassell]], [[Troy Hudson]], and [[Mark Madsen (basketball)|Mark Madsen]].

Despite injuries to a revitalized Olowokandi (who missed half the season) and 6th man [[Wally Szczerbiak]] (who only played in 28 games), the revamped Timberwolves became the team to beat during the [[2003–04 NBA season]], finishing the season as the top seed in the Western Conference with a record of 58–24. Garnett had his best season to date, and both Sprewell and Cassell had career years as well. Garnett and Cassell both made [[2004 NBA All-Star Game|the all-star team]], and after the season, Garnett was named [[All-NBA Team|1st Team All NBA]], and earned his first [[NBA Most Valuable Player Award|MVP award]] averaging 24.2 points, 13.9 rebounds and 5.0 assists per game.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.basketball-reference.com/teams/MIN/2004.html |title=2003-04 Minnesota Timberwolves Roster and Stats |publisher=Basketball-Reference.com |access-date=March 22, 2013 |archive-date=January 21, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190121111233/https://www.basketball-reference.com/teams/MIN/2004.html |url-status=live }}</ref>

During the [[2004 NBA playoffs]], the Wolves won their first-ever playoff series against the [[Denver Nuggets]], before beating the [[Sacramento Kings]] in a hard-fought seven-game series to advance to the franchise's first Western Conference finals. [[Kevin Garnett]] leapt upon the scorer's table upon the winning Game 7 in the Sacramento series, which became one of the more iconic moments in Minnesota sports history. The Timberwolves' run ended in the Western Conference finals as the team lost to the [[Los Angeles Lakers]]. [[Sam Cassell]] injured his groin during Game 7 against the Kings, doing his infamous ''big balls'' dance after knocking down the series-clinching bucket, and as a result, played only sparingly during the Lakers series. Many around the NBA, including both [[Flip Saunders]] and [[Phil Jackson]] believe that had he been healthy, the Wolves would have advanced to the finals.<ref>{{cite web |title=Sam Cassell's Big Balls Dance cost Timberwolves a title, says Flip Saunders |date=November 4, 2014 |url=https://www.sbnation.com/nba/2014/11/4/7154423/sam-cassell-dance-flip-saunders-kevin-martin-timberwolves |publisher=SB Nation |access-date=May 20, 2019 |archive-date=September 19, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180919054211/https://www.sbnation.com/nba/2014/11/4/7154423/sam-cassell-dance-flip-saunders-kevin-martin-timberwolves |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Sam Cassell doesn't like seeing guys fined for the Sam Cassell dance |date=November 15, 2013 |url=http://nba.nbcsports.com/2013/11/14/sam-cassell-doesnt-like-seeing-guys-fined-for-the-sam-cassell-dance/ |publisher=NBC Sports |access-date=May 20, 2019 |archive-date=February 9, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190209032837/https://nba.nbcsports.com/2013/11/14/sam-cassell-doesnt-like-seeing-guys-fined-for-the-sam-cassell-dance/ |url-status=live }}</ref>