There is no suspense! The teams that finally entered the NBA Finals are probably these two teams, and the NBA has changed its days

When the Denver Nuggets were still preparing for a tiebreak battle with the Thunder on the stage of the Western Conference semi-finals, when the defending champion Boston Celtics were eliminated 4-2 by the Knicks, when the giants Golden State Warriors and Lakers were all eliminated by the Timberwolves, the NBA playoffs in 2024-25 gradually tore off the last veil of "the old king's dominance". The era of kings such as James and Curry is accelerating its ebb, and the New York Knicks and the Minnesota Timberwolves, two teams that were once regarded as "runners", are reshaping the league structure with a destruction. One is the benchmark for the revival of the Eastern Heroes, and the other is the barbaric growth of the Western Rebellion. Their rise not only ends the monopoly of traditional powerful people, but also indicates a complete reshuffle of the NBA's power territory.

The transformation of the New York Knicks began with the management's "big bets". In the summer of 2024, when the team exchanged the Nets for Bridges with their future first-round picks and young assets, they sent Divincenzo + Randall for Towns, and the outside world generally questioned the cost-effectiveness of these transactions. However, after a season, Bridges has proved that he is not only a top 3D player, but also the soul of the Knicks' defensive system with his average of 17.8 points and 0.9 steals. His existence completely liberated Brunson's offensive firepower - this former second-round pick averaged 27.9 points and 7.6 assists per game this season, with a shooting percentage of 52.3% at critical moments, and defeating his opponent's double-team tactic with oneself.

What is even more amazing is the depth of the lineup: as the space-type No. 5 position, Towns can shoot and fall. In his first season, he averaged 23-point shooting percentage with 42% of three-point shooting, and averaged 24.4 points and 12.8 rebounds per game. He can not only transfer his opponent's inside from the penalty area, but also ensure rebounding. Anunobi has become the most terrifying wing lock in the league with his all-round attribute from the No. 1 position to the No. 5 position; Hart won countless second offensive opportunities for the team with his per-game strength of 9.6 rebounds (including 2.1 frontcourt rebounds). The terrifying thing about this team is that they can not only use the pick-and-roll tactics of Brunson and Towns to destroy the defense line, but the pick-and-roll tactics of the two cannot defend against each other, but also rely on the unlimited switch to defend against Bridges and Anunobi.

If the Knicks' success originated from two big bets, then the rise of the Timberwolves is a victory of a "youth storm". Edwards' evolution speed is far beyond expectations. The 22-year-old shooting guard averaged 26.5 points, 8 rebounds, 5.9 assists in the playoffs, with a three-point shooting percentage of 38.5%. He played a good show of riding alone in the series against the Lakers. More importantly, his ability to take the ball when he encountered double teams was greatly improved - the playoff assists and turnover ratio reached 2.6, far exceeding the regular season 1.9. At the same time, Randle transformed from an "inefficient single player" to a "efficient end point", and his real shooting percentage in the playoffs increased to 58.7%. His pick-and-roll cooperation with Edwards has become the Timberwolves' fatal killer move.

The Timberwolves' lineup construction is also full of wisdom: Gobert guards the penalty area, interfering with the opponent's shooting 12.4 times per game; McDaniels became the iron gate of the outside defense with his 2.11-meter wingspan and quick lateral movement; Reed used a mid-range shooting percentage of 56.3% and a 3-point shooting percentage of 46.7 to prove that he is the most underrated substitute inside in the league. The horror of this Timberwolves is that they have five players who average double-point scores per game and their defensive efficiency is second only to the Knicks. So far in the playoffs, they have allowed their opponents to score only 38.7 points in the penalty area, suppressing the Lakers' three-point shooting percentage to 29.9%, and suppressing the Warriors' three-point shooting percentage to 34%.

Looking at the playoffs this season, the Boston Celtics rely too much on Tatum's singles, and role players collectively fail to get accurate under high pressure defense; the Los Angeles Lakers are trapped in an aging lineup, and the combination of James and Doncic is difficult to make up for the loopholes in the defensive end. For teams who are still in the playoffs, challenging the Knicks and the Timberwolves is almost an "impossible task". The Eastern Conference Finals rival Pacers lack real superstars, and Halliburton's offensive stability has not yet been tested by top defense; although the potential opponents of the Western Conference Finals are full of talent, Alexander and Homgren lack experience in the playoffs, and the defensive strangulation facing the Timberwolves may be difficult to last. The Denver Nuggets are due to Porter Jr.'s injury and Murray's contract premium have caused the lineup to be imbalanced, and Jokic is unable to support it alone, so it is difficult for them to advance in the tiebreak battle with the Thunder.

In other words, the Knicks and the Timberwolves are likely to be the two teams that advance to the Finals in the 24-25 season. By then, it will not only be the peak competition between the two teams, but also the handover ceremony of the new and old NBA eras - when Brunson and Edwards stand on the stage of the finals, the league will officially enter the era of "post-95" stars dominating. History is always surprisingly similar. In 1991, Jordan led the Bulls to defeat the "Magic" Lakers, ending the "Showtime era"; in 2007, James single-handedly defeated the Pistons, announcing the arrival of the "Little Emperor" era; in 2025, the rise of the Knicks and the Timberwolves may become another epoch-making turning point. When the finals countdown sounded at the Madison Square Garden in New York and the Minnesota Target Center, the entire basketball world will realize that the NBA's scepter has been handed over to a new generation of rulers.