The Minnesota Timberwolves reached their first Western Conference finals in 20 years last season, then made one of the most controversial moves in franchise history by trading Karl-Anthony Towns. And now they're right back in the conference finals.

The Minnesota Timberwolves, up 3 games to 1, can clinch their NBA Western Conference series at home on Wednesday niight.

And with that, the Warriors' season has ended. Simply put, Golden State could not recover after losing superstar Stephen Curry to a left hamstring strain in Game 1 of this series. Golden State finished Game 1 without Curry with a 99-88 win but proceeded to lose four straight by a combined 47 points.

Never was Stephen Curry's impact more clearly illustrated than when the Golden State Warriors struggled to even compete against the Minnesota Timberwolves without him. Curry was sidelined with a hamstring strain for all but 13 minutes of the Warriors' five-game elimination in the Western Conference semifinals,

With Curry on the court, the Warriors might be contenders in these playoffs. Without him, they're starved and staring at an early exit.