All of the doom and gloom surrounding the Timberwolves would suggest they lost the series on Tuesday night at Target Center.

They actually might’ve won it.

As maddening as the Timberwolves were for the entirety of their 99-88 loss to the Golden State Warriors, truthfully, there isn’t much to worry about if Steph Curry’s strained hamstring keeps him out for an extended period of time.

Never mind that Anthony Edwards looked like he had indulged himself at Cowboy Jack’s before tipoff.

Never mind that everybody on the Timberwolves forgot how to shoot for a prolonged stretch.

Never mind that the home crowd went from booing Jimmy Butler every time he touched the ball to booing for a completely different reason.

None of that matters if Curry isn’t able to return to the Western Conference Semifinals in short order.

This isn’t absolving the Timberwolves of their sins. Not in the slightest. They deserve some sort of reckoning for the embarrassing effort they put forth on their home court.

As bad as the Timberwolves played, however, the reality is they only lost by 11 points when everything was said and done.

It should’ve been a blowout with how poorly the Timberwolves executed for the better part of 48 minutes. It wasn’t because the Warriors aren’t capable of that type of dominance without Curry leading the charge.

That’s not taking anything away from Butler, who finished a couple of assists shy of a triple double, Draymond Green, who was everything his teammates need him to be and more, or Buddy Hield, who led all scorers with 24 points.

That’s simply stating a fact about the Warriors. The car has always been specifically designed for Curry. It doesn’t work with somebody else in the driver’s seat.

It’s a shame for the Warriors because they looked more than capable of pulling off the upset before Curry got injured on a seemingly innocuous play in real time.

Not only did the Warriors use constant ball movement on offense to get pretty much whatever they wanted, they rotated perfectly on on defense to more than make up for the size they were surrendering at almost every position.

After looking so impressive against the Los Angeles Lakers, the Timberwolves suddenly found themselves in a street fight with the Warriors.

Everything changed when Curry suffered a strained hamstring after nailing a floater in the lane and coming up lame. He immediately grabbed at the back of his leg, then retreated back to the locker room as soon as there was a dead ball. He did not return to the bench at any point.

Not long after the final buzzer sounded in Game 1, Steve Kerr came out and said the Warriors are planning as if they won’t have their best player available for Game 2. It’s hard to imagine the Warriors being able to summon the willpower to press on with Curry watching from the sidelines.

A similar sequence played out nearly a decade ago with the Warriors on the opposite end in the early stages of their dynastic run.

After looking so impressive throughout the playoffs, the Warriors suddenly found themselves in a street fight with the San Antonio Spurs.

Everything changed when Kawhi Leonard suffered a sprained ankle after landing awkwardly on Zaza Pachulia’s foot. His absence resulted in the Spurs coughing up a massive lead, and after the Warriors managed to complete the comeback in the opener, they dominated the rest of the way en route to sweeping the Western Conference Finals.

Though the Timberwolves can’t sweep the Western Conference Semifinals — their putrid performance made sure that’s no longer an option — they still find themselves in very good position to win the series.

Even if a frustrated fan base is struggling to see it.

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