The NBA released its schedule earlier this week. Our Kyle Ratke has plenty of time and planned three road trips for you to watch the Timberwolves play in 2017-18, which doesn’t sound creepy at all.
Here are pre-planned trips to Chicago, Milwaukee and Indiana for the upcoming season.
Chicago
Friday, Feb. 9 at United Center, 7 p.m.
How long is the drive from Minneapolis? 408.4 miles which is about six hours and four minutes. You could listen to the new “OMG” song by Camila Cabello 103 times.
Where should you eat? Twitter was HAWT on this. But I’ll go with Portillo’s. I’ve never been, but people on Twitter have. There is Beef. Burgers. And Salads. Probably not a hot spot for vegetarians as their phone number for catering is 866-YUM-BEEF. They have a million locations in Illinois. You can check them all out here.
What makes the matchup cool? This one is pretty easy. It’s the return of Jimmy Butler, Tom Thibodeau and Taj Gibson to Chicago. It’s also the first time the Wolves will face Zach LaVine and Kris Dunn. This is one of the more anticipated games of the season.
Where to stop on the way? Wisconsin Dells. Water slides. Fine dining. And night clubs? (I’m not completely sold with the night clubs but just go with it.) If you’re not all about the full six-hour drive (which makes me question if you even like road trips), this is a spot to stop at for the night.
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Milwaukee
Thursday, Dec. 28 at BMO Harris Bradley Center, 7 p.m.
How long is the drive? 336.5 miles or a five-hour and nine-nine minute drive. You could watch my favorite movie, “Gladiator,” 1.807 times.
Where should you eat? Cafe Hollander. Again, I’ve never been there, but the website makes the place look awesome. It’s a 12-minute drive to the Bradley Center or an hour walk that is mostly flat, according to Google.
What to order? Starting with the Big Soft Pretzel seems like a good idea. Maybe you move on to the Grains and Green Salad or you hop to the Big Smokey Burger. Plenty of solid options. And they have an adult root beer float which seems like something you definitely wouldn't regret.
But only for adults!
What makes the matchup cool? The Bucks are considered one of the top up-and-coming teams in the East and that has almost everything to do with Giannis Antetokounmpo. Will Jabari Parker be back for this matchup? We don’t know. But those two going up against Butler, Karl-Anthony Towns and Andrew Wiggins seems like fun.
Where to stop on the way? Black River Falls. There is a giant orange moose. You should go see it.
Spoiler alert: It’s not real.
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Indiana
Sunday, Dec. 31 at Bankers Life Fieldhouse, 4 p.m.
How long is the drive? 591 miles which equates to a nine-hour and 33-minute drive. You could watch the entire season one of New Girl and still have 68 minutes to kill!
Where should you eat? There is a place called Milktooth that looks cool for breakfast. Is it a little hipster? Maybe. There is something on the menu called “welsh rarebit dutch baby” which actually sounds like an up-and-coming hip-hop artist. Everything looks very affordable, though. The game is on New Year’s Eve, so if you’re of age, grab yourself a mimosa.
What makes the matchup cool? After trading Paul George to the Thunder, we have no idea what the Pacers will look like in 2017-18. This matchup is still somewhat early in the season, so chances are Indy will be searching for an identity. I would expect that to mean a lot of Myles Turner, but sometimes the unknown is fun.
Where to stop on the way? A place called Blue Island, Illinois. There’s a theory that Blue Island was first named “Portland,” but Wikipedia says that’s not true. Good thing people can’t just edit Wikipedia pages, otherwise I would definitely question that. Former MLB All-Star Curtis Granderson was from Blue Island. Maybe you’ll see him if he isn’t playing for the New York Mets.