The NBA General Manager Survey, which consists of 48 questions answered by all 30 NBA general managers, came out this past Thursday and there are many things to react to when you look at the responses with a Timberwolves centric lens.
*Keep in mind, GMs could not vote for their own players/team
Some of the best in the league
The GMs named Anthony Edwards the best shooting guard in the league by a wide margin. Meanwhile they named Jaden McDaniels as a top five perimeter defender, and the team as a whole was tied with the San Antonio Spurs as the team that will be the most fun to watch in the league. What I find most interesting is the fact that there seems to be a clear oxymoron in the way that the GMs voted when regarding the season outlook for the Timberwolves.
When asked to rank the teams in the Western Conference, the Wolves were ranked as the clear cut number three team, receiving 53% of the third place votes which was 23 points higher than the next team. What I found odd was the next category. When voters were asked about which team’s success will be the toughest to predict, Minnesota ranked second with 17% of the responses. That doesn’t make a ton of sense to me, as why would they be ranked as the third best team in the west when they’re going to be tough to predict?
Most of the questions pertaining to a potential successful season for Minnesota revolve around LaMelo Ball, Jonathan Kuminga, and the bench unit. I understand those uncertainties, but at what point can those just be explained away?
The LaMelo Ball mystery
LaMelo Ball will play in a true winning environment for the first time in his career, a phenomenon that most pundits don’t know what to do with. I’ll just tell you from my basketball experience, there is a noticeable bump in quality of play when you’re in a winning environment compared to a losing one. It’s easier to make the extra pass, make multiple efforts on defense, or actually attempt to box out when you feel like you have a chance.
Look no further than LaMelo’s last year in Charlotte when he was actually surrounded with some talent. They won 40 out of their last 64 games, not including a technical postseason play-in game. No offence to Kon Knueppel or Brandon Miller, but his supporting cast this year will be undoubtedly better.
Another concern about LaMelo is his potential fit as a ball dominant guard next to Anthony Edwards, who certainly will have the ball in his hands plenty. To the doubters of that fit with Ant, I want to pose a question to you: What was LaMelo’s first competitive basketball experience?
Well, it was being a facilitator for his brothers Lonzo and LiAngelo, of course. I see no reason why he can’t take those skills he learned in his basketball infancy and apply them with his new teammates, most notably Ant and Jaden McDaniels.
Kuminga conundrum
Let’s now move on to Jonathan Kuminga.
I understand the questions. I truly do. I know it didn’t work out in Golden State, and I know his time in Atlanta ended with a whimper. What I also know is that Steve Kerr had it out for him in Golden State, and that Atlanta never really committed to him. At a baseline, he’s a microwave scorer with major athletic upside, shows an affinity to run the floor, and is a big enough body to be able to match up physically. When you look at the other four Timberwolves starters, JK’s archetype is exactly what they need in a four-man. A fourth scorer behind Ant, LaMelo, and Jaden McDaniels, and a capable defender next to Rudy Gobert and Jaden.
Kuminga is even a capable shooter, but I don’t worry about that as much. Minnesota will have plenty of shooting in the starting lineup, though it’s nice to know that there is some ability there. There is also some need for scoring with the second unit (more on that later) but JK could easily be appeased with some offensive opportunity when on the floor with the second unit.
Depth pieces to prove
The last of what could be called one of Minnesota’s main concerns is the quality of the bench guys. Ayo Dosunmu got paid, but behind him there’s not a ton of proven commodities, just some potential. Guys like Joan Beringer, Terrence Shannon Jr., Bones Hyland, and Jaylen Clark all have plenty to prove.
But prove what, exactly?
Needing someone to spell Rudy Gobert? Even with his fouling problems, Beringer is more than capable of that right now as a rim runner, rebounder, and shot blocker, to say the least. Need some ball handling? Bones Hyland can and will play with the speed this team wants to play at and TSJ can be a menace attacking with his left hand above the break. Jaden is in foul trouble and you need a point of attack defender? As the warden of Clark County Jail, the former college Defensive Player of the Year can handle it, and has shown some shooting improvement in the preseason.
We don’t exactly know what we’re going to get from Cody Williams this season, but anything Finch can get from a trade piece that came back from a salary dump is an automatic plus. His shot is a work in progress, but he can defend in rotation and has shown the ability to punch gaps to get to the rim with good ball movement.
I’m not saying there aren’t genuine concerns about the Minnesota Timberwolves this season, what I’m saying is that the NBA GMs who voted for the Timberwolves to finish third in the Western Conference are probably more on the nose than those who voted them as the team whose success is most difficult to predict.
What do you think? Are the Wolves a clear cut three seed or are they more hard to predict? Sound off in the comments below.
