Weak Timberwolves Bench Needs to be Addressed
The Timberwolves bench has been a problem throughout the season, but especially in the second half of the year.
The recent insertion of Zach LaVine into the starting lineup certainly hasn’t helped the Timberwolves’ bench production, taking away the main creator for the second unit.
And even though LaVine wasn’t a very good point guard, he was at least capable of driving into the lane and drawing help defense before finding open teammates on the perimeter. That is not a strength of any current player coming off the bench for the Wolves.
Since February 10th (the day that LaVine was moved into the starting lineup), the Timberwolves rank dead last in bench scoring at an even 24 points per game — more than 11 points worse than the average for bench units league-wide, which is 35.2 points per game.
The Wolves’ reserves are also shooting just 40.4 percent from the field, the second-worst mark in the league, to go along with 27.3 percent from deep (surprise — the worst rate in the NBA).
To be fair, bench production is not necessary for being a great team; the Cavaliers, Warriors, Raptors, Celtics, and Thunder all rank among the bottom dozen teams in terms of bench scoring, although they still average nearly 10 points more per game than the Wolves (32.3 ppg). It’s true — bench scoring isn’t a requirement for top-tier teams, but a solid bench is essential to augment the production of the starters.
The way bench players are deployed on the previously mentioned teams is the main difference when compared to the Wolves. None of those teams roll out all-bench units consistently, as coach Sam Mitchell likes to do, instead mixing their subs in with their starters.
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One specific example is Oklahoma City. There was a lot of conversation earlier in the year about how much the Thunder suffered when Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook sat at the same time. Even when that happened, though, the Thunder still typically had Serge Ibaka and another starter on the floor to make sure that there was still a dependent source of offense.
Thunder coach Billy Donovan has begun making it a point to separate when Durant and Westbrook take a breather and it has helped them become a more consistent team, less prone to ceding big runs to the opponent while the two star players sit.
Mixing the starters and the bench greatly helps the reserves. They get to play with better players, which in turn helps them play better. They don’t need to assume as much responsibility and can instead play a supporting role.
Looking at the Timberwolves, it’s easy to see how the bench players could thrive in roles with a bit less responsibility.
Shabazz Muhammad could be a more efficient scorer if he didn’t have to create his own shot on the second unit. Creating isn’t really part of his game and he would mesh well with players that could find him for open corner threes and occasionally in the post, where he can use his arsenal of post moves to bully defenders and get buckets.
Nemanja Bjelica has given Wolves fans a small taste of his drive-and-kick game. When he’s feeling aggressive, as he was early in the season and has again in the past few games, he’ll have some herky-jerky drives after using the threat of his three-point shot to pump-fake and get his man off balance.
Bjelica, however, is mostly a spot-up shooter. Again, while LaVine wasn’t a very good point guard, he was at least able to penetrate and draw the defense away from shooters on the second-unit. Now that he’s playing mostly with the starters, nobody on the bench can really draw help defenders to open up guys like Bjelica on the perimeter.
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Tyus Jones has shown an ability to read what the defense is doing on a pick-and-roll, but he’s still a very raw rookie point guard. He doesn’t have an explosive first step, either, so getting into the middle of the defense and drawing extra attention isn’t easy for him.
That’s not to say that he’ll never be able to create, though — Ricky Rubio isn’t explosively athletic either, but his extremely high basketball IQ helps him find seams to penetrate. Jones should get to that point eventually, but he’s not quite there yet this season.
The other two bench players that see consistent time — Tayshaun Prince and Greg Smith — are both completely dependent on others to set them up for shots. Smith has played pretty well since being signed by the Wolves, but he’s only a factor on offense when he’s the roll man in a pick-and-roll.
The Timberwolves’ bench isn’t going to be the deciding factor in if they become a contender in the next decade; the young stars of the team will be the major reason for that.
The Warriors, Thunder, and Cavaliers have great teams while ranking near the bottom in bench scoring thanks to their superstars. The Timberwolves seem to have that part covered with Karl-Anthony Towns, Andrew Wiggins, and Zach LaVine.
However, all great teams need complementary bench players. The Warriors have one of the deepest benches in the league and are seeking to break the record for most wins in a season. The Thunder and Cavs also have benches that are solid enough, helping them remain in contention for the NBA title.
For the Wolves to become a playoff team, they’ll need their core pieces to develop. To vault into the contender conversation, they’ll need reserves that will bolster the stars.
Next: On Bill Simmons' Timberwolves-Thunder Comparison
While the Timberwolves and their fans will reasonably be focused on finding another future superstar with a top-five draft pick, the front office will also need to put their time into finding role players that will aid the starters off the bench.