Our Good, Bad and Ugly series continues with a look at Timberwolves forward Nemanja Bjelica and what he might bring to the table during the 2017-18 season.
After bring traded for on draft night by the Timberwolves in 2010, Nemanja Bjelica was signed away from his team in Turkey in 2015. He was named Euroleague MVP and appeared to be a potential difference maker for the Minnesota Timberwolves as he headed stateside.
Since then, Bjelica has shown flashes of just that in certain areas. At 6′-10″, he plays a little of the ‘three’ and ‘four’ positions and is a surprisingly adept ball-handler and playmaker for his size. While he hasn’t quite lived up to his billing as a knock-down outside shooter, he has good enough form on his jumper that there is reason to believe that he has that ability in him.
He has, however, come up short in some areas. Bjelica has never been thought of as a lockdown defender, but he also has not shown the foot speed to keep up consistently on the perimeter or the toughness and strength to bang down low with big men. Another struggle has been maintaining his confidence through a couple of tough stretches he has had as a Timberwolf. When shots aren’t falling it can become evident in his overall game.
Bjelica has shown promise in becoming an integral part of Minnesota’s bench, but to take the next step he will need to make some improvements.
The Good
Ball-handling
Bjelica provides the size to hold his own as a power forward while maintaining the ability to handle the ball a little on the perimeter. He doesn’t really rack up much in the way of assists, averaging just 1.3 assists per game over his two seasons.
However, he generally does a good job of moving the ball on the perimeter and not turning the ball over. In 65 games last year and while playing about 18 minutes per game, he only had more than two turnovers five times. He’s not a guy that you want to run your offense through, but there is some value in having a big man who can stretch the floor without being a liability with the ball in his hands.
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Stretch-four Ability
Karl-Anthony Towns is one of the most effective players in the league in the paint. It is beneficial to have the option to bring a power forward off the bench that can stretch the floor and open up extra space for him. Bjelica did take a significant step back with his 3-point shooting last season. After shooting 38.4 percent from three in the 2015-2016 season, that number dipped to 31.4 percent last year.
The hope is that last season’s struggles were a fluke and he will be able to provide some of the 3-point shooting boost that the Wolves so desperately need going forward. With his smooth release and the hope that the addition of Jimmy Butler will lead to more open looks for him, there is reason for optimism there.
The Bad
Defense
This was never thought to have been a strong suit for Bjelica. He has some success on the perimeter offensively because of his size and skill level, but defensively his foot speed is lacking. When the opposition has an athletic small forward on the floor, Bjelica is basically relegated to playing power forward taking away some of the value that his versatility brings.
He does have the size to guard ‘fours’, however he’s not overly strong or physical. This limits his impact against the bigger, bruising power forwards in the game today.
The Ugly
Confidence and Consistency
When he is confident in his game and abilities, Bjelica can provide quite a lift offensively to a bench that really struggled on that end at times last season. However when things are not going well and his shot isn’t falling, it can become evident in his game.
There were numerous times last year when he had a wide open three, but because he hadn’t been shooting well he passed them up. For a team that is already lacking in outside shooting threats, the ones that they have need to be willing to shoot them when available.
According to the Star Tribune, Bjelica himself admits that he needs his confidence in order to play at his best. It is good that he realizes this, as he is crucial to the success of the Wolves’ bench.
Along with the additions of Taj Gibson and Jamal Crawford, the Wolves are hopeful that Bjelica can provide a boost to the starting lineup this year that hasn’t really been there in recent seasons. If his shooting last year proves to be just a blip on the radar of a consistent 3-point threat, that will be a giant step in accomplishing just that.
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But perhaps the most important aspect of Bjelica’s improvement is just playing with confidence and with the idea that he belongs, because when he is playing like he can he certainly does.