Minnesota Timberwolves roundup: 1st preseason game

Some of the Dunking With Wolves staff give their thoughts about the first Minnesota Timberwolves preseason game on Saturday night.

1. Who were you most impressed with during Saturday nights preseason game?

Max Neuhaus (@Max_Neuhaus): The guy who impressed me the most was Taj Gibson. Most people just assumed that whoever got the starting power forward spot wouldn’t do too much except just be a placeholder while the other four starters showed their skills. Gibson proved them wrong.

In his 27 minutes and 49 seconds of game time, the former Chicago Bull filled the stat sheet. He had 18 points, two assists, and nine rebounds. The most impressive stat, however, was his perfect two for two from behind the 3-point line. During the regular season, he is a career 11.4 percent deep ball shooter. However, he has only shot 35 career attempts and hit four of them. If he can hit that 3-ball from the corner consistently, this offense just got more dangerous.

Michael Crow (@MichaelCrowNBA): I was most impressed with Jeff Teague. We are all aware of the shooting woes of Ricky Rubio, but the most frustrating part was not finishing at the rim. Opponents didn’t fear Rubio’s offensive game and played team defense accordingly.

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On paper, Teague doesn’t look like he should be much of an upgrade. I think that the shooting and ability to finish at the rim is more apparent when you watch him in the new starting five. It may seem like a small improvement but those abilities seemed to help open up the offense as a whole.

Ali Siddiqui (@asiddiqui15): Gibson looked good in his debut with 18 points and 9 rebounds and Shabazz Muhammad had 22 points.

Gibson will help more on the defensive end, but he can also have his moments where he can score, which will be very beneficial. He and Gorgui Dieng will be a nice power combo for the Wolves and will help make things easier for Karl-Anthony Towns.

Muhammad will again be a nice spark off the bench. No matter how he does, he will be a huge steal at the veteran minimum

2. What were you least impressed with?

Max: The defense and, in particular, defensive rebounding. With players like Gibson, Dieng, and Towns, they should be cleaning the boards every time down the court. However, it seemed like every 3-pointer made by Los Angeles was off an offensive board.

Taking a look at the defense as a whole, they were not great. There were times where Kyle Kuzma looked like the second coming of Tim Duncan. Now is the time to break out the worries every Minnesota fan has. Doesn’t Thibs coach defense? Didn’t we bring in Gibson and Jimmy Butler to help translate defensive calls from the coach? Are we gonna be at the bottom of the league in defense AGAIN?

To everyone who has those questions, take a deep breath. The Wolves were playing their first game together in a virtual home game for the Lakers. Things will improve. This team will make big leaps in defensive rankings. We just didn’t see it on Saturday.

Minnesota Timberwolves

Michael: I wasn’t impressed by the bench as a whole. Muhammad looked excellent but the rest of the bench just looked off the entire night. Dieng had a very rough game all-around, particularly on defense. He and Tyus Jones combined on several bad switches resulting in defensive breakdowns. Aaron Brooks didn’t look particularly good and Crawford didn’t look like a Sixth Man of the Year type of player. I’m not worried about the bench after just one game but I do think there will be huge problems defensively at times with backups in.

Ali: Andrew Wiggins. He went only 3-12 from the field with 9 points. With him expected to get the max contract soon, he needs to keep improving. The offense is there, but the defense still needs work.

3. What surprises you the most from the game?

Max: The most impressive part of the first win of the Jimmy Butler era is just how much they meshed on offense. It seemed as if everything was going Minnesota’s way in transition. Maybe Thibodeau let them run a little more because they finally had a point guard who could consistently finish at the rim. Teague was among the most impressive players against the Lakers, routinely getting by Lonzo Ball to the rim and finishing in acrobatic ways.

The half court offense was good too. Alley-oops galore and shots from everywhere. Butler looked as dominant as ever and Muhammad looked ready to try to steal that sixth man role from Jamal Crawford. This team is going to be very exciting to watch this season.

Michael: Gibson knocking down the corner 3-pointers and vigor on the court surprised me. In an interview after the game, Gibson said he’s been working on shooting from the outside. Still, extra work on the outside shooting or not, I was very surprised to see a guy who attempted 35 3-pointers in his eight-year career knockdown two in one game. He was very active all around in the game looking more like he did in his younger years. I don’t expect he’ll be attempting many 3’s in the regular season, but the energy level may indicate that he’s very excited about this new opportunity.

Next: Minnesota Timberwolves: Best and worst case scenarios for Jimmy Butler

Ali: It is only preseason, but the Wolves played well, especially for a team with new faces playing together for the first time.