Another look at the Timberwolves’ tandem of Jimmy Butler-Andrew Wiggins
By Ben Beecken
The new Timberwolves tandem of Jimmy Butler and Andrew Wiggins has been discussed at length, but let’s take one more look at what their partnership could look like on the offensive end of the floor.
One of the first thoughts that flew through the minds of many Timberwolves fans after the draft night acquisition of three-time All-Star Jimmy Butler was something to do with just how similar his offensive game is to that of a still-developing Andrew Wiggins.
Indeed, the Wolves are doubling down on having a high-usage, average-y 3-point shooting wing player to play alongside superstar big man Karl-Anthony Towns — at first glance, a bold strategy.
About a month ago, yours truly took a look at what the offense could look like with three extremely high-usage players sharing the court. Now, we have a take from Danny Chau at The Ringer that includes some interesting nuggets.
Perhaps the most interesting comparison that Chau makes is that of the Butler-Wiggins duo resembling the short-lived Toronto Raptors tandem of Vince Carter and Tracy McGrady. He also smartly notes that Butler’s game, as a 28-year-old, is extremely close to what a fully-realized Andrew Wiggins would look like.
Chau also notes something that we’ve noted here at Dunking With Wolves consistently: Wiggins’ often shoddy ball-handling has led to plenty of inefficient mid-range jumpers rather than consistent forays to the rim — although he both converts and draws fouls fantastically when he does get within three feet of the bucket. Additionally, his inconsistent play-making makes him a less appealing choice than both Butler and new point guard Jeff Teague when it comes to handling the ball in the pick-and-roll.
"Both [Butler and Wiggins] made huge strides in their pick-and-roll ballhandling last season: Butler because he was the only viable, consistently available star on a team full of duds; Wiggins because Thibodeau wanted to empower a player who had a future on the team and not Ricky Rubio. Both used around eight possessions per game as the pick-and-roll ball handler last season, but Butler was the more efficient of the two within that play type, landing in the 77th percentile of all NBA players in efficiency (compared to 60th for Wiggins)."
Perhaps the most exciting note made by Chau is one that has not been noted nearly enough by the avalanche of articles dissecting the Timberwolves’ acquisition of Butler: Wiggins, Towns, and Butler are all fantastic cutters, and will absolutely thrive playing off the ball.
Butler, of course, had the ball in his hands constantly on a poor Bulls team a season ago, which was very different from previous seasons. Plus, Chau notes that NBA.com reported Wiggins and Towns accounted for 46.1 percent of the Wolves’ points last year — most for any tandem in the entire league.
Therefore, the biggest question is whether or not the trio (the foursome, really, as Teague is coming off a season in Indiana when he needed to score and had the ball in his hands a lot) will easily slide into the new normal of shot-sharing. Towns and Wiggins are replacing a low-usage, pass-first point guard with Teague, and Butler is much more used to playing entire possessions with the ball in his hands than the departed Zach LaVine, who was deadliest off of the catch-and-shoot.
Basketball-wise, this should work. All four can shoot 3-pointers around or slightly above league-average. The Big Three are all lethal in the post and some of the best in the league at that their respective positions. And if Wiggins can continue to improve his decision-making as a ball-handler, all four will be dangerous in the pick-and-roll game.
Next: The joy of preseason hope for the Timberwolves
But how fast will synergy happen with this group? And will this potent lineup be able to take turn handling the ball and hoisting shots? Only time will tell — although a 2-0 start to the preseason hasn’t exactly tempered expectations.