Minnesota Timberwolves: 5 goals for the rest of the season

Although the Timberwolves remain a top-four team in the West, they need to tune up a few areas to stay there. These five goals, if completed, should assure the Wolves a top-four seed.

Through 30 games this season, the Minnesota Timberwolves have played well enough to maintain fourth place in the Western Conference.

But, what an odd situation the Timberwolves are in at the moment. Although they are 17-13, good enough for fourth place in the Western Conference, it feels as if they should have a better record.

For a team that hasn’t seen playoff basketball in 13 seasons, there is a lot of pressure on this year’s Wolves. As you would think their record is satisfying and fans would be happy there is still frustration from fans and the team.

Much of the frustration comes from the team’s inconsistent play. Some nights they look like a force to be reckoned with, such as against the Sacramento Kings on Thursday night. Then, on other nights, they look like the same old Wolves or just flat-out collapse in games they should win, such as Saturday night against the Phoenix Suns.

There’s still a long way to go this season, which leaves plenty of time for Wolves to fix the main flaws in their play. However, they can’t wait too long to do so or they may find themselves slipping in the standings. The west is too tough to wait until the final months to perfect every aspect.

With that, these five goals will surely help the Wolves hone in on what flaws need to be fixed in order to stay within the upper echelon of the Western Conference.

5. Staying Healthy

As obvious as this goal is, it is one of the most crucial.

Clearly, no one asks for injuries nor is it something you can always prevent. Freak things can happen at any time. (See: Boston’s acquisition of and subsequent injury to Gordon Hayward.)

However, the Wolves need to do their best to stay as healthy as possible. Everyone knows how thin the Wolves are with their lack of bench minutes and production. They are dead last in the NBA, averaging 13 minutes per game and are 27th in points per game as a unit.

Sure, Jamal Crawford can provide instant production, and Tyus Jones has been playing well. But besides them, there isn’t much else with Nemanja Bjelica still out with a left foot sprain.

What’s the correlation between bench minutes and needing to stay healthy? It’s simple: the talent is on the bench, however, the overall production is not there.

If anyone on the team is to be lost for an extended amount of time with an injury, such as Bjelica, it could be (and has been) difficult to find the “next man up.” That is, unless the bench starts producing more overall. It is hard with limited minute,s however, you never know what can happen. That means if and when opportunity calls whoever is asked to fill the role of whoever is injured, they need to give it everything they have for the sake of the team.

Looking long term, it is even more crucial to stay healthy. Most of the starters are already playing close to 40 minutes per game, therefore the vast majority of the team’s production comes from the starters.

As for the bench, it is just as important for them to stay healthy even though they are last in minutes per game. The Wolves will need all hands on deck as they look to make the playoffs as well as make a run.

4. Increase Bench Production

Sticking with the bench theme, they need to step up their game in order for the Wolves to be contenders.

Again, it is hard to do when as a unit you average 13 minutes per game. As we’ve also seen with Crawford, frustration may grow from that.

However, Crawford has the veteran mentality needed for this bump in the road.

Even still, the bench is ninth in 3-point percentage, shooting nearly 37 percent. They are also 11th in field goal percentage, shooting 45 percent.

So, where’s the issue? The answer has to come from Tom Thibodeau. It is, after all, his decision to when and how often he turns to the bench.

Could it be a lack of confidence in the bench as a unit? Is it overconfidence in his starters with no fear of wear and tear? Or maybe it could be the 22nd ranked -1.9 plus-minus.

No matter how you spin it, the Wolves bench has not been a factor. In order for them to stay relevant in the West, this needs to change, clearly.

Much should change when Bjelica returns from his injury. In 18 games, he had been the co-spark plug off the bench along with Crawford. Bjelica has shot 58 percent from the field and 51 percent from three this season. He’s another man who deserves more minutes, not only because of his individual production but also to relieve the starters.

The bench picking up production is as crucial as it is obvious. However it happens, it needs to happen. It will give the Wolves a much-needed spark in one area of concern. It will also help them be taken more seriously as contenders.

Hopefully, this stat opens some eyes and sparks a turnaround….

3. Become More Consistent

This goal has less to do with individual players, rather it’s about the team as a whole.

The majority of it has to do with defense, as if you couldn’t assume so. But it also has to do with becoming relaxed during games while ahead.

Take Saturday night’s loss to the 10-21 Suns, for instance. First of all, that is a team the Wolves need to beat hands down. They can’t let games against sub-par teams get away from them. The Suns pounded the Wolves on the boards, out-rebounding them 59-46. Again, something that can’t happen.

Take Thursday night’s win over the 9-19 Kings for another example. This is a game that the Wolves should win, and they did. They put it all together in this game: they shot the ball well, moved the ball and played good team defense.

Why can’t this be done against every team under .500, or against all teams that simply aren’t as good as the Wolves? Clearly they won’t play the exact same way each game; the pace of play will differ as will talent depending on who they play. However, what is the big difference between the Suns and Kings? Not much, really. Therefore it is hard to argue that a lack of consistency isn’t to blame for a few of their losses in winnable games.

They can’t show up one day and look like a top-three team then show up the next and look like they don’t belong in the playoff picture. Consistency is key for a strong season for any team in any sport. The Wolves need to follow that blueprint for the rest of the season to grind out more wins.

2. Keep Forcing Turnovers

The one area the Wolves do well in on defense is force turnovers.

They are fourth in the league right now, forcing just over nine steals per game. This has allowed them to score 17 percent of their points off of turnovers, good enough for ninth in the league.

For a team that struggles so much on defense, which will be touched upon shortly, they need as many opportunities as they can to score. What better way to create more opportunities than to force turnovers?

Jimmy Butler is doing just as everyone thought he would be and force steals. He is ninth in the league right now averaging 1.9 steals per game. Jeff Teague is also in the top-25, averaging 1.5 steals per game. These two offseason acquisitions are paying off big time in this department. Even Andrew Wiggins is providing more in the steals department, averaging 1.2 per game.

On the flip side, forcing turnovers limits opportunities for the opposing team. This is especially important for a team who struggles greatly on defense outside of steals numbers.

Bottom line is that the Wolves should continue to focus on forcing turnovers, giving them more opportunities to score and less opportunities to the opponent.

That’s what I call the best of both worlds.

1. Step Up On Defense

The final goal for the Wolves for the rest of the season is perhaps the most obvious: they need to become a stronger defensive team in order to have a chance of making a postseason run.

Before getting into numbers, take into account a few observations.

It is inescapably noticeable how many wide open looks the Wolves allow. With that, they also are late with rotations too many times, allowing for easy inside looks around the hoop. Consequently, the Wolves are 21st in the league, allowing 45 points inside the paint per game. Transition defense has been an issue all season long, too.

The Wolves rank 25th in the league with a 107.6 defensive rating, and only two contenders rank below the Wolves. One is the 15-15 New Orleans Pelicans. The other has the greatest player in the world. I think you can figure that one out.

The Wolves are also 26th in defensive rebounds per game. This is problematic because they are allowing more opportunities to opponents than they should. Rebound and posses the basketball more and that won’t necessarily be the case.

This is also something to consider:

A bit of irony here. The franchise cornerstone is seemingly turning the corner in the part of his game that hurts him the most and yet the team can’t match it.

Sorry to say it, but Jimmy Butler can’t fix an entire defense on his own. Everyone who steps foot on the court needs to prioritize defense over offense. Points will come, we’ve seen it all season. What hasn’t come yet is putting stops together consistently.

Next: An examination of Andrew Wiggins' shooting woes

That is why the No. 1 goal for the rest of the Wolves season is to step up on defense and watch how much easier that will make everything else.