It’s time to be worried about Andrew Wiggins

Andrew Wiggins has struggled long enough. It’s time for us to be worried about him.

This offseason, Kyrie Irving had made it clear to the Cleveland Cavaliers front office he wanted to be traded. With his trade demand, he put out a list of teams he would like to go to. To everyone’s surprise, one was the Minnesota Timberwolves. Not long after that announcement, the debate started: would you trade Andrew Wiggins for Irving?

This trade scenario was one of the most hotly debated topics in Minnesota sports, right along with Should the Minnesota Twins trade Brian Dozier? Another one was should we let go of Adrian Peterson?

Many people arguing for keeping Wiggins here argued that his ceiling is higher and we are only scratching the surface of what he can become. They said he would grow to be a defensive stopper due to his length and improve his three-point shooting. So far this season, those people are looking pretty bad.

In year four, it is time to be very worried about the former Kansas Jayhawk.

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Comparing Wiggins to Irving is tough. They play different positions and have different roles on their teams. Let’s take a look at Wigs compared to other small forwards. Unfortunately, for the former number one overall pick, the stats do not paint him in a favorable light.

According to ESPN.com, Wiggins is ranked 51st in terms of true shooting percentage (50.1 percent) among 67 qualified small forwards. He ranks 56th in rebounding rate, the percentage of missed shots a player rebounds, at an anemic 6.2 percent. In assist ratio, he is almost dead last, tied for 62nd at 8 percent. All of these stats make you feel much worse when you realize he has the 11th highest usage rate among small forwards at 22.4 percent.

Another key component of Wiggins play is an easy one: the eye test. You can stare at numbers all day, but sometimes you just need to be able to watch someone. Being able to see someone in live game action is very important. However, Wiggins play most of this season is just how his numbers would suggest: very poor.

It seems like, more games than not this season, Wigs has just disappeared on the floor. His long ball has not been falling at a consistent rate (and that’s putting it nicely). He is also shooting horribly from the free throw line, so he is afraid to drive the lane and draw contact.

His defense has been terrible too. While he might have improved from last season, it in’t hard considering he was one of the worst players at the end of the floor in the entire NBA last season. The only time he is close to average on defense is when he the man he is covering has the ball. Anytime he has to cover someone off the ball, he looks atrocious.

The former Kansas Jayhawk is looking worse than someone they sent to the Windy City in exchange for Jimmy Butler. According to Jason Patt, Kris Dunn has been better than Wiggins, who signed a max contract this offseason:

We have already talked about Wigs true shooting percentage, but let’s take a look at another scoring stat: effective field goal percentage. Many people consider effective field goal percentage to be the most effective way to judge a player’s shooting. As you probably guessed, it’s nowhere close to where it needs to be for what is expected of him. His percentage is currently at 46.6 percent-the 100th best eFG% is 49.3 and is owned by Paul George. He is below guys like Reggie Jackson, Jeremy Lamb, and Tim Hardaway Jr. His percentage isn’t good enough to be a third option on a playoff team.

Timberwolves fans might have been able to sit through this awful play if Thibs kept Dunn and Zach LaVine. They would still be a team who was on the cusp of the playoffs and not expected to do much if they made it. With the addition of Butler, Taj Gibson, Jeff Teague, and Jamal Crawford, GM Thibs told head coach Thibs they are in “win now” mode.

Next: The case for a Timberwolves' small ball lineup

With Wiggins struggling to be a third option, a role many people saw him flourishing in with less pressure for Wigs, it is time to be concerned. How long are Timberwolves fans going to have to wait for the man they traded Kevin Love for to finally “get it”?