Minnesota Timberwolves: Derrick Rose needs to be a starter

After winning three straight after the departure of Jimmy Butler, the Minnesota Timberwolves have lost two games and may be in need of another shakeup.

If the Minnesota Timberwolves indeed need a shakeup, a change to consider could involve inserting Derrick Rose into the starting lineup.

Throughout the season, Derrick Rose has arguably outperformed current starter Jeff Teague. And while there is still plenty of season ahead, Rose’s resurgence could be a key factor in turning the Wolves’ season around.

Throughout 16 appearances, including five starts during Teague’s absence due to injury, Rose has averaged 19 points per game, his highest since before his ACL tear in 2012. He’s also contributed 4.7 assists, 3.8 rebounds and 0.6 steals per contest.

In Teague’s 12 appearances, all starts, Thibs’ current go-to has averaged 12.4 points, 7.7 assists, 2.3 rebounds and 1.3 steals.

In terms of total plus/minus for the season, Rose holds a significant advantage over Teague. While the Timberwolves as a whole have a plus/minus of -4.3, Rose leads the team with a rating of +2.1. Bench guard Tyus Jones trails considerably at -2.1, and Teague nears the bottom of the roster at -3.5.

In terms of Wolves’ lineups that have appeared in more than three games, Rose is featured in the six highest-rated combinations, although Teague is also in four of these same lineups, interestingly enough, including number one.

It takes turning to advanced stats to really dig into where Rose might trail the other guards.

Rose’s assist ratio trails Jones by 10, who himself trails Teague by four. However, as Rose has shown himself more capable of scoring with the ball in his hands and often has played the shooting guard position, this isn’t a huge deal.

Rose also trails the two guards in assist-to-turnover ratio. Jones leads the pack at 4.8, Teague follows him up at 3.41, and Rose trails at 2.34.

Advanced stats also show more benefits to starting Rose, however. His player impact estimate, which can be found at the above-linked NBA.com/stats page, trails only Karl-Anthony Towns and Jimmy Butler. Rose also trumps both Teague and Jones in terms of effective field goal percentage and true shooting percentage, proof of his offensive ability on the court.

There doesn’t seem much of a reason not to give Rose a chance with the starters and bringing Teague off the bench. Rose clearly gels with the starters, and he’s proven himself as a capable starter in this league.

Timberwolves’ fans have always had issues with, or been confused by, Coach Thibodeau’s choices of lineups and rotation. With this season clearly not panning out as most expected, the only way forward may be to shake up the starting lineup by inserting the resurgent Rose.

Derrick Rose has shown Timberwolves’ fans he’s still capable of performing at an elite standard. It may be time for Thibs to realize that Rose deserves a shot in the starting lineup.