Minnesota Timberwolves: An emphasis on playing the younger players

The Minnesota Timberwolves should continue to play their younger players as the season winds down in a move that is beneficial for the team as they move into the future.

The Minnesota Timberwolves should continue to put an emphasis on letting their younger players play in the final games of the season.

The campaign comes to an end this Wednesday, April 10, against the Denver Nuggets following a matinee against the Thunder on Sunday and a home game on Tuesday versus Toronto.

The Wolves, of course,  have been eliminated from playoff contention for quite some time now. At 35-43, the Wolves are battling for that 10th or 11th spot in the lottery with the Los Angeles Lakers.

Minnesota has a lot of young players on their team and the biggest reason that they have seen an increase in minutes is because the team has had so many injuries. Jeff Teague, Derrick Rose and Robert Covington have been shutdown for the season, and that doesn’t include plenty of games missed from Taj Gibson and even Andrew Wiggins early in the season.

Young players that deserve to keep getting extended minutes include Cameron Reynolds, Tyus Jones, Josh Okogie, Keita Bates-Diop. The still-young Wiggins and Towns are already the focal points of the team, and while Wiggins hasn’t played all that well over the last two seasons, he has been a lot better down the stretch of the current campaign.

Having him play more minutes with Ryan Saunders will benefit the former Kansas Jayhawk. If the Timberwolves want to make the playoffs next season, he will once again be a key factor in getting there. He has the potential to do just that, and this recent handful of games has been a breath of fresh air.

Reynolds was signed to a 10-day contract and later signed to a multi-year deal. He has shown this season that he deserves a spot on an NBA roster. Reynolds’ defense and 3-point success have been a welcome and if he continues to play the way he has, he should hopefully be back with the team next season.

Okogie and Bates-Diop were the Wolves’ two draft picks in the 2018 draft. Both players have a lot of work to do but they look like great picks that can be complimentary role players or even permanent starters at some point.

Jones is a Minnesota native and fan favorite who may never develop into a star in this league, but he will be an important player on any team he suits up for. His smart decisions, sparkling assist-to-turnover ratio, and strong defense all matter throughout the course of a season.

He will be a restricted free agent this offseason and it’s unclear whether or not the team will re-sign him. Hopefully, both sides will be able to come to an agreement.

Seeing all the young players continue to get minutes will help the Wolves evaluate where they are heading into the 2019-20 season. Here’s hoping that’s a trend that continues over the final week.