Minnesota Timberwolves breakout players of 2019

Andrew Wiggins

The former first overall pick and 2014-15 NBA Rookie of the Year has really taken his game to another level this year. Wiggins is averaging career-highs in points (24.9), rebounds (5.4), assists (3.4), and blocks per game (1.3).

Wiggins’ improvement as a playmaker and ball-handler has been highly publicized this season. You could say he’s gone from Disappoint Wiggins to Point Wiggins.

Perhaps more valuable than his playmaking abilities, though, has been his willingness to completely remake his shot chart. Points in the paint, free throws, and three-pointers currently make up 91 percent of his scoring for the season; a far cry from his previous affinity for mid-range jumpers.

Long gone are the fadeway and turnaround mid-range jumpers that constantly frustrated Wolves fans, as they’ve been replaced by a player who attacks the rim off of screens and hits three-pointers at a 34.5 percent clip (just a bit lower than D’Angelo Russell‘s 34.7 percent).

Ryan Saunders has put Wiggins in a position to succeed by allowing him to serve as the primary ball handler and de-facto point guard when he’s on the floor. Compare that to the last few years where he acted as a third option and handled the ball much less often.

This new responsibility has allowed Wiggins to initiate the pick-and-roll and pick-and-pop with Karl Anthony-Towns more often. As a result, Wiggins has used his elite athleticism to attack the rim as well as using his newfound playmaking skills to provide many assists for three-point shooters.