Minnesota Timberwolves: Naz Reid can stick as a rotation player

What’s Reid’s role?

Naz Reid doesn’t turn 21 until the end of August. There’s plenty of upside remaining, that much is clear.

But on a team featuring All-Star Karl-Anthony Towns and a clear desire to play small, is there a place for Reid?

The short answer is yes. While there would be some merit to finding a backup at the 5 who could come in and lockdown the paint, playing tough defense and contrasting what Towns brings to the table, there’s also something to be said for finding a backup who can largely duplicate Towns’ skill-set.

The Wolves appear to have found that in Reid. While the 3-point shooting isn’t up to par with Towns (33.3 percent in college, 33 percent so far in the NBA, and 38.6 in the G League), the ability is there and it’s a real threat for opposing defenses to consider. Reid’s length and scoring touch in the paint should be enough to keep defenses honest both in the pick-and-roll and on the glass.

While there’s an argument to made for Reid to play alongside Towns in stretches (they’ve only shared the floor for 10 minutes), it isn’t likely to happen much in today’s NBA. Not many teams are going big, and defense would be the main concern as Reid’s pick-and-roll struggles are already obvious enough when he’s the lone big man on the floor; teams could manipulate things easily if he was on the floor with Towns.

At under $4.2 million over the next three years, Reid just might be a potential steal as a backup center. Remember, the name of the game is unearthing affordable role players that can outperform their value over the life of their deal.

If Reid can improve his understanding of defensive coverages and continue to improve on the glass and in the pick-and-roll as he adjusts to the NBA game, the Wolves may have done just that.