Dunking With Wolves
Fansided

Minnesota Timberwolves: 3 New Year’s Resolutions for 2021

By Phil Ford

MINNEAPOLIS, MINNESOTA - DECEMBER 23: Josh Okogie #20 of the Minnesota Timberwolves is seen during player introductions before the season opening game at Target Center on December 23, 2020 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The Timberwolves defeated the Pistons 111-101. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement (Photo by Hannah Foslien/Getty Images)
MINNEAPOLIS, MINNESOTA - DECEMBER 23: Josh Okogie #20 of the Minnesota Timberwolves is seen during player introductions before the season opening game at Target Center on December 23, 2020 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The Timberwolves defeated the Pistons 111-101. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement (Photo by Hannah Foslien/Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
3 of 4
Next
Minnesota Timberwolves, Naz Reid
Naz Reid of the Minnesota Timberwolves tries to grab a rebound. (Photo by John McCoy/Getty Images) /

Minnesota Timberwolves New Year’s Resolution #2: Defensive rebounding

The Timberwolves are one of the best offensive rebounding teams in the league so far this season, tied with Milwaukee and Utah for first with 13 offensive rebounds per game, and sixth-overall in offensive rebounding percentage.

As well as the Wolves have cleaned the offensive glass, they’ve been just as terrible on the defensive end. Minnesota ranks second-to-last in the NBA on that end of the floor, securing only 30.8 defensive boards per game. They rank No. 26 in defensive rebounding percentage.

This happens to be one of the areas in which Edwards must improve if he wants to ever become an all-around impact player. The 6-foot-5, 225-pound 19-year-old with a 6-foot-9 wingspan is last on the team, grabbing just 4.5 percent of available defensive rebounds.

That’s third-to-last among all rookies who have recorded at least one defensive rebound in a game this season, and 177th among all players in the NBA who are shorter than 6-foot-7.

Edwards is a supremely gifted athlete who has the body to bang around with bigger players down low and secure plenty of rebounds. Hopefully, for the Wolves, this four-game sample size does not indicate how Edwards profiles as a rebounder for the rest of his career.

One way that head coach Ryan Saunders can remedy this is by giving Jarred Vanderbilt more minutes at power forward. In two games this season, the third-year forward out of Kentucky is second on the team with a defensive rebounding percentage of 25.8, just behind Towns.

Vanderbilt’s rebounding early in the year is far better than fellow power forward Jake Layman (10.2 percent), as well as Culver and Okogie who have played minutes at the four (17.8 and 8.1 percent, respectively).

If Minnesota wants to hold its own on the defensive boards, especially while Towns is out, it wouldn’t hurt playing Vanderbilt a few more minutes in 2021.

Home/Timberwolves News