Minnesota Timberwolves: 4 players who benefit from Malik Beasley’s absence
By Ben Beecken
Timberwolves players who benefit from Malik Beasley’s absence: Jaylen Nowell
It’s been nearly a month since yours truly began a campaign to make Jaylen Nowell a regular member of the Timberwolves’ rotation.
Beginning that very week, Nowell has played in 17 consecutive games for the Wolves, averaging 9.4 points in 16.3 minutes per game while shooting 42.3 percent from the field and 33.9 percent from deep on 3.5 3-point attempts per contest.
There was a rough stretch in the middle of those 17 games for Nowell; in the final four games prior to Saunders’ firing, Nowell played less than 11 minutes each night and averaged just two points on 13.3 percent shooting and 0-for-4 from 3-point range during the span.
But in the two games since Finch took over, Nowell has shot 10-of-20 from the field and 4-of-10 from outside the arc and has scored in double figures in each game.
Nowell’s shot profile fits extremely well with the Wolves’ new offense; he flourishes in catch-and-shoot and can be effective in dribble-handoffs as well.
Nowell has been fantastic in the 10-to-16-foot range, shooting 63.2 percent on such shots this year and 50 percent in limited time as a rookie. Any dribble-handoff action in the mid-post/elbow-extended area on the floor will allow for elbow jumpers and floaters, depending on how the defense reacts, and Nowell can be deadly in that range.
In Nowell’s PAC-12 Player of the Year season with the Washington Huskies, he shot 44.2 percent on 3-point attempts. With the G League’s Iowa Wolves last year, Nowell made 44.1 percent of his attempts from beyond the arc on 6.9 tries per game.
Even if he’s shot just 27.6 percent from deep in 34 NBA games, there are obvious reasons to believe that it’s a number that will improve with increased playing time.
Nowell should be the player to benefit the most from Beasley’s absence, perhaps even getting a chance to slide into the starting lineup. The bet here, however, is that McDaniels slots into the starting lineup and bumps Anthony Edwards to the 2, with Nowell as the primary beneficiary in terms of minutes off the bench.
There’s one more player whose return happens to coincide with Beasley’s temporary departure…