Minnesota Timberwolves Roundup: Franchise perception, Nowell on Finch

The Minnesota Timberwolves have played well since the All-Star break, going 2-1 and playing three close games. The on-court product is undeniably better than it was just a month ago.

But that doesn’t mean that the off-the-court perception is nearly as rosy.

The team is still for sale, and the sports business world is happy to point out why the team has apparently been on the market for nearly nine months.

Rival executive says the Minnesota Timberwolves are “all mixed up”

Jabari Young of CNBC penned a piece entitled “Minnesota Timberwolves could sell for over $1 billion, but they’re saddled with leadership and image problems.”

The piece is largely based on information from another team’s front office member, who calls the Wolves a “jigsaw puzzle” and says that the Wolves “are all mixed up”.

The recent issue that thrust the potential Wolves sale back into the spotlight was Kevin Garnett’s Instagram announcement that he was no longer in the running to purchase the franchise. That, of course, was followed by current owner Glen Taylor’s denial that Garnett was ever truly involved in discussions.

Young writes about Adam Silver’s pending involvement as well. Silver said he was “dismayed” and plans to “get directly involved.”

There are some interesting note about the Target Center building itself, which apparently is “admired for its basketball geometry”. Sightlines are great for everyone, and even though the arena is aging, isn’t necessarily a straight negative asset.

At any rate, it’s obviously not a flattering article, and at this point, the Wolves certainly can’t hang their hat on the old adage “all press is good press.”

Jaylen Nowell talks Minnesota Timberwolves, Chris Finch, D’Angelo Russell

Jaylen Nowell has spent the last two months emerging as a legitimate bench scoring threat and has played especially well since Chris Finch took over head coaching duties. In eight games, he’s averaged 14 points per contest on 48.8 percent shooting from the floor and a sizzling 50 percent from beyond the arc on 5.3 long-range attempts per game.

Nowell spoke with Ben Stinar of Hoops Rumors and touched on a number of topics, including Finch, the oddities that are the 2020-21 NBA campaign, and the mentorship of D’Angelo Russell.

He detailed some of the additional freedom that the Wolves have on offense under Finch, allowing the players to read and react instead of playing within more of a rigid offensive structure.

Also, here’s Nowell on playing with some of his current veteran teammates, and especially Russell:

"“I used to watch guys like Ricky Rubio, Ed Davis, KAT (Karl-Anthony Towns), D’Angelo Russell,” he said. “I used to watch all these guys before I was even in the league. To call them my teammates, that’s already an accomplishment in itself……“[Russell] is an All-Star, so whatever he’s doing, it’s right,” Nowell said of Russell. “Every single game I’ve been watching how he picks spots; when he decides to shoot; when he decides to move the ball. I’ve been talking to him one-on-one about the point guard, how to facilitate, how to get guys in spots to put them in the best position for them to score not just myself.”"

Over the next several weeks, it will be fascinating to watch the development of Nowell and his young teammates, including Naz Reid, Jaden McDaniels, Anthony Edwards.

And don’t forget, Russell and Malik Beasley should both be back on the floor by the end of the month, so we should get a better sense of what this roster can do when coached by Chris Finch.