While the Minnesota Timberwolves season is still months away, the team’s Summer League debuted In Las Vegas this week. While the Timberwolves’ main roster sat out the event, a number of young additions to the roster saw some action, as well as a number of young NBA hopefuls who continue to play and showcase their skills in hopes of eventually signing an NBA contract.
It’s that underlying competition for NBA opportunity that draws me back to summer league competition each year. That positive aura of opportunity and youthful optimism, a chance for young men to play their hearts out in the attempt to showcase their talents and skillsets for NBA teams one time before those 30 teams’ rosters are signed, sealed, and delivered up for another season.
Those who fall short still have the opportunity to sign with a G-League team. Other options include the Euroleague, Turkish Super League, and even the Chinese Basketball Association (CBA). But for now, let’s focus on what we are learning about the Minnesota Timberwolves in their first summer league game.
III – Look for more ball movement
One of the early impressions that the Timberwolves made was the fact that the team appeared to be making a concerted effort to get more basketball movement. While it was a bit clumsy at times, the team is clearly emphasizing spacing and passing in the playbook this year. And I’m here for all of it.
With the newly constructed Timberwolves roster, the team will need to infuse far more discipline, which means far less improvisation and innovation on the basketball court. Such as? Creating better spacing, focusing on higher percentage shooting, and much more ball movement. But at the same time, the Minnesota Timberwolves have the opportunity to be a bit more aggressive on offense as well.
The Timberwolves topped the NBA in the 2021-22 season at perimeter shooting. But at times, the team struggled at the offensive backboard. With Rudy Gobert at the rim, the Timberwolves will have a far more aggressive shooting focus and will be dishing the ball to the open man quite a bit. There are already signs of that type of pace, space, and pass mindset in the Timberwolve summer league games. I look for more of the same in the next games.