How much better will the Minnesota Timberwolves be this year?
By Travis Rose
Speaking of risk, Tim Connelly and the Timberwolves hit a home run by landing 3x Defensive Player of the Year center Rudy Gobert.
The Frenchman played in 611 regular season games (519 starts) in nine NBA seasons with the Jazz, averaging 12.4 points on 65.3% shooting, 11.7 rebounds, and 2.2 blocks per game.
Now the Timberwolves have two dominant twin towers in the front court. Gobert will help Towns protect the rim and run the floor. The seven-foot-one big man is a lob threat who can be efficient in the paint and from the foul line.
With Rudy Gobert on the court, Utah Jazz opponents took 24.8% of their shots at the rim last season.
— Timberwolves Clips (@WolvesClips) July 13, 2022
With Gobert off the court, Jazz opponents took 32.6% of their shots at the rim.
That -7.8% on/off differential in opponents’ rim frequency ranked #1 among all NBA players. pic.twitter.com/SZrGbUQKQC
Minnesota sent guards Patrick Beverley, Malik Beasley, Leandro Bolmaro, along with forward Jarred Vanderbilt, and the draft rights to center Walker Kessler with Minnesota’s 2023, 2025, 2027, and 2029 first-round picks and a 2026 first-round pick swap for Gobert.
It was a colossal haul to pair another All-Star with Karl Anthony Towns, who recently inked a four-year, $220 million deal that ties him to the Timberwolves through 2027-28.
Karl-Anthony Towns: "This place has been nothing but fabulous to me and my family. ... I'm just very honored to be able to put that Timberwolves jersey on for many more years to come." #WolvesBack pic.twitter.com/6AI3GpyvT0
— Bally Sports North (@BallySportsNOR) July 22, 2022
So how much better will the Minnesota Timberwolves be this year? Only time will tell, but one thing is for sure. The Wolves have all the pieces needed to take their game to the next level.