Can the Minnesota Timberwolves rely on backup PG Jordan McLaughlin?

If you are following the Minnesota Timberwolves roster moves so far this off-season, you have to be a bit impressed with the status of the team’s projected starting five. The team has three All-Stars on the roster in C Rudy Gobert, PF Karl-Anthony Towns, and PG D’Angelo Russell, a projected future NBA All-Star in SG Anthony Edwards, and a young player who the entire NBA seems to be very high on in SF Jaden McDaniels.

That’s great for the NBA Playoffs and very good for the NBA regular season. But the key to success for the Timberwolves is as much about their bench as it is about their starting five this time of year.  Right now, the Timberwolves bench is being touted as a strength for this team. But, is it really?

One area that needs to be discussed, probably several times, is the Timberwolves’ point guard depth. After all, the needs of the team have changed dramatically as the roster has been completely reworked. So with a changing roster comes a changing focus on the guy who will run the floor.

The first PG off the bench is young guard Jordan McLaughlin, a young man who showed flashes of NBA brilliance against the Memphis Grizzles in the NBA Playoffs. In just 16.6 minutes per postseason game, McLaughlin averaged 6.2 points, 2.4 rebounds, 3.4 assists, and 1.0 steals per game.

Where it gets good, really good, is his shot accuracy. He put the ball in the basket at a clip of better than 70 percent from the floor, from beyond the arc at a 57.1 percent rate, and from the foul line at a 75 percent rate. That’s an incredible performance for a third-year NBA player.