Timberwolves/Wolves share custody of Minott and Moore

The Minnesota Timberwolves have called up all of their players from the G-League to help the Timberwolves roster weather the storm of so many concurrent injuries. But there may be some good news on that front, as the Timberwolves have reassigned forward Josh Minott and wing Wendell Moore Jr. to the Iowa Wolves on Sunday, January 1, 2023.

Well, good news for the Minnesota Timberwolves roster. But not so much for the two players, Minott and Moore, who are being assigned to the Timberwolves G-League affiliate for an indeterminate amount of time.

Assignment of rookies to a G-League affiliate is typically triggered by one of two reasons. Ideally, the NBA team’s roster is healthy and robust, and the likelihood of getting meaningful playing time in the NBA is so negligible that it makes sense to assign those playing-time-starved rookies to the G-League affiliate where they can be on the basketball court and playing with steady rotations.

Minnesota Timberwolves rookies need coaching to develop

A second reason, and one that may apply here, is that the rookies need additional work and coaching that the NBA coaching staff simply hasn’t the time or the priority to address directly. In that scenario, they are outsourcing part of their development to the G-League team coaching staff and relying upon them to correct or strengthen certain aspects of their game to ensure a more productive and dependable performance when they return to the NBA.

In the case of the Minnesota Timberwolves‘ beaten-up roster, it’s likely more of the latter. So where is the silver lining in all of this? Well, the hope was that the Timberwolves were healing, and would be able to suit a few players up who had been inactive for some time.

Apparently, that was all a false alarm, as the Timberwolves immediately recalled both players to their roster after they played just one game for the Iowa Wolves.

Will either Wendell Moore Jr. or Josh Minott get playing time on the Minnesota Timberwolves roster? While Minott awaits his turn, Wendell Moore did see some playing time and even was knighted with two NBA starts already. He needs work with his shooting and shot selection, but he has already flashed some ability to be a true NBA-caliber defender.

Will either WMJ or Minott see playing time anytime soon? Perhaps. But if not, they are at least getting some playing time for the Iowa Wolves.