Did waiving Prince derail Timberwolves depth chart?

I: Taurean Prince could still re-sign to the Timberwolves roster

Believe it or not, the Timberwolves can still negotiate with Taurean Prince and his agent to sign him to a new contract. After all, he was one of the most dependable perimeter shooters on the team, he is versatile enough to play effectively at the 3, 4, or 5 positions. And best of all, he is well-liked by his coaches and his teammates.

So why go through those gyrations just to bring him back? Well, there are some good reasons to do so.

For starters, Taurean Prince was not a picture of health for the Minnesota Timberwolves through the 2022-23 NBA season. In fact, if you toss his 2017-18 NBA season of 82 games, he has averaged just 57 games per season. That is just over two-thirds of a regular 82-game season and has been an average of six out of his seven NBA years.

Just for comparison,  Taurean Prince missed 28 out of 82 games for the Timberwolves last season alone. When he did compete, he was good. He averaged 22.1 MPG, 9.1 PPG, 2.1 RPG, and 1.6 APG. But missing so many games is the rule, not the exception with Prince. And with the team developing younger players who can slide into the power forward role, there are fewer game minutes to direct his way.

Of course, the Timberwolves can still make great use of his veteran presence in postseason play, and a new role would likely be less demanding over a grueling regular season, optimally having him fresh and ready for the 2024 NBA Playoffs.

That is where the Timberwolves roster and depth chart stand today. Is there more work to do? Of course. But let’s not fret about the mortar that has yet to be applied, and lose sight of the brick wall that this Timberwolves team has become. The Timberwolves have a plan, and I for one love what I see from them already.