The Minnesota Timberwolves (1-0) are preparing to face the Utah Jazz (1-0) on July 10, 2023, in Las Vegas. While still ‘just’ an NBA 2K24 Summer League Showdown, this has a bit more ‘grudge match,’ in it than most summer fun basketball games. This contest is not about winning today, but about making a statement about tomorrow.
After all, it was the Timberwolves who sent four first-round draft picks to the Jazz (plus five players) to acquire All-Star center Rudy Gobert. So each year, the Timberwolves must face a new rookie who got away, selected by the Utah Jazz’s front office with the Timberwolves’ very own draft pick.
1st installment payment
The first installment payment occurred already, as the Jazz selected 6-foot-4 185-pound Baylor guard Keyonte George with the 16th overall pick in the 2023 NBA Draft. That pick was traded by the Wolves to the Jazz, and there are three more picks to go.
Of course, there are three different competitions that comprise the 2023 NBA Summer League. The first competition was the California Classic Summer League with six teams competing in two games apiece. The second competition was the Salt Lake City Summer League with four teams competing in three games apiece. Finally, there is the NBA 2K24 Summer League competition, where all 30 NBA teams will play five games at a minimum.
So while the two teams are irrevocably linked for the foreseeable future, what keys to tomorrow can be told by this 2023 Summer League game? We have several keys to the contest to keep track of:
Key III: How much did Timberwolves lose to Jazz in Keyonte George?
While the NBA Summer League competition is not a rock-solid indicator, it is the best first blush of determining just how effective a rookie may be in the upcoming 2023-24 NBA season.
In the Salt Lake City Summer League, Keyonte George averaged 24 MPG, 16 PPG, 4 APG, and 4.7 RPG. He shot 29.4 percent from the perimeter, and just 37.8 percent from the floor. While not surprising, it’s a bit underwhelming considering he was selected just outside of a lottery pick in the 2023 NBA Draft.
George appears to be a good rotational player but needs work
In his debut for the Utah Jazz in the NBA 2k24 Summer League, rookie guard Keyonte George unloaded by putting up 33 points, leading all scorers in a win over the Los Angeles Clippers. Of course, he accounted for nearly a third of all shots taken by the entire Jazz team, so was that a far challenge?
Three of nine Jazz players: Keyonte George, Micah Potter, and Ochai Ogbaji, accounted for more than 70 percent of the shots taken by the Jazz. That’s hardly going to cut it in the NBA. For comparison purposes, the Timberwolves also had most of their shots taken by a limited number of players, but the Timberwolves involved four players in the offense.
Keep in mind that the NBA Summer League in Las Vegas followed the Salt Lake City Summer League, a three-game schedule that afforded the Utah Jazz team three games prior to the current competition in Las Vegas to tune up and become more comfortable competing together.
Key II: How well do the Timberwolves handle their biggest 2022-23 season challenges?
The Minnesota Timberwolves struggled with rebounding, perimeter shooting, perimeter defense, and passing the basketball. And so, you have to consider just how well this Minnesota Timberwolves roster for the 2023 NBA Summer League competition is able to perform in those areas.
While the Timberwolves have only competed in one game so far, how did they do in rebounding? In perimeter shooting? In perimeter defense? Well, one data point is awfully difficult to draw any conclusions from, but the Timberwolves’ first game was a mixed bag.
Wolves banging boards
In terms of rebounding, the Timberwolves played it close to their opponent, the New Orleans Pelicans, pulling in 35 rebounds to the Pelicans’ 37 rebounds. But the Timberwolves were incredibly active on the offensive boards, a statistic in which the Timberwolves were considerably weak last season.
So how were the Timberwolves at perimeter shooting? Wendell Moore Jr. tried like hell to sink those three-pointers but was only able to hit on three of 12 shots from beyond the arc. That coincided with the entire team’s struggles, scoring on just seven of 28 treys in the game.
Thankfully, their opponents were no better from long range. The Pelicans scored an identical seven of 28 shots from long range. Because we cannot track how effectively either team shot from beyond the arc in other games, we cannot distinguish whether it was all just bad shooting or great defense. We should have a better understanding after the Timberwolves second summer league game.
KEY I: How does Leonard Miller look in this game?
While his debut was eye-popping, the true test for rookie forward Leonard Miller will be this game. Why? Well, the challenge is following up a great performance with an even better performance. Can he deliver? I think so, yes.
After all, Miller has the presence of an NBA center at 6-foot-10, the ball-handling skill of an NBA point guard, the versatility of an NBA small forward, and the basketball IQ of an NBA head coach. In his NBA Summer League debut for the Timberwolves, he did it all. Was it the excitement of competing in basketball play once more?
He was all over the basketball court, creating turnovers, hauling in rebounds, shooting effectively from anywhere on the basketball court, and never committing a foul during the entire game. That shows a lot of discipline for a summer league game that is fraught with undisciplined play.
The truth is that there is already a great deal to love about this young man. And the feeling that I have from seeing him play in just one game is that we are only witnessing the tip of the iceberg. Imagine if he has an entire NBA starting 5 surrounding him. He can create fast breaks, get rebounds in the paint, sink corner threes, and even drive to the basket and then distribute the basketball to an open shooter.
I believe that Miller has the potential to be a significant contributor to the Minnesota Timberwolves roster in the 2023-24 NBA season. While he may need a few games to get his range on three-point shots, he has such an awesome array of versatile uses on the basketball court, that I expect he will get his chance to compete early and often.
The Timberwolves versus the Jazz is a rivalry that will not go away anytime soon. And I’m here for it. Unlike so many superficial NBA analysts, I continue to witness more and more evidence that confirms that the Timberwolves made a savvy move to get Gobert while the getting was good.
There will be many more years to assess, but for now, it continues to feel like the Timberwolves are further ahead of the curve than the Jazz.