Many are expecting the Timberwolves to take a step back this season. When asked why, two main reasons are often brought up. One, Nickeil Alexander-Walker has left and joined the Hawks. Two, Rudy Gobert is now 33 years old. While it’s possible that he may regress a bit, there are teams in the Western Conference that have far greater age-related concerns than the Timberwolves.
Other teams in the West may have more age-related concerns
When you look at the Timberwolves’ projected rotation, there are 3 players who are 30+. They are the aforementioned Gobert, Julius Randle (turns 31 on November 29), and Mike Conley (turns 38 on October 11). Conley should continue to see fewer minutes as Rob Dillingham receives more time, and Donte DiVincenzo possibly could be taking over the starting point guard reins.
Yesterday, the long-rumored move was finally announced as Al Horford will be joining the Warriors. He is expected to become their starting center. He is 39 years old and joining a starting lineup that also features Stephen Curry (37), Jimmy Butler III (36), and Draymond Green (35). Gary Payton II and Buddy Hield, two key reserves, both turn 33 in December.
The Clippers roster features eight players expected to be in the top 11 on the team in minutes played over the age of 30 (including a 40-year-old in Chris Paul). They re-signed Nicolas Batum (36) and added outside free agents Brook Lopez (37) and Bradley Beal (32). The team traded for Bogdan Bogdanovic (33) last season. Returning to the team are Kawhi Leonard (34, with a lengthy injury history), James Harden (36), and Kris Dunn (31).
The Rockets traded for Kevin Durant, who turns 36 today. Steven Adams and Dorian Finney-Smith (and maybe Clint Capela?) are the other members of their rotation over 30 (39-year-old Jeff Green is a deep bench piece). Fred VanVleet is also 31, but he is now expected to be out for the season.
Improvements from other players on Minnesota's roster
Let’s see there is a slight regression in Gobert’s overall game this season. I don’t think anyone should expect him to completely fall off a cliff. Focusing on that ignores the fact that there should be improvement from many other players on the team as they still roster a lot of youth.
Anthony Edwards is just 24 years old. Is it unreasonable to believe that we haven’t yet seen Edwards at his peak? Jaden McDaniels just turned 25 today. Is growth on the offensive end really that unlikely? We’ve seen it in the last two postseasons, now he just needs to do so on a more consistent basis.
Then there’s also the fact that they have 3 players entering their second year. Dillingham, Terrence Shannon Jr., and Jaylen Clark (drafted in 2023, but missed the entire 2023-24 season due to injury) certainly should see further development with the added reps that will be given to them.
Just because one player may perform slightly worse than last season doesn’t mean that can’t be countered with numerous others that develop further. While there have been those that have talked about the Clippers’ age, it also seems like other teams that are expected to be in the playoff mix have arguably more age-related concerns than the Timberwolves.