On Sunday, Bones Hyland received his second-straight start for the Timberwolves (also his second career start for Minnesota). Unlike the first one on Friday, Hyland wasn’t forced to exit early.
In their win over the Warriors on Friday, Hyland left before even the midway point of the first quarter with a bruised right knee. It seemed to be a setback for the 25-year-old, as he was out of the rotation for a long time and just began to see playing time again. Instead, Hyland didn’t miss the following game on Sunday and saw all the clutch time minutes.
Hyland played the entire fourth quarter on Sunday
Entering the fourth quarter against the Kings on Sunday, up only four points, Minnesota outscored Sacramento 29-19 over the final 12 minutes. Hyland began the fourth quarter on the floor and ended up playing the entire frame without being subbed out.
On the Timberwolves’ first offensive possession in the fourth, Hyland was fouled on a 3-pointer. He would make all three free throws. The 6-foot-2 guard later drove for two layups, made two more free throws, and assisted on two Minnesota 3-pointers in that final period.
In a game where three of the four other starters didn’t shoot all too well from the field (and the one who did, Rudy Gobert, left the game early for personal reasons), Hyland played a huge role in the victory. He finished the outing with 18 points (on 6-10 shooting, 5-5 from the foul line), three rebounds, and five assists in 36 minutes.
Capitalizing on another opportunity
Sunday marked just the third game since Hyland has re-entered the rotation. The first outing back was on December 8, when he received the minutes normally allotted to Rob Dillingham. In his 16 minutes, Hyland scored 14 points and made four 3-pointers.
After the win against Sacramento that improved the Timberwolves’ record to 7-1 over the last eight games, Hyland was asked about capitalizing on an opportunity after a long wait. Hyland’s response is shown here via the tweet of Timberwolves beat reporter Andrew Dukowitz:
Bones Hyland on how to capitalize when given the opportunity
— Andrew Dukowitz (@adukeMN) December 15, 2025
“Yeah I think the biggest thing is just staying ready for whenever you get thrown out there. When I wasn’t playing I was telling guys that was playing you just don’t ever know when. If you think youre going in the… pic.twitter.com/7sLwfkQQpJ
Now Hyland’s stint in the starting lineup will almost certainly be a brief one. Both Anthony Edwards and Mike Conley have missed the last 2 contests, and once at least one returns, it’s likely back to the bench for Hyland (although maybe not if Conley returns first, and Finch decides to continue starting Hyland?).
What shouldn’t be short-lived, though, is Hyland’s stay in the rotation.