It is no secret that things have not been working as smoothly for the Minnesota Timberwolves this season as they were last season. Anthony Edwards has erupted as a scorer lately, but the Wolves' offense still has a lot of questions overall. Until the offense truly rounds into form, it will be difficult for this team to ultimately reach their ceiling.
There have been plenty of suggestions from outsiders about ways to optimize Minnesota's scoring attack, and several of them have revolved around the Timberwolves changing up their starting lineup. However, it did not appear until recently that Chris Finch was going to be making such a change.
After the loss to the Detroit Pistons on Saturday, Finch stated that he did not feel making a starting lineup change was the "magic bullet," saying that if he did think it was, he would have already done it. Many fans were frustrated, feeling like an obvious option to at least try was there.
But then, Finch shocked everyone when he made an unexpected adjustment to the starting unit in the Wolves' game against the LA Clippers on Monday. Opting to bring Mike Conley off the bench, he inserted Donte DiVincenzo into the first five on the floor.
Finch swapped out Conley for DiVincenzo in the starting lineup
That adjustment ultimately led to a Minnesota victory, as they edged out the Clippers. DiVincenzo played well, scoring 15 points, grabbing nine rebounds and making three three-pointers. Playing more against reserves than usual, Conley had a solid game as well with 11 points and a 50% shooting mark.
Finch was lighthearted about the adjustment in his postgame interview. "I just read all the papers, Jon, and what everybody was telling me and said, you know what, s---, I should change the starting lineup," Finch joked. "It was all about trying to get Mike into a group of guys that could accentuate his talents better. He plays the bulk of his minutes with that unit. The usage has shifted in that unit. So it was really a way to try to help him get going."
This of course makes a lot of sense. We have seen for a while that Conley's shooting numbers are down and he has looked a bit less effective than he did last season. Trying to get him going playing off the bench clearly worked on Monday.
As the Timberwolves get set for Tuesday night in New Orleans, it appears Finch will roll with starting DiVincenzo once again.