Timberwolves Summer League awards: MVP, best rookie, and more
By Austin McGee
Best veteran: Leonard Miller
Wow, this award was tough to give out after three Minnesota veterans averaged 15.0 or more points per game. Leonard Miller, Daishen Nix, and Josh Minott averaged 16.0, 15.2, and 15.8 points, respectively.
A three-year veteran, Nix was once the favorite for the "best veteran" Award. Despite the subpar shooting percentages, Nix contributed in all aspects of the game. The 22-year-old guard averaged 5.4 rebounds, 6.0 assists, 2.6 steals, and 0.8 blocks with his 15.2 points per game. His physicality and toughness were leaps and bounds ahead of other Summer League participants.
Minott, a two-year pro, averaged 6.8 rebounds, 1.4 assists, 1.4 steals, and 0.8 blocks per game. His athleticism and interior skills are evident although he suffered from poor shooting percentages—especially from beyond the arc (22.7 percent on 4.4 three-point field goal attempts per game).
Miller ultimately took the cake. He led the team in scoring, shot above 50.0 percent from the floor, and averaged more than a steal and block per game all while playing an unnatural position. The 20-year-old Miller started for the Wolves' Summer League squad at the center spot. Miller also just averaged 24.6 minutes per game—less than every other starter if discounting for Terrence Shannon's abbreviated fourth game.
While he didn't dominate in any facet of the game, the former second-rounder played with the utmost efficiency and only got better as the Summer League progressed. Miller scored a combined 17 points in the first two games, before dropping 20 and eight in Minnesota's final contest.