The Minnesota Timberwolves hired Tim Connelly as their president of basketball operations in 2022 and the move has largely been a success. With a pair of Western Conference Finals appearances and another playoff series victory last season, Connelly’s decisions have helped the Wolves enjoy their best stretch since the Kevin Garnett days and could help him earn a contract extension this summer.
But that doesn’t mean there haven’t been flaws. While the Wolves have a promising core of players, including Anthony Edwards, Naz Reid and Jaden McDaniels, all three of those players were acquired by former president Gersson Rosas.
In his four seasons, Connelly’s moves have been made with the goal of winning now. While trading for Rudy Gobert helped the Wolves reach two conference finals and Julius Randle was a part of one of these runs -- it's time to build a younger and more sustainable contender.
Connelly needs to consider the Timberwolves’ future and find some core pieces to add around what he inherited as he heads into an important offseason.
Tim Connelly must add to the Timberwolves’ core this summer
The Wolves have the right idea by building around a core of players under the age of 26 and that should mean good things moving forward. Edwards is a legitimate superstar in the NBA and things could get better if McDaniels takes on a bigger offensive role and Reid is promoted to the starting lineup this offseason.
Finding pieces to complement that core has been a bigger challenge. Connelly tried to add his own young core piece when he traded up for Rob Dillingham during the 2024 draft, but that move was a disaster as Dillingham struggled to transition to the NBA and was ultimately traded to the Chicago Bulls. A lack of first-round picks created by the Rudy Gobert trade also hasn’t helped.
The positives have been additions of Jaylen Clark, Terrence Shannon Jr. and Joan Beringer, but they also can be defined as projections considering their limited role to date. With the Wolves needing to win now, it’s usually led to a big move that’s brought more aging players to Minnesota than young talent.
Gobert and Randle both came to Minnesota in their 30s and it feels like they’ve run their course with recent trade rumors.
The Wolves can't chase older stars, though; they must consider players who could contribute for the long run. A trade for Saddiq Bey of the New Orleans Pelicans could fall into that category, as could a bigger deal for his teammate, Trey Murphy III. Building a better bench could also be a place where Connelly makes his mark and adds the depth the team lacked during their run to the playoffs.
Getting a second superstar is the flashy move, but Connelly needs to start building his own infrastructure. If he doesn’t accomplish it this summer, it could be a move that dooms the Wolves’ season and begins to put more pressure on Connelly to build a championship roster around a core he inherited.
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