The Minnesota Timberwolves have one of the league's most complete and talented starting fives. We have to see how it works in action, but the Wolves' starting lineup shouldn't be a major concern for their season.
However, with the season starting today (Wednesday, October 21), their bench is a clear wild card. Ayo Dosunmu is a high-end sixth man, but outside of him, the Wolves don't have any proven bench players.
Thankfully, between Joan Beringer, Terrence Shannon Jr., and Bones Hyland, there's some clear upside off the bench. The problem is that these players have a wide range of outcomes this season, and they are all erratic. Can Beringer make a positive impact in a reserve big role? What exactly is Shannon's role on a Wolves team loaded with on-ball talent? Is Hyland consistent enough to be anything beyond a deep rotation guy?
These questions loom over the Timberwolves' bench, and what impact they get from their bench players outside of Ayo will be a clear swing factor in Minnesota's success.
The Timberwolves' bench is unproven, but they have upside
Again, all of these players are talented. Beringer has plenty of upside as an athletic shot blocker and rim runner. Shannon is a gifted microwave scorer who can generate a ton of rim pressure. Hyland can score on or off the ball and play with a ton of pace. As such, there's a path for all of these guys to play real roles with the team.
Heck, even deeper rotation players like Jaylen Clark and Cody Williams have NBA qualities as defenders. Veteran big man Trey Lyles can provide some decent minutes, but he doesn't do anything exceptionally well and frankly has a low ceiling. If everything goes right, the Wolves could have a pretty deep rotation, which, in tandem with their starting lineup, could help spark a finals run.
Unfortunately, it'snot likely that everything goes right. At least one of the trio of Beringer, Shannon, and Hyland is likely to have a rocky season. Likewise, they are all super erratic right now.
Beringer's inexperience led to some frustrating fouls and defensive mistakes; in both the preseason and limited minutes last season, he struggled with this. Shannon struggles to play in a complementary role and lacks control on the ball. Hyland is generally erratic and struggles against bigger teams.
If none of these problems improve as the season goes on, then Ayo will be the Wolves' lone dependable bench player, and the Wolves' lack of frontcourt depth in particular will be a grave concern. This is a problem when accounting for the depth of other Western Conference contenders, especially the Oklahoma City Thunder and San Antonio Spurs.
Now, not all hope is lost even if things go south with the three young players. Donte DiVincenzo is primed to return at some point this season. He will give the Wolves' bench a major boost and ensure that they have at least two dependable bench players. Unless the starting five is that good, having just two dependable players will still be a depth disadvantage, though.
If at least one of the Wolves' young players develops into a consistent bench player, they'll have a rock-solid eight-man rotation when DiVincenzo returns. I'd categorize that as ample bench depth for a title run, and a fairly realistic outcome.
All of this is to say that, for the Timberwolves to reach their ceiling, finding some more bench reliability will be key, and they'll need some internal growth to do so.
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