The Minnesota Timberwolves drafted French big man Joan Beringer with the No. 17 pick in June's draft. Frankly, it's hard not to be excited about an 18-year-old big man with impressive rim protection and athleticism. After a stellar summer league, where Beringer averaged 2.5 blocks, including recording six blocks in his debut, excitement for the rookie further mounted.
However, if preseason has taught us anything, it's that Wolves fans should temper their expectations for Beringer this season. No game is better proof of this than Thursday's penultimate preseason game against the Chicago Bulls. Despite Naz Reid being sidelined, Beringer didn't see any action until the fourth quarter when all the starters were pulled.
Third-year forward Leonard Miller played over Beringer, which might be a surprise to some. Overall, Beringer posted four points, seven rebounds, a block, and a turnover while playing the entirety of the fourth quarter. He showed some nice flashes of his upside, but it's also clear he's not ready to play real minutes on a competitive team.
This game and the preseason at large confirm Beringer is out of the rotation. While he'll surely get some occasional minutes, these chances will likely be few and far between for Beringer.
Beringer won't play much for the Wolves during his rookie season
Beringer becoming a mainstay in a loaded Wolves rotation was never a real possibility. Despite his undeniable upside, the 18-year-old is still very raw, and the Wolves frontcourt is especially deep. Nevertheless, it's now clear that Beringer is on the outside looking in of the Wolves' rotation, even as someone who could earn spot minutes.
Chris Finch has openly discussed expanding his rotation to include nine players. Finch noted that the ninth man could be situational; this seemingly opened the opportunity for Beringer. Still, not playing in a preseason game where the Wolves especially could have used a big man indicates that Finch might not believe he is ready.
Miller playing over him could simply be getting him into game shape, as he missed three of the Wolves' earlier four preseason games due to an injury. Regardless, you'd think Beringer would be prioritized over Miller. Additionally, general manager Matt Lloyd previously mentioned that this game was likely to resemble Minnesota's rotation the closest. While Beringer has averaged 19 minutes throughout the preseason, many of these games come with the caveat of the Wolves missing key players.
As a result, it's fair to believe that Beringer won't be prioritized in the Wolves' rotation even as a "situational" ninth man.
Beringer's rookie season, being a development year, makes sense. I mean, he just started playing basketball in 2021. The Wolves will have to work him into some games outside of simply blowouts. However, expect these opportunities to be rare.
On both ends of the floor, Beringer is still learning how to maximize his physical gifts. Adding some strength would benefit him as well. Nonetheless, as an athletic rim protector with impressive screening and lob-catching abilities, it's easy to talk yourself into Beringer being Minnesota's center of the future.