New Timberwolves lineup decision should be painfully obvious after Rockets loss

After Tuesday night, the Minnesota Timberwolves have been all but eliminated from NBA Cup contention. Suffering their second loss in group play, the Wolves stand at 1-2 with one game left before the knockout round begins. With the Houston Rockets now holding a 3-0 record against their group play opponents, it is nearly guaranteed they will move on.

Minnesota's loss to Houston was a frustrating one, mostly because the Timberwolves had a chance to win in the end but stumbled. After going down by as many as 18 points in the second half, the Wolves stormed back to take the lead, eventually going to overtime. Unable to get things done in the extra frame, Minnesota fell below .500 to 8-9 overall.

As we reflect on what is now the Timberwolves' third straight loss, there are some noticeable and troubling trends this team should be trying to address. Looking at Minnesota's last three losses to the Raptors, Celtics and Rockets, there has been one constant in all of them: no Mike Conley.

Still suffering from a toe sprain, Minnesota Mike has been forced to watch from the sidelines the last three times out, and his absence has been noticeable. The team is less composed and more mistake prone without their veteran leader out there. But in his place, Rob Dillingham has been earning some minutes. And after the last two games, we can see that the Timberwolves would be best to bite the bullet and start Dillingham on Wednesday against the Sacramento Kings.

Dillingham has to start while Conley remains injured

Some may think giving the rookie the starting nod so early is premature, but it is really not considering the needs of this team. Rudy Gobert said it best after the Houston loss when he told reporters about Dillingham's impact. "He gave us a little swag," he said. "I thought he was good. It's great for him to get that, to play in those kind of games and just learn. We're going to need him."

The truth is that the offense had more life with Rob on the floor during this game due to his playstyle. He certainly injected a spark into the Timberwolves, and it is unfortunate he did not get a chance to play in overtime as well. The case for Dillingham to start next game is supported by his strong play against Boston and Houston in the last two games, but it is also evidenced by Minnesota's other options.

The other two players Chris Finch has rolled with at starting point guard since Conley got injured are Donte DiVincenzo and Nickeil Alexander-Walker. Neither of those players are true point guards, and neither have been playing well enough to justify starting them over Dillingham.

Like Gobert said, this team is going to need Rob Dillingham. For him to be ready for potentially even bigger moments later in the season, the best move is to promote him to the starting lineup for now and let him figure some things out until Mike Conley is good to go once again.