When the Minnesota Timberwolves made their bold trade for Julius Randle and Donte DiVincenzo, it immediately prompted a host of questions about what this team would look like going forward. That included the starting lineup, the closing lineup and everything in between. There were premonitions about what certain things would look like, but the truth of the matter in the big picture was that no one had any idea what was about to happen.
That statement goes for Chris Finch and the coaching staff as well. While they had some ideas about how to work certain things, they were always going to have to put things into practice before any concrete determinations were made. It is the reason why Finch is still tinkering with lineups within the flow of the game, saying this past week that "everything's always on the table."
But with that in mind, the day one lineup for this version of the Timberwolves was the exact same as it is right now. Mike Conley at point, Anthony Edwards and Jaden McDaniels on the wing, and then Julius Randle and Rudy Gobert manning the post. As strong as this lineup looks on paper from an overall talent standpoint, some wondered from early on whether this was truly the best five players Minnesota could put on the floor.
As the season goes on, we are getting stronger and clearer hints that perhaps a different combination of five players will give the Wolves their best chance of winning games moving forward. The floor spacing issue has been one of the strongest indicators of a need for change, but there are other factors at play as well.
Ant, DiVincenzo, NAW, Randle and Naz Reid has a track record of success
In Minnesota's Friday night win over Houston, we saw Finch close with a lineup of Edwards, Donte DiVincenzo, Nickeil Alexander-Walker, Randle and Naz Reid. He made this change with just over five minutes to go in the fourth quarter, and the decision ultimately spurred the Timberwolves' 23-6 scoring run to end the game and helped them go home with a win.
It was obviously Finch's intention to ultimately finish the game with this lineup, but Reid ended up fouling out with just over a minute to go, leaving Jaden McDaniels to sub in for him. But those five players clearly did enough to put the team in a position to finish the job and end up with a victory against a good team. Why did it work so well? Part of the reason was that it allowed for a much more free-flowing offense.
One might have thought that not having Gobert's interior defense would have doomed the Wolves' chances while going against a player like Alperen Sengun. But in reality, Minnesota was able to muster enough intelligent defensive possessions without him to put themselves over the top. And in the meantime, having at least four guys on the floor that are real threats from three-point range forced Houston to change their strategy, giving the Timberwolves more freedom on offense.
The final few minutes featured some dynamic offensive plays from the Wolves' side of things. Guys were moving the ball, driving and kicking, following their own shots, drawing contact to earn free throws and doing everything you would want to see out of a productive offense. The best part about all this is that we can be assured we are not simply being prisoners of the moment by looking favorably upon this lineup that won Friday's game, as the data shows its past success as well.
The five-man group that was on the floor in the fourth quarter against Houston has been the team's second-most used lineup this season, and it boasts a higher net rating than the starting lineup. It is unclear whether Finch has enough confidence in these five to consider starting them full-time, but we are seeing that it is entirely possible this could be the Timberwolves' best five-man grouping to have on the floor to close clutch games.