Mike Conley has had a terrific career and has been a key part of the Minnesota Timberwolves' two consecutive conference finals runs. I can't emphasize this enough. However, at 38, this is clearly the end of the road for Conley.
Heading into the season, it was fair to expect Conley to decline. He was coming off a career-worst season and getting a year older. Just over halfway into the season, Conley has fallen off the cliff. The 6-foot-1 point guard is averaging just 4.8 points, 1.7 rebounds, and 2.9 assists on 34.2/33.9/88.1 shooting splits. Conley's 34.2 field goal percentage is among the worst marks in the league.
Yet Conley is still firmly in the Wolves' rotation, averaging 18.6 minutes. Chris Finch has shown no signs of turning away from the veteran. Minnesota needs playmaking and a stabilizing force, so giving Conley some minutes makes sense. Regardless, playing him over Bones Hyland at this juncture doesn't make sense.
It's not exactly shocking that Conley has declined so steeply this season. The writing was on the wall after last year. And while Rob Dillingham hasn't developed as the Wolves had hoped, Hyland's emergence makes up for this. Point guard play is clearly the team's fatal flaw, and Conley's decline is a big part of this weakness. Ahead of the trade deadline, a move for a point guard feels inevitable.
Mike Conley's decline is costing the Wolves in a big way
Conley is still a high-level playmaker who makes good decisions. That's great -- but frankly, Conley is deficient in every other area. His decline as a 3-point shooter has been the most significant development this season. After shooting 41 percent from beyond the arc last year, Conley is netting just 33.9 percent of his triples.
Simply put, this makes Conley borderline unplayable.
He has zero advantage creation or burst on the dribble -- which was a problem dating back to last year. And frankly, this is to be expected for a small aging point guard. Notably, an absurd 90.6 percent of Conley's made field goals are assisted, and 43.8 percent at the rim.
Regardless, playing someone who can't create for himself or knock down open 3s is essentially a death sentence. This especially hurts the team when Conley and Anthony Edwards play together, as teams can zero in on Ant. The duo of Conley and Edwards has a minus-9.5 net rating. Not great, Bob.
Defensively, Conley's lack of lateral quickness and burst hurt him. All of this indicates that Conley is no longer a rotational player. Sure, he can play minutes on occasion, but not nearly the amount he's currently playing. Yet, Finch values his high-IQ play and ability to organize the offense.
Again, a trade deadline move for a point guard feels inevitable, and if you were told this before the start of the season, it wouldn't be a shocker at all. Not to be harsh, if they don't make a move at the deadline and Conley continues to play big minutes, the Wolves have a limited chance to make another deep playoff run.