Last season, the Minnesota Timberwolves ranked dead last in transition frequency and 29th in transition points. Even dating back to the 2023-24 season, the Wolves ranked just 25th in transition points. Additionally, the Wolves ranked just 25th in overall pace. Head coach Chris Finch has openly said that the Wolves are looking to push the pace this season.
Notably, Anthony Edwards ranked in the 69th percentile for transition play last season. It's no secret that Edwards is an elite athlete who thrives in transition and playing at an uptempo pace. This is something the Wolves will have to lean into.
Looking at some of the Wolves' key players, including Rudy Gobert and Mike Conley, it's easy to see why they play at a slower pace sometimes. However, the Wolves must play to Edwards' strengths to reach their full potential, which will involve getting out in transition and pushing the pace.
Pushing the pace would benefit Edwards and others
While Gobert and Conley might not typically play at the fastest pace, the Wolves have plenty of players throughout the roster who thrive with this playstyle, other than Edwards. Most notably, Jaden McDaniels excels at playing with an uptempo playstyle, and he forces plenty of turnovers to help the Wolves get out in transition.
Julius Randle might not be the first player you'd think of when it comes to pushing the pace and transition. However, he's shown to be adaptable to this playstyle at times. Randle's rebounding and playmaking could certainly help the Wolves get some more transition points if that's a stylistic focus for Finch.
Terrence Shannon Jr. and Rob Dillingham are primed for bigger roles following the departure of Nickeil Alexander-Walker. Both players thrive with this fast-paced and heavy transition style of play. Shannon, especially, is a fantastic transition player. Notably, 20 of his 55 made field goals came in transition last season. With blazing speed, Dillingham is also comfortable playing in transition and is at his best when the team is pushing the pace.
Undoubtledy, this stylistic change would benefit Edwards, McDaniels, and the two young players.
Finch has also mentioned expanding the Wolves' rotation. To me, this is connected with his other goal of pushing the pace, especially given the skill sets of Shannon and Dillingham. Despite not pushing the pace and getting out in transition in recent years, this trend seems poised to change for Minnesota this year.