The talk all offseason was that the Minnesota Timberwolves would sorely miss Nickeil Alexander-Walker this year. But now, just a quarter of the way into the season, we're seeing that Jaylen Clark is doing a fantastic job of filling that role and replacing NAW already.
When talking about Clark's impact on the Wolves this year, you have to start with this one: Minnesota is now 11-0 this season when Jaylen plays at least 15 minutes. That's not just a meaningless number, it's a real indication of how much he's elevating this team with his presence on the hardwood.
Clark has further established himself as a defensive stalwart this season. And while some fans are still upset he's not playing more, it's fair to say that his minutes are only going to continue increasing with time. When Jaylen is on the floor, he's hounding opposing ball-handlers, getting his hands in passing lanes, cutting off drives, and doing everything a coach would dream of on the defensive side of things.
It can be easy to forget that Clark was not a part of Chris Finch's rotation just earlier this calendar year. It wasn't until the end of January in Phoenix when Jaylen had his breakout performance and earned his way into the nightly rotation. Since then, he's made it impossible not to give him minutes.
Jaylen Clark is looking like an excellent replacement for NAW
The thing that's going to allow Clark to continue leveling up and becoming an even more useful player to the Timberwolves is his still-developing shooting ability. Since the start of December, he's connected on four of his 10 three-point attempts (40%) and started to look more comfortable catching and shooting. As he becomes a more reliable threat from three, defenses will have to respect him that much more.
All this serves to lessen the impact that Nickeil Alexander-Walker's departure left on this franchise. NAW's presence is still missed at some level without a doubt, but the more Jaylen Clark levels up and looks comfortable, the more it looks feasible to say he can be a realistic replacement for Minnesota's former three-and-D standout.
Internal improvement is one of the most effective ways for contenders to get better and remain competitive in this modern NBA landscape. Seeing Clark become more of a real two-way threat has been one of the most positive takeaways from this Timberwolves season thus far.
Minnesota wasn't able to keep Alexander-Walker on their roster for financial reasons, but they may very well be seeing his replacement grow up before their very eyes. This is a magnificent development for the Wolves, and not so much for the rest of the Western Conference.