Timberwolves vindicated for their Leonard Miller stance after trade

For more than 2.5 seasons, the Minnesota Timberwolves never utilized Leonard Miller. Selected 33rd overall in the 2023 NBA Draft, the Wolves had high hopes for the 6-foot-10 forward. Instead, he was never able to crack the rotation with the team.

At the trade deadline, Minnesota dealt Miller to the Chicago Bulls in a trade that brought Ayo Dosunmu to the Timberwolves. It looked like the 22-year-old Miller was heading to a team where he could find a sustained role for the rest of the season, but instead, he has remained glued to the bench.

Miller isn't in the Bulls rotation either

Miller has been available for five games for Chicago thus far, and he has seen action in three of them for about 12 total minutes. All of his time has come in the fourth quarter when the Bulls emptied their bench due to facing seemingly insurmountable deficits.

When the trade was made, the landing spot for Miller looked like a golden opportunity for him to actually receive some meaningful playing time. The Bulls are a team that has more backcourt bodies than in the frontcourt. Chicago also seems to finally be taking more of a rebuilding route after three straight years of getting eliminated in the Play-In Tournament.

Instead, it’s more of the same for Miller. New team, and he is still outside the rotation. Next season, his contract has a team option for just $2.4 million. The way Chicago is uninterested in using him thus far, it certainly isn’t a guarantee that they pick that option up.

While he wasn’t a first-round pick, Miller was selected with the third choice of the second round in 2023. With his versatility, athleticism, and long wingspan, he certainly looks the part of an NBA player.

Now, the Bulls seem to be the second team to not see him as a rotational piece. Miller’s Minnesota tenure ended with just 49 appearances in those 2.5+ years with the franchise. On January 4 of this year, in a game that was a blowout win by the Timberwolves over the Washington Wizards, he saw 10:32 of game time. That was the first time in his career he saw a double-digit minutes total.

Chicago has now lost eight in a row, falling to 24-33. They sit two games out of a Play-In Tournament spot. Perhaps if the losing continues, head coach Billy Donovan will turn more to Miller.