Despite reports of whispers this week that Andrew Wiggins is unhappy as the Timberwolves‘ third option, the Minnesota guard and head coach Tom Thibodeau rejected those reports, Jerry Zgoda of the Star Tribune writes.
Wiggins, 23, is in his fourth season with the Wolves but his numbers are down from the past two seasons. The former first overall pick is averaging 17.9 PPG and 4.1 RPG in 69 games. However, Thibodeau denied that the team’s leading shot-taker is unhappy with his role.
“I know Andrew’s character,” Thibodeau said. “There’s no way in the world Andrew is saying any of that, particularly from a guy who’s taken the most shots on our team.”
Earlier this week, Darren Wolfson of 1500ESPN (Twitter link) said that Wiggins has “whispered to teammates” that he’s unhappy being a third option behind Karl-Anthony Towns and Jimmy Butler — who is sidelined with a torn meniscus. “It’s just someone’s word of mouth. It wasn’t no quote from me,” Wiggins said. “Everyone that knows me knows I don’t talk much, I just go with the flow … I don’t whisper. If I say something, I’m going to say it clearly and loudly.”
Check out more Northwest Division notes below:
- David Stockton, the son of Jazz legend John Stockton, agreed to a 10-day contract with Utah on Friday. The elder Stockton played with the Jazz for 19 seasons, becoming the NBA’s all-time assists leader and 2008 Hall of Fame inductee. Brad Rock of The Deseret News writes that John and the rest of the Stockton family are excited for the 26-year-old and his newest NBA opportunity. “I’m glad to stay out of that,” John Stockton said of his comparisons between him and his son. “He’s his own player and it wouldn’t do him any good to try to be me. He can just be the best he can be.”
- Having reached 100 three-point attempts on the season, Trail Blazers forward Maurice Harkless is now eligible to receive a $500K bonus for his three-point shooting percentage, tweets ESPN’s Bobby Marks. Harkless will receive the bonus if his percentage is greater than 35%; he’s shooting 37.6% from the beyond the arc.
Wiggins better not be unhappy. You lead the team in shots and you’re arguably not even the 5th best player on the team and still suck on defense
Well Jimmy is out… so he’s 1 or 1a
I love the subtle shot at Wiggins by Thibs. He better not be complaining about his role when he’s taking the most shots per game. To boot, he’s not even the best player on his team and his game has barely evolved since he’s been in the league. All of his non-scoring stats (assists, steals, rebounds, etc,.) have basically remained the same since he entered the league. And he’s still a volume shooter who can’t really shoot from 3pt range on a consistent basis. If the reports are true that Wiggins is unhappy, it also shows what kind of player he is. Minnesota is competitive for the first time in a long time and has a serious chance to make the playoffs. If he’s complaining about his role, then obviously he’s a me-first guy instead of a team-first guy.
I still like Wiggins, but how many years are we gonna be saying he has so much potential. He’s shown he can be a dynamic player. If he did a little better on shot selection he’d be scoring a lot more. He’s got enough speed to make some steals, but he’s never trying to read the other team. He’s more of a warm body on D.
Wiggins with that contract of his is negative value.
With ball hog “ISO-man” Butler on the team, believe me, your numbers will never improve.
As a Bulls fan, I’m ecstatic that he’s gone. Guy has an ego larger than the World Trade Center. He thinks he’s the second coming of Michael Jordan.
Minnesotans, just look at how much more fluid your offense flows when Butler is out.
Thibs is taking the most shots on the team now