Outside reviews of the Karl-Anthony Towns and Rudy Gobert pairing were mostly negative, but the Timberwolves saw enough potential that they haven’t tried to break up the experiment this summer. In an interview with Chris Hine of The Star Tribune, head coach Chris Finch talks about how he will approach the upcoming season with the two big men in his starting lineup.
“I think we have to be way more definitive with our spacing around Rudy in pick and roll and KAT in the post,” Finch said. “That gives you two anchor points. Maybe in general, just a little more structured two-big spacing. Both bigs having a purpose at the same time. Then, I think we got away from KAT being in the trail spot. I think we’ve got to get him back where he’s really destructive, which is playing at the top of the floor early in the offense. That’s just off the top of my head of the things that pop out, which I feel pretty confident about being able to firm that up.”
Finch also said Anthony Edwards needs to re-establish his pick-and-roll game with Towns, who missed a major portion of last season with a calf injury. Finch believes Edwards and Gobert developed good chemistry together, and he wants to see that same decisiveness when Edwards is running the pick and roll with Towns.
There’s more on the Timberwolves:
- In the same interview, Finch said Mike Conley was able to upgrade the offense after being acquired in February, and he hopes to see even more progress this season. “I think the single biggest thing he can do for us that we weren’t able to maximize or figure out is to be that connective bridge between Ant, Rudy and KAT,” Finch said. “Make all the right plays and all the little plays that you don’t see, and help talk everybody through all these situations. He’s not wired to want to score all the time.”
- Edwards will face a new level of pressure in the wake of his max extension, including the expectation of bringing an NBA title to Minnesota, observes La Velle E. Neal III of The Star Tribune. The deal also signifies that Edwards has replaced Towns as the face of the franchise, Neal adds.
- After appearing in just 15 games as a rookie, Josh Minott is approaching Summer League in hopes of showing the Wolves he can handle a larger role, Hine adds in another Star Tribune story.“It’s just another opportunity to show the jump I’ve made, to show the work that I’ve been putting in over the summer,” Minott said. “Anybody can watch a workout, but I feel like it’s environments like this, environments like Summer League, where you see how much the work has translated and just how much you’ve gotten better.”
Minott should have played more last year. Liked him a lot in the draft. Thought he was better in some areas than the scouting report suggested before watching him. Pretty big time athlete
He was looking like a young KAT on Friday.
The Gobert trade reminds me of the Sixers thinking that Al Horford and Embiid was a good pairing.
Now that was just money and some small assets to dump him. The Wolves dumped major assets into Gobert.
I think they should just trade KAT. I know hes been their guy, hes been and AS, etc.. but they messed up. Ship him to the Knicks, Nets, or maybe Portland would be interested in him through a Dame trade instead of picks.
The Knicks and Nets both have a package of at least 4 1sts they can send, mostly picks from other teams. You’re not trading up from the 20s into the high lottery, deal the picks and get a known quantity.
Ben Simmons, Cam Thomas, 4 1sts and 2 2nds for KAT.
Fournier, Robinson to a 3rd team for someone else to the Wolves, 4 1sts.
Agreed. Kat isn’t help them win anything but maybe another play-in game, only to be knocked-out of the first round again. The Wolves need to redeem themselves from that stupid Gobert trade.
Yea they are stuck with Gobert. I think the Knicks would he ideal, expiring contract, moving Robinson for something else around the same dollar figure to balance the roster.
Or they could try running it back. Towns missed most of last season and they never had a chance to build all that much chemistry.
Don’t ever come with that trash. Good thing tomorrow is trash day. I’m talking to you ZA2
I think if Minnesota just acquired a couple more bigs, they’d be a legit contender.
Dwight, Whiteside, Faried, and Boogie would balance the roster
I would go all in and package KAT to get Dame. This is their window due to mortgaging off their future to get Gobert. Dame and Edwards would be a formidable duo with McDaniels and Gobert anchoring the defense.
Most people say the worst thing for a team is to be on a limbo: Too bad to contend, too good to tank. Wolves are not only that but from the owners perspective they will be next year in a much worse position; been a super tax team with zero chances for a championship.
Gobert,KAT,Ant and Naz will make 158 m and resigning McDaniels might command another 16 m (potentially matching an offer sheet from some team). That leaves them a team over the 1st apron with just 5 players. Then Minott is the only other guy under contract (2mil) so they have to complete the roster with minimum contracts as the new CBA rules demmand while still being over the second tax apron. Good luck to them finding an starting point guard on a veteran’s minimum.
So the only way out to avoid this is trading KAT (Gobert is untradeable) and they might not get a package in return to make them true contenders.
They are screwed in every possible angle you can look