How Injuries Have Given The Minnesota Timberwolves’ Young Guys A Chance To Shine

Earlier this year, I expressed some concern for the Minnesota Timberwolves because they had the best injury luck in the NBA, yet were barely over .500. What would happen to this team if lady luck stopped smiling in their favor?

Unfortunately, that doomsday scenario came to life. Over the last few months, Rudy Gobert (five games), Julius Randle (12 games), Donte DiVincenzo (19 games) and Anthony Edwards (two games + left one game early due to an ejection) have all missed time with injuries.

However, despite all these veterans shuffling in and out of the lineup, the Timberwolves have remained competitive, going 11-9 in their last 20 games. And the explanation for their ability to remain above water is simple: their youngsters have established themselves as rotation-level players and potential franchise staples in the future.

Jaden McDaniels & Nickeil Alexander-Walker

Jaden McDaniels and Nickeil Alexander-Walker have already solidified themselves as key parts of the Timberwolves’ rotation. But even then, the two of them deserve some flowers for taking on larger offensive roles over the last few months. In the last 20 games, McDaniels is averaging 16.1 points on 57.8 percent true shooting and Alexander-Walker is averaging 10.9 points on 55 percent true shooting. The best part is they’re exerting themselves more on offense while still being stout perimeter defenders.

Naz Reid

Naz Reid, the 2023-24 Sixth Man of the Year, falls under the same category as McDaniels and Alexander-Walker in that he’s already made his bones in the Timberwolves organization. But some stuff needs to be said that’s been danced around for too long: Reid is a better basketball player for this roster construction than Randle, a two-time All-NBA selection.

According to PBP Stats, the Timberwolves have a better net rating (plus-5.7) when Reid is on the floor and Randle is on the bench (1,033 minutes) than when Randle is on the floor without Reid (plus-2.9, 983 minutes).

Reid’s shooting and read-and-react skills boost Minnesota’s spacing and ball movement in was a midrange isolationist like Randle cannot. Meanwhile, Reid’s improved defense helps bring the Timberwolves to the titanic defensive standard they set last season.

Jaylen Clark

Full transparency, this article originally started out as a pitch to my wonderful editor for a full 1,000-word piece on Jaylen Clark. And while he had to kindly awaken me from the fugue state of niche player hysteria I was stuck in, it doesn’t change how awesome Clark is.

Clark is both firm and agile, making him an ideal perimeter defender (80th percentile Defensive Estimated Plus-Minus, per Dunks & Threes). The Timberwolves had the pleasure of playing the juggernaut Oklahoma City Thunder three times in the last two weeks, and it was Clark who was tasked with shadowing the soon-to-be scoring champion, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. Clark did about as good of a job as one could hope for, holding him to 5-of-17 shooting (29.4 percent) and forcing two turnovers in the process, per NBA.com.

Last night, the soon-to-be scoring champion was held to 1-for-4 shooting and two turnovers when he was guarded by Jaylen Clark.

🔒🔒🔒 pic.twitter.com/0AGTHEda6u

— Sportscasting NBA (@SportcastingNBA) February 24, 2025

It isn’t rare for a young wing (Clark is 23) to be a pest on defense. However, it is hard to find one who can also adequately space the floor and Clark has hit 43.3 percent of his 30 3-point attempts thus far.

Right now, he gives the Timberwolves yet another outstanding point-of-attack defender who can knock down open shots. And moving forward, he could be the perfect replacement if Alexander-Walker leaves in free agency this upcoming summer.

Terrence Shannon Jr.

When Edwards was ejected against the Los Angeles Lakers Thursday night, Minnesota trailed by 15 points. Without him, Gobert or Randle against a surging team, all hope seemed lost. No one told the Timberwolves, though.

The indefatigable Timberwolves made a game out of it — trimming the lead all the way down to three points — thanks largely to the efforts of  rookie Terrence Shannon Jr., who was selected 27th overall in the 2024 NBA Draft.

Terrence Shannon Jr. 25 PTS on 9/15 pic.twitter.com/DOx2o0VkHp

— Brett Usher (@UsherNBA) February 28, 2025

As the tweet above reads, Shannon dropped 25 points on 9-of-15 shooting, while also tallying a team-high plus-minus of plus-11. More impressive, though, is how he got those points.

When it’s really boiled down, the goal of every NBA defense is to find ways to safeguard the interior. So, someone who can attack the paint at will is a lethal weapon.

Despite his amateur status, Shannon has already shown to be that kind of player. On the season, he’s shooting 69.2 percent at the rim (82nd percentile) while attempting 6.6 shots per 75 possessions there (88th percentile). This provides a massive boost to a Minnesota team which hasn’t excelled at getting shots inside (15th in rim frequency and 19th in rim accuracy, per Cleaning the Glass).

Rob Dillingham

Rob Dillingham is exactly what to expect of a 20-year-old rookie. He’s inefficient (17th percentile true shooting), mistake-prone (seventh percentile turnover rate) and a poor defender (29th percentile Defensive EPM). Still, with young players, it isn’t so much about production as it is about flashes. And in the Timberwolves’ recent come-from-behind win against the Thunder on Monday, Dillingham validated the draft capital they spent on him.

In that game, Dillingham scored 12 points and dished out five dimes. Those weren’t merely empty calorie numbers, either. During his 25.5 minutes, the Timberwolves were a plus-19, and, for one night, Dillingham looked every bit of the Mike Conley Jr. heir apparent he was selected to be long-term.