The Minnesota Timberwolves have been one of the hottest teams in the NBA during the month of March. Only the Phoenix Suns and Boston Celtics — who thoroughly routed the Wolves on Sunday — have posted a better record this month. It’s been exceedingly rare for Wolves fans to be excited about the team this late into the season. Usually, by the time spring rolls around, fans would rather see the Wolves lose games to secure better lottery odds. But here we are, watching as Minnesota jockeys for the 6th seed in the West, ending the season playing games that matter. It’s a pleasant feeling.
I hate to be “that guy,” but I have to spend some time thinking about the future. I would love to only think about the joy and surprising success of this season. However, being that I’ve been rooting for the Wolves for the past 10 seasons, I can’t help but put a pause on the elation. Simply making it to the playoffs seems like a big win this season. I wonder, though, does this team, as currently constructed, have the upside to make a deep playoff run in the years to come?
I think it’s fair to say that much of the Timberwolves’ championship hopes lie squarely on Anthony Edwards and Karl-Anthony Towns‘ shoulders. The heights to which this team can reach are directly tied to Edwards’ ceiling and KAT’s sustained brilliance. But two players can’t win Minnesota a title. It’s about building a cohesive and functional team around their stars. The most impactful decision the Wolves will have to make on their journey to contention is what exactly they will do with D’Angelo Russell.
Russell has struggled this month, shooting just 39% from the field. Though these struggles have not affected Minnesota’s ability to win, the slump makes me wonder about the upcoming extension talks. This is far from Russell’s first slump this season, and overall he is shooting a tick under his career averages. But it’s not DLo’s career averages that got him his first big contract. He earned a max contract after helping lead an underdog Brooklyn Nets team to the playoffs in 2019.
He did not get the opportunity to take his talents to the open market. Brooklyn saw that Kevin Durant was interested in joining the Nets, and John Marks needed DLo’s max contract to swing a deal for KD. All this isn’t to say that Russell didn’t deserve his contract because he certainly did. But sometimes, contract negotiations are helped out by being in the right place at the right time.
Russell finds himself again leading an underdog team to the playoffs, this time on a much smaller stage in Minnesota. At times this season, the Wolves’ success has been so utterly reliant on Russell’s play that the thought of extending him was a no-brainer. But the emergence of Jaylen Nowell and Jordan McLaughlin has reshaped the image of Russell in many minds. On the one hand, DLo’s lack of athleticism lowers his ceiling. On the other, since his game isn’t predicated on speed and agility, he should age quite well. Regardless, the coming negotiations with DLo will have a high starting point no matter how he plays the rest of the season because the max is his rate.
Beyond the DLo decision, the Wolves will have to look critically at a few of their role players. With the majority of next year’s cap room committed to KAT, DLo, Malik Beasley, Patrick Beverley, and Ant, there’s not much wiggle room moving forward. Overall, the Wolves rotation players have really impressed lately. There is a level of depth on this team that makes decisions like what to do with Josh Okogie‘s restricted free agency so much easier.
If he wants to test the RFA market, so be it. He’s got a $12 million cap hold, so if the Wolves want to retain him, it’s best they take care of that business early so their books can be a little cleaner as they enter the free agency period. Though it seems likely that if Okogie is in the league next season, it is in a Timberwolves uniform. His lack of production as he heads into restricted free agency certainly puts the Wolves in the driver’s seat of negotiations.
One of the most interesting bits of negotiation that may happen this summer is Taurean Prince‘s contract. Before the season, he seemed like he would come in as a rotation forward who could soak up some minutes behind Edwards and McDaniels. However, his play down the final stretch of the season has been crucial to the Wolves’ success. It seems every trade deadline, teams trying to compete at the highest level are trying to add that last 3-and-D forward to round out their rotation. With Prince, the Wolves have a player who fills that role and does it well. The question is, how much are the wolves willing to pay?
Look back at the past few years to see the haul players like Robert Covington, Norman Powell, and even Torrey Craig have fetched over the past few trade deadlines. Prince’s 6’7″ and knockdown shooting is the exact combination of size and shooting teams are looking for. Additionally, if Prince continues to play at a high level, it opens up a lot of flexibility for the Wolves.
Jaden McDaniels is obviously the toolsy 3-and-D forward that the Wolves want to build with. But if a star player becomes available, having McDaniels to add to a package could be a powerful chip to swing things in Minnesota’s direction. Before the mob shows up at my house, let me be clear: I’m not advocating that the Wolves trade Jaden. I’ve been high on McDaniels since the moment he entered the league. However, the NBA is a stars league. The Timberwolves need to be prepared to swing a deal if the right star becomes available, and McDaniels might be the player that puts them over the top in trade talks.
This season has been fun, and I wouldn’t ask for it to have happened any other way. But the Wolves will have to make some crucial decisions if they wish to take the next step. There are building blocks for the next great Timberwolves team here in Minnesota. Now it’s just about building a roster that can make a deep run.
