On Friday, Minnesota Timberwolves president Tim Connelly joined Dan Barreiro for a wide-ranging, hour-long interview. Barreiro didn’t pull any punches, asking Connelly about the Rudy Gobert trade, Minnesota’s struggles against sub-.500 teams last year, and the team’s emotional maturity. Every Timberwolves fan should listen to the interview in it’s entirety, below are three highlights from Friday’s Bumper to Bumper interview.
On the Wolves lack of on-court maturity
Barreiro asked Connelly about Minnesota’s lack of discipline last year, and Connelly acknowledged it’s an area they need to work on. Specifically, he was upset that the Timberwolves led the league in technical fouls last year.
On whether he’d trade Karl-Anthony Towns
Towns trade rumors have picked up, given that the Wolves took a step back in the first year of the Towns-Gobert experiment. They are going to have to figure out how to play Anthony Edwards, Jaden McDaniels, Gobert, and Towns under the new collective-bargaining agreement. Barreiro asked what it would take for Connelly to move Towns or another superstar player in the offseason. Connelly said that he plans to run it back next year, but nothing is off the table.
On Minnesota’s failure to get out of the first round of the playoffs
Prompted by Towns’ claim on Patrick Beverley’s podcast that the Timberwolves’ 2021 run was more impressive than the Denver Nuggets’ championship run this year, Barreiro asked Connelly about Minnesota’s lack of playoff success. Connelly didn’t offer a response to Towns’ claims on Beverley’s podcast, but he made it clear that the Wolves can’t be satisfied with what they’ve done the past two years.
Be sure to hear the interview in full. It’s a must-listen for any Wolves fan!
