Kyle Anderson wasn’t supposed to be the Minnesota Timberwolves’ starting power forward last year. He not only filled the gap left by Karl-Anthony Towns’ injury but also thrived as a veteran playmaker, defender, and shooter.
Non-Wolves fans may not have realized it, but Anderson’s slow, wonky-looking shot produced a 41% three-point shooting percentage last season. He didn’t take them at high volume, only 1.5 per game, but provided spacing by shooting at such a high clip.
Unfortunately, that part of Anderson’s game appears lost. Through 21 games, he has converted only 11.1% of his 0.9 attempts per game. He’s not just missing threes but refusing to take them, even with space to do so.
The Wolves aren’t desperate, but there may be other ways to squeeze as much value out of Anderson as possible. They need to amplify his strengths. He could be an intriguing roll man Chris Finch could pair with Mike Conley or Anthony Edwards, especially out of the short roll where Anderson can utilize his passing chops and crisp decision-making.
There may not be a play that sums up what kind of player Anderson is than the one below:
He passes up a wide-open three, attacks the closeout, and dumps the ball off to Naz Reid. Anderson is a pass-first player. Tapping into his abilities as a creator could benefit the Wolves.
We’ve already explored Anderson’s ball-handling, but he could also serve as an excellent roll man.
Screeners in today’s game do not need to be centers in the Rudy Gobert mold. The Oklahoma City Thunder run their offense with guards screening for guards. It’s all about initiating the offense, hunting for switches, or leveraging positioning – as it could be in Anderson’s case.
Alperen Sengün and Nikola Jokić are some of the best in the short roll. Although they are significantly larger than Anderson, he could fulfill a similar role.
The play below shows Sengün setting a screen for Fred VanVleet. VanVleet makes a quick bounce pass to the rolling Sengün, whose capability as a finisher necessitates help from Jae’Sean Tate’s man in the corner. Sengün makes the appropriate pass to Tate, who cans the open three.
Swap VanVleet with Conley, Tate with Troy Brown Jr., and Sengün with Anderson, and you have a feasible play for the Wolves.
Sengün plays an entirely different position than Anderson, of course. But plenty of short roll plays end up with a second screen, like the one below:
Sengün doesn’t make a nifty pass. Instead, he lets Jalen Green create space by using him in a hand-off and screen. Again, this type of play could work for the Wolves with Anthony Edwards. However, Anderson’s defender is critical.
Power forward/center Zach Collins guards Sengün in the play above, and Collins isn’t keen to switch on to the speedy Green. If a proper small forward guards Anderson, and a true shooting guard matches up against Edwards, opponents may switch on hand-off/screens like the one Sengün and Green employed.
Draymond Green is a better player comparison for Anderson. Green has teamed up with Stephen Curry on many short rolls during their time together. That action allowed Green, an inconsistent shooter, to make passes and drive to the rim.
Half Court Hoops made an excellent compilation of Green’s short rolls five years ago, and it still serves as a great example of what a pass-first, non-shooting threat forward can do. Green makes dozens of lob passes off drives in the video below. He has all the space because defenders blitzed or hedged Curry. Still, it’s something Anderson, Mike Conley, and Gobert could pull off.
Their connection had more to do with Curry getting blitzed and hedged. The short roll allowed Curry to pass out of a trap. For Anderson, it’s more about allowing him to find a comfortable spot on the floor in the mid-range.
Anderson has taken a whopping 54% of his shots in the short mid-range. He’s been effective from there, converting them at a 45% clip (67th percentile for forwards per Cleaningtheglass). Receiving passes on a short roll could allow him the freedom to work in his favorite spot on the floor. Most importantly, the Wolves wouldn’t put him in a position where his weaknesses (shooting, quickness) could become glaring.
Anderson is still a valuable asset on Minnesota’s deep roster. He could benefit from a role change, and there are several routes the Wolves could take. One of them could involve using him as a roll man so he can feature his mid-range proficiency and vision.
