The sky was falling on the Minnesota Timberwolves midway through the third quarter on New Year’s Day. The New York Knicks were on an extended 58-31 run, ballooning their lead to 21 points with 4:22 remaining in the third quarter. Desperate for an offensive spark, Chris Finch called Jordan McLaughlin off the bench for the first time in two games.
Less than one minute into his first stint, McLaughlin noticed a wide-open Isaiah Hartenstein gearing up to have an easy roll to the basket. Instead of letting the 7-foot big man easily score, J-Mac leaped into the passing lane, took a shot to the face, and pushed the ball down the floor in a one-on-one fastbreak situation with Jalen Brunson, which resulted in a tough layup.
Kyle Anderson exclaimed, “Yeah, Mac!” Suddenly, the Timberwolves had some momentum in a game that felt more like a lost cause.
“At halftime, it certainly felt like a J-Mac game because we needed that juice,” Finch told reporters postgame. “We still believe the [ninth rotational spot] can be situational, but if somebody comes at takes it, then somebody comes and takes it. It looks like J-Mac is on his way to doing that right now.”
Minnesota lost that game in the Big Apple, 112-106. However, McLaughlin finished with nine points – seven of which game in the third quarter – three assists, and two steals on 4-of-5 from the floor and 1-of-2 from deep in just over 12 minutes of playing time. Once he was subbed into the game late in the third, his team closed the frame on a 15-11 run, a direct byproduct of the “juice” he brought to the table.
“It’s the same shit. He’s always ready when his number is called,” Anthony Edwards said in the locker room postgame. “No matter how many games he misses or how many times he doesn’t play, he is always ready. It didn’t surprise me tonight.”
Good things have happened every time J-Mac has been meaningful minutes this season. According to PBPstats.com, the 5’11” guard has seen 72 “medium” or “high-leverage” minutes this season. During that time, the Timberwolves have a +13.19 net rating, 111.11 offensive rating, and a 97.92 defensive rating.
However, the sample size for those minutes is small. Minnesota has played in 571 “medium” or “high-leverage” minutes without J-Mac this season. Still, there is no denying that the Wolves operate better as a team when McLaughlin plays in non-garbage time. This has raised the question of whether Finch and his staff should reward him with that ninth rotational spot and what the consequence would be.
Finch consistently runs with eight guys, three off the bench, every game. Naz Reid, Nickeil Alexander-Walker, and Kyle Anderson have been those players this season. Keeping a tight-knit group of rotational players allows them to establish more chemistry than with a deeper and more fluid rotation of ten or more guys. However, if the select few players coming off the bench aren’t consistently giving their team production on both ends of the floor, that can put a coaching staff in a bind with their use of minutes.
Finch would not have to go deeper into his roster on a nightly basis if everything were going perfectly for the Timberwolves’ bench. But Minnesota’s bench mob owns a 53.8 offensive rating this season, 23rd in the NBA. Often, when only one or maybe even two starters are on the court, the Wolves’ production starts to wane. As a result, the team can easily find themselves in a 5-10-point hole once Finch rotates all the starters back into the game. Therefore, Finch and his staff have gone to a ninth player in more of a situational role. If the team needs some perimeter defense and a capable off-ball scorer, they usually go to Troy Brown Jr. But they call for McLaughlin when they need someone to create a spark on both ends by making intelligent plays.
There is value in a situational role like that. However, after Minnesota’s first game of the new year in the Big Apple, it became apparent that J-Mac deserved to get some burn before the game got out of hand, and the Timberwolves were in dire straights.
Finch elected to sub McLaughlin into Minnesota’s following game against the New Orleans Pelicans with 2:05 remaining in the first quarter. The home Target Center crowd got loud when Timberwolves PA Annoncer Jedidiah Jones introduced him onto the court.
McLaughlin immediately displayed plug-and-play abilities. He helped force a shot-clock violation on the Pelicans. Then he came down on the other end, made his defender touch earth, and attacked into the paint for a nifty layup.
J-Mac played a season-high 17 minutes in a 117-106 Wolves loss that evening. He also attempted a season-high four triples, but all of them clanked off the rim, exposing McLaughlin’s greatest weakness – shooting.
Below is a snapshot of McLaughlin’s shooting chart this season courtesy of CleaningtheGlass.com. Following Friday’s 122-95 win over the Rockets in Houston, 47% of his shot attempts per game came from the three-point line, while 35% were at the rim. He also attempted more than one three-pointer in two games until that point in the season. Spacing the floor has never been one of ‘Lil Mac’s strengths, but he offers enough positives to overcome that. When he’s playing meaningful minutes, it’s usually while sharing the floor with Reid, Alexander-Walker, or Edwards, all of whom can stretch the floor.
Conversely, Brown, the man competing for that ninth rotational spot, almost exclusively shoots from range. 70% of Brown’s attempts per game are from three. Not only can TBJ space the floor, but he also makes all the little plays, such as pulling in contested rebounds or making defensive plays that don’t show up in the box score.
“My time will come when it comes,” said McLaughlin. “[The coaches] know what I can do; the guys know what I can do to help this team. Everybody just has to be ready when their number is called. We’ve got guys one through 18 that can play – it will be somebody’s night every other night. Everybody has just got to be ready to play.”
McLaughlin attempted seven shots on Sunday evening in Dallas, his most so far this season. All his attempts were from three-point range, and all but one came in spot-up situations. Despite going 2-of-7, almost every long ball he hoisted was a smart decision. It’s incredibly hard for players to find a shooting rhythm while not part of the rotation. It’s easier to sub in, play sound defense, and make the right pass – all of which McLaughlin excels at – but expecting him to be a reliable shooter with sporadic minutes is a hopeful and pretty much unobtainable goal. The more shots he gets in the flow, the more confidence he will gain; conversely, the more attempts will fall.
There is no doubt that McLaughlin is good enough to be a consistent part of the rotation. But it doesn’t seem like Finchy will give him that ninth spot every night, which may be good. TBJ and J-Mac can impact the game differently at separate positions. However, a balance must be struck when determining minutes. Waiting until the game is almost out of reach to sub McLaughlin in isn’t the best way to maximize his talents. Being fluid with the rotations may be Minnesota’s coaching staff’s best weapon moving forward.
