Before NBA Summer League started in Vegas, a reporter asked Terrence Shannon Jr. a simple question: What do you expect to do in Summer League?
“Win the whole league,” Shannon responded.
We’re three games in, and Shannon is meeting his own expectations. The Minnesota Timberwolves Summer League Team is 2-1. The Wolves drafted Shannon, a dynamic scorer and versatile defender out of Illinois, 27th overall. They needed to draft pro-ready players, and Shannon is proving he’s ready for the next level in Summer League.
Shannon is averaging 17.7 points per game while shooting 60.0% from the field and just 28.6% from three while playing a team-high 29.0 minutes per game. He’s also scoring in various ways: explosive transition dunks, corner threes, and isolation drives. He was doing that at Illinois, but transitioning to playing against higher-level competition in Summer League shows that he wasn’t only putting up numbers in college because he was older and more experienced.
“Honestly, I didn’t feel that good,” Shannon said after his 25-point outburst in Minnesota’s first Summer League game. “It could be better.”
I had the opportunity to ask Chris Hines about Shannon’s humble opinion of his big debut, and Hines echoed a similar message: “He knows if he wants to play here, he has to guard. We got guys that can score 30 or 40 points… that’s great awareness by him.”
Defensively, Shannon has looked solid but not great. However, there are no advanced stats in Summer League to back up the eye test. Shannon has registered four steals and six blocks through three games. However, he focuses more on his ability to stay in front of players and provide defense assistance.
In Summer League, the Wolves have asked Shannon to play small forward and power forward, with Josh Minott sometimes playing the center. That has caused Shannon to play against bigger defenders than he was used to in college. Shannon, 23, is one of the older players on Minnesota’s Summer League roster, so the size increase hasn’t bothered him much.
He has been able to seal his matchup from getting back cuts pretty well and has prevented many post-ups by using his body to guide the bigger player to the wing. However, Summer League traditionally allows guards to shine by playing isolation basketball. Shannon’s prevention of post-ups may be more to the opposition’s style of play than his ability to deny opportunities.
Shannon shines much brighter in his help-side defense. However, he has an innate awareness of how to fly in to help against drives and has gotten multiple impressive blocks from these help-defense opportunities.
In the NBA, Shannon would likely never be needed to guard the opposing player’s best guard or defender due to the multiple elite defenders the Wolves have. His ability to fly off-ball and help on drives is a valuable skill that would mesh well with Minnesota’s defense, whether in drop or scrambling. Below is one such example of his help defense and blocking ability.
Although his shot-making and defense are pro-level, his struggles with ball security ultimately may limit Shannon in the NBA. We can assume that Chris Finch values ball security as a premium skill off the bench. Past players like Jordan McLaughlin, Kyle Anderson, and Monte Morris all have had greater than a 3.5 assist-to-turnover ratio.
However, Shannon is sitting at a 0.5 ratio through three games, a full 3.0 lower than his previously mentioned counterparts. During his senior season at Illinois, it was a stark 1.2. Shannon will have to improve in this aspect to crack the rotation.
“Whether I’m older or younger, I’m always ready to learn,” Shannon said before Summer League started.
Shannon has refined skills in his scoring and defense. However, his playmaking may ultimately cost him minutes with the main roster. Still, his first three games in Summer League should excite Wolves fans because they are on pace to win the whole league, and he’s helping drive winning in Vegas.
