In terms of team building, finding the correct roles for each player is like a puzzle. If one of those pieces goes missing, it becomes difficult to find a replacement. In a complicated jigsaw like the Minnesota Timberwolves offense, when a crucial piece like Donte DiVincenzo is injured, it creates a domino effect.
DiVincenzo was playing his best basketball this season before he got hurt. He averaged 15.5 points, 4.7 rebounds, and 3.9 assists on 45.0/43.7/85.3 shooting splits, making 3.5 threes per game over his last 15 games. However, that created a large void after he injured his toe.
Nickeil Alexander-Walker’s role immediately increased in DiVincenzo’s absence. When Alexander-Walker and DiVincenzo are healthy, they have defined roles. Both players have similar responsibilities. They get occasional on-ball reps as initiators and a heavy diet of three-point jumpers.
However, it differs in shot-creation freedom. DiVincenzo has earned more freedom to create his shot, while Alexander-Walker is more productive if he sticks to operating as a spot-up shooter. DiVincenzo’s skillset and jump shot mechanics allow him to connect on more difficult shots around defenders and on the move.
The Timberwolves have plenty of other players to rely upon for creation. Still, Alexander-Walker has had to extend his scoring duties in specific lineups sans DiVincenzo, forcing him to take more difficult shots and increase his overall volume.
In Minnesota’s 11 games without DiVincenzo, Alexander-Walker is averaging 9.2 points on 35.6% from the field and 34.3% from three for a 47% effective FG%. That’s significantly below his 59.7% eFG% in the 40 games before DiVincenzo’s injury.
Some of Alexander-Walker’s regression is the law of averages, but his extended role has limited the positivity of his contributions. His increase in field-goal attempts per game has gone from 6.6 in the first 40 games of the season to 9.2 in his last 11, which creates inefficiency in his shooting. Therefore, Chris Finch shouldn’t extend Alexander-Walker beyond his role.
However, Jaden McDaniels has benefited from DiVincenzo’s creation and scoring void.
In the 11 games without DiVincenzo, McDaniels is averaging 14.5 points and 7.8 rebounds on 50.4/38.6/88.0 shooting splits.
As a prospect at the University of Washington and a five-star high-school talent, McDaniels touted much promise as a potential shot creator. However, he’s been an inconsistent shot-creator in the NBA. He has not found a consistent role, confidence, or the freedom to tap into his creation capabilities enough. It has purely been flashes.
McDaniels doesn’t need to be a game-changer for the Timberwolves. It is still easy to see how impactful he is when he can finish possessions by attacking closeouts and finishing inside the arc or make a simple size-up dribble to create a jump shot – something he’s done recently with DiVincenzo out.
Alexander-Walker and McDaniels have been rotational staples over the last two seasons. However, DiVincenzo’s injury has also given vital extended minutes to rookie Rob Dillingham.
The Timberwolves were one of the league’s healthiest teams through the first half of the season, which helped Finch find roles for each player after the Timberwolves traded Karl-Anthony Towns. Still, with how Finch tends to lean on veterans and proven players, there was little room for the fringe rotational players to see real opportunities until DiVincenzo got hurt.
Dillingham had brief flashes of promise earlier in the season. He showcased his shot-making and playmaking talents in back-to-back games against the Houston Rockets and Boston Celtics before an ankle injury sidelined any future developments.
Fortunately, Dillingham recovered from his ankle sprain just as DiVincenzo went down, allowing him to play a consistent role in his absence. Over the 11 games without DiVincenzo, Dillingham averaged 15.8 minutes per game, scoring 8.4 points on 50.7% shooting from the field and 44.8% from three. He also averaged 3.5 assists per game, taking full advantage of his opportunities. More importantly, though, Dillingham has doubled his total minutes played in these 11 games, garnering important on-court reps.
Despite the domino effect, DiVincenzo’s injury has had on the players in Minnesota’s rotation, the Timberwolves have maintained one of the league’s best offensive ratings. Over their last 11 games, they have scored 120.4 points per 100 possessions. Losing DiVincenzo has been detrimental to Minnesota’s overall vision. However, in the long term, it has opened up the rotation and allowed the Wolves to explore their depth.
McDaniels and Alexander-Walker have demonstrated much of what we already knew about their playing styles and archetypes. Still, Dillingham’s vital reps and forced lineup changes are a silver lining in DiVincenzo’s absence.
The Timberwolves need DiVincenzo for the stretch run. However, his status is still uncertain; the Wolves will re-evaluate him within the next two to three weeks. Therefore, they will still heavily rely on players like Alexander-Walker, McDaniels, and Dillingham to step into a larger role. It is a lot to put on this trio, but it will give Finch and the Timberwolves front office a reasonable sample size of their extended roles as they develop.
