If you catch him at the right moment, Joan Beringer looks like “a problem,” as Bill Simmons and Zach Lowe recently discussed on Simmons’ Monday podcast.
The phrase relates to what people 20 or 30 years from now will say when they find certain players’ highlight montages on whatever version of YouTube will exist. Often, Simmons uses the phrase to dampen expectations, encouraging fans to look at the full context rather than just the highlights.
However, with Joan Beringer, it’s hard not to get excited about the highlights, especially when he seems to have one every time he steps on the court. The highlights, combined with Minnesota’s potential offseason shakeup, set up a crucial summer for the rookie Frenchman.
During Beringer’s rookie season, the Minnesota Timberwolves focused on helping him adjust to the size, speed, and language of the NBA. As a result, they have buried them on their bench behind Rudy Gobert, Julius Randle, and Naz Reid, all of whom deserve starting-level minutes for the team.
“It’s just got to slow down for him. [Beringer] just plays super fast, but I like that he plays hard, he tries to block everything,” Jaden McDaniels said in February. “I like what I’m seeing from him, and I like playing with him, too. He just has a great energy about him. … He’s going to be special.”
The lack of basketball experience and the need to slow down make sense, given that Beringer didn’t switch from soccer to basketball until age 15. As a result, he has spent most of his rookie season working with big man coach Kevin Hanson. That has fueled the fan base’s excitement for Beringer, because he frequently works on his post game and mid-range shots after practice.
In addition to Hanson, the Wolves have placed Beringer in Gobert’s hands to mold him into an NBA player. Gobert and Beringer’s lockers are right next to each other, and Gobert often communicates and encourages Beringer from the bench and after games in which Beringer plays. It’s a mentor role that Gobert often talks about, including after a practice back in January.
“He’s been great, he’s been putting in a lot of work and just been really excited to be on the big stage and impact winning,” Gobert said after a January practice. “Every time he’s on the court, it’s fun to see. His energy is also positive for the team, having someone that’s pure. … You know he’s out there just doing his best and playing with a lot of intensity, too.”
Beringer’s teammates have been excited about his development all season. Anthony Edwards worked with Beringer before the season to get better at throwing lobs. Others on the team enjoy practicing against him because of his level of competition in drills. Mike Conley is consistently impressed with his skill level and the similarities he has with a young Gobert.
“I do think he has more hair (than Rudy),” said Conley. “He is a lot like Rudy, I think he came in with a little bit more skillset, I think his hands, just the way he can maneuver with the ball at such a young age for a guy who hasn’t played a lot of basketball in his life. Very impressive, the way he bounces around, the way he goes after every single shot, goes after every rebound. That’s what Rudy has made his mark on.”
Despite all the praise from players behind the scenes, Beringer has played only 234 minutes and appeared in only 37 games. He has performed well in that time, while also demonstrating the lack of basketball intuition that keeps young players out of the rotation.
Still, Beringer is shooting 66.3% from the field and has snagged 33 offensive rebounds in his 37 games. Two statistics that suggest he will be a great modern big. His screen-setting and feel in rolling to the basket also show that his raw basketball intelligence is well above average. He also consistently finds himself in the right place on defense.
“I mean, that’s what it is, it’s just instincts, isn’t it?” Kevin Hanson joked at summer league this year. “He just has unbelievable timing, I saw it right off the jump, on both sides of the floor too, his ability to go catch lobs, and has good hands. … That was impressive.”
Joan Beringer still has flaws, though. He has earned a reputation for jumping at every shot, an issue that has led to him having his fair share of blocks this season, with 16 in total. However, it’s also led to him fouling at an alarming rate, logging a foul every 6 minutes and 20 seconds. That essentially suggests that, even against less-skilled players at the end of games who aren’t scouting Beringer, he has issues not fouling.
Suppose Beringer were a regular part of the rotation and playing against opposing teams’ better players. Then, he would likely find himself on scouting reports, and his fouling would theoretically get significantly worse.
Still, even with that significant flaw, Beringer has gotten heaps of praise this season from players, as well as Chris Finch, after Beringer’s brief trip to the G League this season.
“What jumps out is kind of,” Finch said before pausing, “he’s just more comfortable in his own skin.
“His fitness was way better. He plays hard, he plays himself to exhaustion, which is what you love. His activity has always been there. I just felt like his activity was in time with the play, where he wasn’t playing catch-up to what was going on around him, so you can tell the game is slowing down a little bit for him.”
Joan Beringer will likely be the featured player on Minnesota’s summer league roster and in training camp this offseason. It will be a huge opportunity for him to prove that he’s not just “a problem” guy that future generations will watch on YouTube, but that he deserves a shot at the rotation in 2026-27. An opportunity that fans, teammates, coaches, and Simmons all appear to be excited about.
