NBA Rumors: Julius Randle Could Make Wolves Debut 'Next Week' amid Injury Rehab

More than one week after being traded to the Minnesota Timberwolves, Julius Randle could make his debut for the team before the end of the preseason.

Appearing on NBA Today, ESPN's Shams Charania reported it's likely that Randle will make his first appearance with the T-Wolves "at some point next week" as he continues to rehab a shoulder injury.

Randle originally suffered a dislocated shoulder in the fourth quarter of the New York Knicks' victory over the Miami Heat on Jan. 27. He attempted to rehab the injury with the goal of returning before the end of the season, but eventually had season-ending surgery in April.

The Knicks said at the time of the procedure that Randle would be re-evaluated in five months.

In the interim, the Knicks pulled off a surprise three-team trade late in the offseason. They sent Randle, Donte DiVincenzo and Keita Bates-Diop to Minnesota for Karl-Anthony Towns in a deal that also included the Charlotte Hornets.

The deal reunited Randle with Timberwolves head coach Chris Finch, who was an associate head coach for the New Orleans Pelicans during Randle's lone season with the club in 2018-19.

Minnesota has three preseason games remaining, including a matchup with the Knicks at Madison Square Garden on Sunday. There is no indication Randle will be available to play in that game.

The other remaining preseason matchups for the Timberwolves are against the Chicago Bulls on Oct. 16 and Denver Nuggets on Oct. 17. Both games will be played at the Target Center.

It seems likely the Timberwolves would want to get Randle some minutes before the regular season begins to give him a chance to shake off any rust given how long he's been out of action.

Minnesota will open the regular season with back-to-back road games starting on Oct. 22 against the Los Angeles Lakers at Crypto.com Arena.

Randle averaged 24.0 points on 47.2 percent shooting, 9.2 rebounds and 5.0 assists per game in 46 starts with the Knicks last season.