Finding Perfect Rotation for the Minnesota Timberwolves
Choosing the perfect rotation for the Minnesota Timberwolves is a lot tougher now that Ricky Rubio is out indefinitely with an ankle injury.
However, this team must move on with the pieces they have. With Rubio gone, rookie Zach LaVine will now get valuable playing time and experience. Not to mention this team still has several talented players such as Nikola Pekovic, Kevin Martin, Thaddeus Young and soon-to-be stud Andrew Wiggins.
Head coach and president of basketball operations Flip Saunders must choose the right rotation if he wants to prevent this team from collapsing while their star point guard recovers.
Saunders must remember that the Wolves are in rebuilding mode, which means they also need to focus on the future.
Point Guard
When Rubio returns, he will obviously retain his starting spot, but until then, LaVine should get the nod. The 19-year-old rookie has started the last two games for the Wolves and looked surprisingly competent as a passer.
In a 113-101 loss to the Houston Rockets Wednesday night, LaVine racked up an impressive nine assists.
"W/ his 9 asts last night, Zach LaVine became just the 12th teenager in NBA history to dish out 9+ asts in an NBA game. #Twolves
— Timberwolves PR (@Twolves_PR) November 13, 2014"
His passing success probably comes as a surprise to most considering he only averaged 1.8 assists at UCLA.
As a facilitator, LaVine has looked solid, but as a scorer he's looked very inept. So far this season, he's averaging just 4.3 points per game while shooting a horrid 31.3 percent from the field and 25 percent from long range.
He's only a teenager, so his struggles are expected. At the beginning of the year, many fans and experts predicted LaVine would spend most of his rookie season on the bench, so the injury to Rubio will allow the neophyte to get some much-needed experience.
Fun Fact: LaVine has already started more games in the NBA (two) than he did at UCLA (one).
Behind him is 11-year veteran Mo Williams. So far this season, Williams has also struggled offensively. Over the first seven games, he is averaging 6.7 points per game while shooting only 32.7 percent. He's currently averaging only 21.9 minutes per game, his lowest average since his rookie season.
Many fans expected Williams to play a big role this year, especially after he led the Wolves in scoring this preseason with 12.8 points per game.
With both Williams and LaVine struggling, the Wolves desperately need Rubio back. While they wait for his return, LaVine and Williams will probably continue to split time evenly (roughly 20-25 minutes a game each).
Shooting Guard
No doubt, the starter at the 2-guard spot should be Kevin Martin.
Over the first seven games, Martin has been the Wolves' only consistent offensive threat. He's currently leading the team in scoring with 18.3 points per game. Martin is carrying the majority of the load at the shooting guard position, playing 31 minutes per game.
Backup Shabazz Muhammad is only playing 11.9 minutes per game this season, but that number needs to go up. Per 36 minutes, Muhammad is averaging 19.5 points and 6.9 rebounds. Last year, Muhammad had similar success, averaging 17.8 points and 6.6 rebounds per 36 minutes.
Martin is the only dependable scorer on the Wolves roster, so it'll be hard to squeeze Muhammad into the rotation. But it has to be done.
With Martin on the tail end of his career (turning 32 years old in February) and Muhammad in only his second NBA season, the Wolves need to start planning for the future.
Muhammad has a chance to be the Wolves' future starting shooting guard, but if Martin continues to play 30-plus minutes per game, it will be tough for the 22-year-old to mature and develop.
Small Forward
Even with the ups and downs, Wiggins should maintain his starting spot. He has all the potential to be a top-five player in this league, but right now, he's playing very much like any other struggling rookie.
Over the first three games of the season, Wiggins averaged 7.3 points per game while shooting only 37.5 percent. Worst of all, he had a 5.65 player efficiency rating (PER) over that span, which is well under the league average (15).
However, he has shown glimpses of greatness. In the Wolves' 98-91 victory over the Brooklyn Nets, Wiggins recorded a career-best 17 points on 7-of-12 shooting from the field.
His backup, Corey Brewer, is averaging 22.6 minutes per game, but that number may dip if Wiggins continues to improve.
Power Forward
Thaddeus Young is arguably the best all-around player on the Wolves.
Unfortunately, he has slightly underperformed this season, averaging only 14.3 points per game. After averaging a personal-best 17.9 points per game last season with the Philadelphia 76ers, many fans expected him to be more of an offensive weapon.
Young is also shooting 44.8 percent from the field, which is decent, but it's well below his career average of 49.9 percent.
The Wolves are only seven games into an 82-game season, so obviously there's plenty of time for Young to improve his numbers.
Anthony Bennett is still not looking like a first-overall pick, but he has performed much better this year than he did as a rookie:
| Year | MPG | FG% | PTS | |
| 2013-14 | 12.8 | .356 | 4.2 | |
| 2014-15 | 11.5 | .583 | 5.5 |
If the Wolves want Bennett to reach his full potential, he needs to receive more playing time. Unfortunately, with Young on the roster it will be tough to give Bennett more minutes.
Center
No change here: Nikola Pekovic will be the starting center.
Pekovic is another player on this team who has slightly underperformed. So far this season he is only averaging 14.4 points, his lowest since the 2011-12 season. He's also shooting 44.4 percent from the field, well below his career average of 53.2 percent.
Over the past three years, Pekovic has been one of the Wolves' biggest offensive threats, but if he continues to disappoint, second-year Wolf Gorgui Dieng could see more playing time.
Dieng is currently averaging 7.6 points, 6.4 rebounds and 1.7 blocks per game. Dieng's stat line isn't flashy, but he does boast a 23.3 PER, which currently ranks 14th in the NBA, per ESPN.
The 24-year-old center has great potential, but he's still raw right now. If Dieng continues his improve, his success could make Pekovic expendable.
Right now, Pekovic is averaging 29.9 minutes per game and Dieng is averaging 18, but those numbers could get closer as the year goes on.
Conclusion
Rubio's absence will probably put an end to any playoff hopes in Minnesota, so now it's time for the Wolves to focus on their younger players.
Guys like Muhammad or Dieng will probably get more playing time as the playoff window closes. This team can be dangerous in a few years, just not this year.
All stats are courtesy of Basketball-Reference.com unless otherwise noted
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