Minnesota Timberwolves Predicted Finish, Key Acquisitions & Fantasy Stars
October 11, 2022
As our Western Conference previews continue to drop, our focus turns to the Minnesota Timberwolves and whether their exciting core can lead the franchise to its first playoff series win since 2004. Last year, they won 46 games en route to a first round exit at the hands of Memphis. In these previews, we will take a look at the key acquisitions, fantasy stars and predicted finish.
Key Acquisitions
The Timberwolves kicked the offseason off with a bang sending Malik Beasley, Patrick Beverley, Leandro Bolmaro, Walker Kessler, Jarred Vanderbilt and five future firsts to the Utah Jazz for three-time Defensive Player of the Year Rudy Gobert.
Last season, Gobert averaged 15.6 ppg, a league-high 14.7 rpg and 2.1 bpg in 66 games with Utah finishing third in DPOY voting. One of just four players ever to win the award on three occasions, he has finished top three in DPOY voting in each of the last six seasons; a testament to his generational defensive production. Outside of his incredible rim protection, Gobert is one of the league’s elite rebounders and screeners and immediately improves both the floor and ceiling of this team.
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Fantasy Stars
Three of Minnesota’s stars are worth a genuine look in fantasy; Gobert, Karl-Anthony Towns, and Anthony Edwards all find themselves in the top 10 of their respective positions.
Gobert is ranked 10th among all centres in fantasy and should produce at a similar rate in his first season with Minnesota. Playing alongside Towns will be an interesting experiment which may need to overcome an initial adjustment period before producing its intended results but Gobert proved himself to be a genuine difference-maker throughout the nine years he spent in Utah.
Speaking of Towns, the 26-year-old is third among all centres and third among all power forwards entering this fantasy basketball season and is fresh off a year in which he played in 74 games averaging 24.6 ppg and 9.8 rpg on .640 TS%. His elite three-point shooting numbers are what makes many pundits bullish on a ‘twin towers’ approach with he and Gobert whilst his playmaking and shot creation make him one of the league’s most productive bigs.
Edwards – the seventh-ranked small forward and ninth-ranked shooting guard – is fresh off a sophomore year in which he averaged 21.3 ppg on .560 TS% in 72 games. Those numbers jumped up to 25.2 ppg on .604 TS% in his six playoff games. Edwards feels more than ready to make the leap among the league’s elite wing scorers as he enters his third season as a pro.
Projected Finish
Jeremy and I both foresee Minnesota finishing on the cusp of the play-in range at the conclusion of 82 games. In a stacked West, few wins will come easy but the Timberwolves appear well-positioned to qualify for back-to-back postseasons for the first time since 2004. Gobert, Towns, and Edwards are a legitimate trio of All-Star calibre players whilst the likes of D’Angelo Russell, Jaden McDaniels, Kyle Anderson, Naz Reid and Jaylen Nowell will be expected to play a role within Chris Finch’s system.
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