After their 2021-22 season ended with a first-round playoff exit at the hands of the Memphis Grizzlies, the Minnesota Timberwolves retooled by trading for three-time NBA Defensive Player of the Year Rudy Gobert in what many called the most surprising and impactful move of the offseason. They also re-emphasized their commitment to franchise cornerstone Karl-Anthony Towns by offering him a super-max contract extension worth $224 million. To help us assess how Minnesota will fare in the crowded Western Conference, we've enlisted the help of Derek James, former Timberwolves beat reporter for various outlets and writer of the By Derek James Substack. He'll take us through those two aforementioned big moves by the front office, the continued growth of Anthony Edwards and Jaden McDaniels, and much more.
6:26-8:11: “It definitely struck me as a lot when the Gobert trade first went down and seeing all those picks (be sent to Utah) and then hearing Tim Connelly talk about how he feels like they probably maxed out their ceiling last year. … How are you getting even better and taking the next step there? I think that is really where this trade has pushed the Timberwolves. You could see them reasonably having home-court (advantage), at least in the first round. … A big, determining factor in where they finish is probably going to be how...other teams operate (with injury management). There’s a range of possibilities. … Other factors in this, too, could just be Anthony Edwards, Jaden McDaniels, some of these younger guys, also improving like we think they should.”
10:43-11:55: “I think with the Tom Thibodeau regime and the veterans that he would bring in…they were probably on the back ends of their primes, to put it generously. … Kyle Anderson can still contribute. Taurean Prince can contribute. I think even with Austin Rivers… you don’t really need much more from your fifth, sixth guard than that, just a veteran who came in and just knows where to be and what to do, but is still young enough to be a useful player. … This is the first time this team has actually developed players.”         
12:30-13:45: “That’s the thing with Anthony Edwards: I have no idea what his ceiling could be. … Out of the box, he was fearless in getting to the rim. He knew he was built like a tight end going to the basket. That was never a problem, but I think it was really just getting that shot consistent. And if that gets more and more consistent, I don’t really know what his limits are.” 
23:05-23:25: "Russell is going to have a great lob target [in Rudy Gobert], maybe somewhat like Jarrett Allen in Brooklyn, only a little better. So I think he'll make D'Angelo Russell look better, and I think there'll just be this effect on teams in the pick and roll, where they have all these different looks they can throw at defenses now."
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