Timberwolves Finish As One Of NBA’s Worst Defensive Teams

Last season, the Minnesota Timberwolves gave up the third-most points to opponents per game, and opposing teams shot the 6th highest field goal percentage against them during the regular season. With a lot of the same faces returning to the team this year and with no major defensive additions to the roster in the offseason, Minnesota will likely be one of the worst defensive teams once again.

Karl-Anthony Towns is not a defensive minded player, D’Angelo Russell has not been known to be a great perimeter defender and Anthony Edwards enters the NBA as primarily an offensive-minded player, so there is no way this team will be better on the defensive end of the court. 

The best defensive player for the Timberwolves this year could end up being Ricky Rubio and he will be coming off the bench for them, giving Minnesota one of the worst defensive starting lineups in the league. A lot of their defensive struggles primarily come from their frontcourt, which is surprising given that Karl-Anthony Towns is the anchor of the Timberwolves’ frontcourt. 

Juancho Hernangomez is the primary power-forward on this team for the 2020-21 NBA season he’s certainly not a good defensive player. Hernangomez is nothing more than an offensive weapon and even had they not moved on from Rondae Hollis-Jefferson, he’s still just a 6’6” forward who can easily get backed down in the low-post. 

Both players can guard guys on the wing and keep them in front of them, but lack the strength and size to be able to guard bigger power-forwards and centers in the league. As stated earlier, Towns is not much of a shot-blocker either, which means the Minnesota Timberwolves are extremely vulnerable for giving up points in the paint. 

With no reliable defensive options in the Timberwolves frontcourt once again this season, expect to see a lot of teams attack the paint against Minnesota and have a lot of success doing so.