Getty Minnesota Timberwolves center Karl-Anthony Towns
A new era of Minnesota Timberwolves basketball begins Wednesday following the team’s decision to trade All-Star guard Jimmy Butler. The deal which sent Butler to the Philadelphia 76ers brought a return of a few intriguing players, a group featuring Robert Covington, Dario Saric and Jerryd Bayless. While Bayless is injured, both Covington and Saric will be available to play.
It’ll be interesting to see how coach Tom Thibodeau opts to roll out his starting lineup against the New Orleans Pelicans. It’s likely Covington, who’s an All-NBA defender, will replace Butler, but we know Thibs is a big fan of Taj Gibson, which could lead to Saric coming off the bench. Regardless, the new-look Timberwolves have plenty of talent and also some additional depth thanks to this trade.
Let’s take a look at how the roster and starting lineup is expected to look for the team’s upcoming game.
Timberwolves’ Projected Roster & Starting Lineup
C: Karl-Anthony Towns*, Gorgui Dieng
PF: Taj Gibson*, Dario Saric, Anthony Tolliver
SF: Robert Covington*, James Nunnally, Keita Bates-Diop, Luol Deng
SG: Andrew Wiggins*, Josh Okogie, C.J. Williams
PG: Jeff Teague*, Derrick Rose, Tyus Jones
*Note: Derrick Rose was ruled out for Wednesday’s game against the Pelicans.
It seems likely Covington will get the nod at small forward even though he’s been with the team for such a short period. The former Sixer is an exceptional defender and can knock down shots from all over the floor so he could be a great fit in this starting group. Aside from him, the rest of the Timberwolves’ starters feature the usual names.
One key situation to watch is how many minutes Saric gets in comparison to Gibson. It’s unlikely that Saric will take over the starting job immediately, but it could certainly happen at some point this season. While the 24-year-old forward has struggled with his shot a bit this season, he averaged 14.6 points and 6.7 rebounds while shooting 45.3 percent from the field last year. There’s also an argument to be made that Saric’s scoring could be beneficial to the second unit as well.
The minutes for Derrick Rose and Josh Okogie are worth monitoring, but I believe the former will continue to see a huge role. Rose should actually become a primary scorer for this team and will have a big opportunity with Butler no longer in town. The rookie in Okogie could see his minutes take a hit, as he’s averaged 25.8 on the season. After playing 24 minutes or more in his first eight games, he’s seen 20 or fewer in three of the next four.
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