The Minnesota Timberwolves had a very moody locker room last season, and it was because of one man, according to team insider Jon Krawczynski.
Talking to the Basketball Illumnati podcast, Krawczynski of The Athletic revealed that it was Julius Randle who was the source of the team’s often moody attitude last season.
This comes after Timberwolves head coach Chris Finch remarked that the team has “traded moodiness for giddiness” following the offseason acquisition of star guard LaMelo Ball.
“Everyone immediately looks at Julius Randle and he is certainly one of the culprits,” Krawczynski said. “They could be Eeyore every once in a while… Julius certainly was a part of that when his name got brought up in the Giannis Antetokounmpo trade talks. He didn’t really like that at all and he wears his heart on his sleeve, so you could see that.”
“Everyone immediately looks at Julius Randle and he is certainly one of the culprits… They could be Eeyore every once in a while… Julius certainly was a part of
It Is Not Just Julius Randle
However, he noted that there could also be a lot of moodiness coming out of other players such as Naz Reid, who was also traded in the offseason.
“But Naz Reid could get moody, Jaden McDaniels could get moody,” he said. “Like, there’s a lot of quiet, brooding personalities that were in the locker room last year. You bring LaMelo Ball in here and he’s much more upbeat and energetic, so there’s definitely been a vibe shift.”
Finch admitted that the Timberwolves had self-identified as a “moody” team over the past couple of seasons, an inconsistency and emotional fluctuation that he believes held the team back in critical moments.
Initially, the Timberwolves agreed to a deal sending Julius Randle and a first-round pick to the Brooklyn Nets as a salary dump to clear cap space to re-sign Ayo Dosunmu. However, the transaction ballooned into a blockbuster four-team trade that also involved the Charlotte Hornets and the Chicago Bulls.
To finalize the sweeping deal and acquire All-Star guard LaMelo Ball and Josh Green from Charlotte, Minnesota also surrendered reigning Sixth Man of the Year Naz Reid, routing him to the Charlotte Hornets.
Timberwolves Got More Giddy In Trading Julius Randle And Naz Reid
The blockbuster deal got the Timberwolves not just another superstar in LaMelo Ball. It also gave them a new sense of giddiness in the locker room.
“We referred to ourselves as a moody team in the last couple of years at times, and it’s probably gotten in our way,” Finch said. “We’ve traded moodiness for giddiness, so we’ve got to kind of get back to some sort of equilibrium.”
“(LaMelo Ball) is always in a great mood,” Finch said. “Always comes in smiling. He and Anthony have a shared quality: they’re really hard to stay mad at. And they do some things that you want to get mad at. And they have a reflective joy.”
The team also signed free agent Jonathan Kuminga in the offseason to fill the power forward position.
The moves are set to strengthen the team’s chances for a championship in the upcoming season.
The Timberwolves’ ceiling rests on Ball’s health and ability to unlock a more efficient level of off-ball scoring for Edwards, as anything short of a deep playoff run would feel like a missed opportunity following such an aggressive gamble.
Timberwolves Insider Reveals Real Source Of Locker Room Moodiness Last Season