Canis Pulsus

Canis Pulsus - Vol. XIII Results

The Canis Hoopus collective have submitted their first report cards of the season.

By Leo Sun@Y0Leo Dec 7, 2021, 11:35am CST

It appears the Minnesota Timberwolves and my middle school track & field career have something in common: They’re fast starters! Well, after a tumultuous start, it appears our Wolves have finally gotten their act together and are now out ahead in this first quarter of the season.

Let’s dive into our 1st quarter progress reports!

(Note: Canis Pulsus Vol. XIII data was collected by 12/2)

Karl-Anthony Towns

Minnesota Timberwolves v Philadelphia 76ers

B+

‘20-’21 final grade: A-

Although KAT is still averaging 24/9/3 on .508/.442/.817 shooting splits, most of those numbers are actually below average for the two-time all-star. His offensive production remains one of the few things that have been consistent for the Wolves offense this year and without it, they would be in a world of hurt. However, it feels like his bemoaning of the “zebras” feels like it’s at an all-time high. Towns still has plenty of room to improve this season.

Full voting results:

D’Angelo Russell

B+

‘20-’21 final grade: B-

One of the most talked about storylines for Minnesota this year is their defensive intensity. Although Pat Bev’s arrival as a culture changer has certainly affected that, D’Lo defensive buy-in also appears higher than ever. Russell is averaging a career best blocks per game (0.8) and defensive rating per 100 possessions (109), and the eye-test definitely lines up with that. His shooting is at an anomalous career worst both from the field and perimeter, but once that turns around, D’Lo should find himself in the A range.

Full voting results:

Taurean Prince

C

‘20-’21 final grade: N/A

It’s always going to be tough to win over the crowd if you’re the person that Ricky Rubio was traded for (See: JFT). That said, it also doesn’t help if you’re shooting far below your career averages from the field. Prince is shooting a frigid 27.6% from beyond and has looked slow on defense, but he has recently taken some steps in the right direction to redeem his grade. Exhibit A: Game-winning basket vs the 76ers.

Full voting results:

Malik Beasley

Sacramento Kings v Minnesota Timberwolves

C+

‘20-’21 final grade: B

It’s been quite a long road back to the court for Malik. After his off the court issues kept him out for 12 games, he suffered an injury that cost him the final 22 games of last season. That’s a long time for someone to be off the court. Beas has had a couple nights where his hot shooting has resurfaced and those games seem to occur more and more frequently, but we’ll need to see a lot more consistency from him moving forward.

Full voting results:

Anthony Edwards

A-

‘20-’21 final grade: A+

Young Ant has already made strides in his sophomore campaign. He’s become more efficient scoring from the field, increased his 3-point effectiveness, improved defensively according to nearly any metric, and has begun contributing consistently in other areas on the court. For example, Ant is averaging 6.3 rebounds per game, up from 4.7 his rookie season. Just because I know John Meyer’s dad wants to know, Andrew Wiggins’ career-high in a season is 5.2 rebounds per game. The only real question about Ant is what other areas he’ll continue to grow as the season continues.

Full voting results:

Patrick Beverley

A

‘20-’21 final grade: N/A

Pat Bev has been a solid consolation prize as a replacement veteran point guard after the front office traded Ricky Rubio this offseason. Mr. 94 Feet (SMUT) has been the cliché “culture changer” for the Wolves whether he’s been on the floor or off the floor. He’s one of two players who received only A or B grades for this progress report and I don’t expect that to change moving forward.

Full voting results:

Jarred Vanderbilt

Memphis Grizzlies v Minnesota Timberwolves

A

‘20-’21 final grade: B+

The highest graded player in this edition is none other than Vando. V8. The Vandolorian. Many of us, myself included, were perplexed when the front office chased Vanderbilt so hard once free agency opened up. Well, aren’t we glad that we locked him up on a 3-year $13.8 million deal? Vando is currently 9th in the NBA in offensive rebounds per game (4th per 36 mins), but perhaps more importantly, he’s Ant’s favorite player on the team.

Full voting results:

Josh Okogie

Houston Rockets v Minnesota Timberwolves

C+

‘20-’21 final grade: B-

While players who were drafted on either side of JO already received contract extensions (Kevin Huerter and Grayson Allen), Okogie didn’t find himself with one. I had hoped that he would prove his worth by having a career-year, but instead JO is having a career-worst year. Even by his low standards, Nonstop is shooting a dismal 18.8% from deep. He still holds value as an effective defender and perhaps his game-sealing block has earned him some passing grades, but we’re going to need more from the 4th year swingman.

Full voting results:

Jake Layman

Incomplete

‘20-’21 final grade: C

A quarter of the way into the season and Jake has played a grand total of 34 minutes. It’s the final year of his current contract and it’s possible we have seen the last of the Layman Era in Minnesota. Salute.

Full voting results:

Leandro Bolmaro

C+

‘20-’21 final grade: N/A

The ~~2nd most~~ most important Leo (He actually prefers “Lea” to “Leo”) to the Timberwolves has had quite the rookie season thus far. He started with the Iowa Wolves, flourishing in 4 games by averaging 17 points, 6.2 rebounds, 6.2 assists, 1.2 steals, 0.8 blocks, on .400/.387/1.00 splits. After a handful of garbage time minutes in the big league, Coach Finch knew he couldn’t keep such a plus player on the bench forever. Bolmaro’s had some mixed performances during his meaningful minutes, but his utility as a strong point-of-attack defender and passer will likely prove to be important later this season.

Full voting results:

Jaden McDaniels

New Orleans Pelicans v Minnesota Timberwolves