What Problems Does Rudy Gobert Solve and What Did We Learn From Game 1 of Summer League?

On today’s show, Dane is joined by Kyle Theige following the Minnesota Timberwolves’ first Summer League game in Las Vegas to give first impressions of the Summer League Wolves before furthering the analysis on some of the nuance behind the Rudy Gobert trade.

Dane and Kyle start by discussing Timberwolves’ 2022 second-round pick Josh Minott’s mini-breakout performance in the Wolves opening night at Las Vegas Summer League. Additionally, they dive into first impressions of Wendell Moore Jr. — the No. 26 overall pick in last month’s draft — and where he might fit in the Wolves’ pecking order based on how he was used in Friday night’s game.

From there, they focus on the strategy that went into the Gobert trade, specifically in regards to how the trade seems to have nullified a D’Angelo Russell problem (if there ever was one). Also, our first thoughts on how Chris Finch might handle rotating Gobert and Karl-Anthony Towns. Will the goal be to have one of the two on the floor for all 48 minutes, or will Finch prioritize maximizing the time those two share the floor?

Topics include:

— What would happen if Josh Minott and Anthony Edwards did an interview together?

— How might we compare the futures of Josh Minott and Wendell Moore Jr. in Minnesota based on their best-case and worst-case scenarios?

— What are some ancillary problems the Rudy Gobert trade solves that factor into the overall evaluation of the trade?

— Pros and cons of staggering KAT and Gobert’s minutes on the floor

— How does making the playoffs help inform roster decisions as seismic as the Gobert trade?

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