Canis Pulsus - Vol. 25 - Semester 2 Report Card Results

Just like your 2022-2023 Minnesota Timberwolves team, it appears the fan base is also quite tired. It has been a slog of a year and though the playoff push continues, the regular season finally came to a close after the conclusion of the play-in tournament last Friday. We had just 26 voters in our final report card edition of Canis Pulsus, but we made it.

I’m proud of you.

(Note: Canis Pulsus Vol. 25 data was collected through 4/17 prior to the game 1 playoff loss)

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Rudy Gobert

C+

Previous grade: B

Big Rudy finished his first season in Minnesota having played 70 of 82 games, third-best on the team. Unfortunately, he regressed in almost every meaningful statistic on the court and has been an awkward fit chemistry wise. Everything culminated in him punching his own teammate in a must-win game 82 to secure a top eight seed. The experiment has been a failure... so far.

Full voting results:

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Karl-Anthony Towns

B+

Previous grade: Incomplete

In KAT’s eighth season in the NBA, he played a career-low 29 games due to a grade three calf strain. It was a tough sledding for the franchise cornerstone as he was faced with the biggest challenge of adapting his role to this new iteration of the Wolves. The result was a downtick in his box score numbers, though he did set a new career-high in assists for the season (4.8). Towns wasted no time getting back into action though, single-handedly winning a number of crucial games to end the season. Despite that, he may now have to endure (another) offseason of trade rumors. KAT deserves better than that.

Full voting results:

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Mike Conley Jr.

A-

Previous grade: B+

There were plenty of concerns about where the secondary/tertiary scoring and shooting threat was going to come from with D’Angelo Russell out of the picture. Well, Minnesota Mike solves. The 35-year-old vet shot a career-best 42% from perimeter and helped steady the ship with an assist-to-turnover ratio that would make Tyus Jones proud. He has quickly ascended up the ranks of “Best Timberwolves Point Guards” and hopefully we’ll get to see more of him moving forward.

Full voting results:

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Anthony Edwards

A-

Previous grade: A

Ant’s junior season resulted in a well-deserved All-Star bid. He was asked to shoulder an unfairly large burden of pushing the Timberwolves car all the way to the postseason, navigating KAT’s injury while trying to adapt to an almost completely new supporting cast. He sported a career-high USG% of 29.9 which ranked 17th in the league. That responsibility came at a cost, as he suffered a rough ankle sprain and a shoulder injury that has worn on him as the Wolves limp into the postseason. All that said, it was still a successful third-year for Ant.

Full voting results:

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Kyle Anderson

A-

Previous grade: A

There is a legitimate case for Slow Mo being the best free agency acquisition in Minnesota Timberwolves history. The Canis faithful had long been privy to his brilliance (Shoutout “Ground” Jordan Adams) and their excitement proved to be warranted. Kyle ranked first in VORP (2.2) and second in BPM (2.5) for the Wolves, with a matching eye test to boot. He has been the proverbial “adult in the room” to guide Minnesota through a choppy season. There have been a few clutch time snafus, but that shouldn’t stop him from getting his number raised to the Target Center rafters.

Full voting results:

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Taurean Prince

B

Previous grade: B+

Speaking of adults in the room, TP had a successful second year in Minnesota. He has often been cited as one of the most influential locker room voices which has been invaluable in a season of experimentation. Prince missed a handful of games due to a shoulder injury and has been a bit streaky with his shooting stroke, but has provided solid 3&D value on the court. His 38.1% mark from beyond the arc will be important moving forward.

Full voting results:

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Nickeil Alexander-Walker

B+

Previous grade: Incomplete

NAW, much like new additions Conley and Anderson, has quickly endeared himself with the Wolves faithful. His energy and hustle on the defensive end has been a welcome sight, allowing fans to reminisce back to the days of watching Pat Bev and Vando “fly around with purpose.” That plus timely offensive contributions makes Nickeil an intriguing player for the Wolves front office to consider moving forward.

Full voting results:

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Jaden McDaniels

B

Previous grade: A-

Young Slimmy Seatbelt may have punched his way down a grade with his lack of emotional control in game 82. What hurts the most isn’t Jaden’s hand, but the fact that he was just blossoming into a consistent offensive weapon (15.5 ppg on 51.6% FG% in his final month). Obviously his defensive prowess and All-NBA Defensive Team steam was starting to pick up, but it’s an extremely rough way to end an otherwise promising season.

Full voting results:

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Jordan McLaughlin

C

Previous grade: B

Among the tough storylines of the season has been JMac’s devolution as a player. He suffered a similar calf injury to KAT which derailed the momentum he carried over from the 2021-2022 postseason. Upon his return, he has seemingly lost the powers that carried him thus far in his young career. McLaughlin’s decision-making has soured and he remains a liability as a shooter. It saddens me to say this, but his days in a Timberwolves uniform may be numbered.

Full voting results:

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Jaylen Nowell

C-

Previous grade: C

It felt as though the moment was too big for Nowell this season. Coach Finch had given him the opportunity to lock up the bench gunner role and after a hot start, he fell into a slump. A slump that he still hasn’t truly gotten out of. Add a nagging knee injury to his lack of confidence and it feels like Jaylen may have missed the train to lock up a sizeable offseason deal. On the plus side, it’s entirely possible he settles into a Gupta Special this summer.

Full voting results:

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Naz Reid

B+

Previous grade: B+

On the flip side, the continued ascension of Naz Reid was one of the better developments this season. He’s appeared frequently on national media and made the most of his opportunity with KAT’s injury absence. He hit several career-highs in basic box score statistics this season and had the big moments in big games that have put him in the crosshairs of thirsty front offices around the league. In a similar fate to Jaden, his season came to a premature end due to injury, but Wolves fans will need to pray to Tim Connelly that he can retain Naz on a reasonable deal.

Full voting results:

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Nathan Knight

C-

Previous grade: C+

The Dark Knight had some spot opportunities this season, but garnered more and more DNP-CDs in the final quarter of the season. I wish there was more to say here, but he really hasn’t shown much to instill confidence that he has a future in Minnesota. He was a personal favorite of mine, but he hasn’t shown or really gotten the opportunity to be more than a G-League gatekeeper. Wishing for his success no matter where he ends up.

Full voting results:

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Austin Rivers

C-

Previous grade: B-

AR surprised many of us with his sharpshooting and defensive tenacity in the first half of the season. Was he going to be a capable discount Pat Bev rotation player? He had some locker room pull as a veteran, but the aforementioned perimeter shooting fell off a cliff. Rivers went from 24/61 (39.4%) in the first two months of the season, to 34/111 (30.1%) in the final three. It was fun while it lasted though.

Full voting results:

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Wendell Moore Jr.

Incomplete

Previous grade: Incomplete

Before the All-Star break, the 26th pick in the 2022 NBA draft played in 24 games. After the break, it has dropped down to just 5. The small sample size was even further muddied by the fact that the team was in a state of transition, not allowing much time for youth development. Wendell never really got a chance to strut his stuff this year, but he still had a decent G-League campaign averaging 18.8 points, 4.5 rebounds, 4.8 assists, and 1.3 stocks on .451/.370/.793 shooting splits in 13 games. Hopefully he continues evolving as a player heading into next season.

Full voting results:

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Josh Minott

Incomplete

Previous grade: Incomplete

Our favorite lawnmower had some bright spots this season. Minott’s high point was a double-double versus the Utah Jazz the day of the D’Lo trade, but hasn’t gotten much opportunity since then. However, he still oozes potential at just 20 years of age. He dominated the G-League in his 20 games, putting up averages of 19.1 points, 8.0 rebounds, 2.4 assists, and 2.4 (!) stocks. What a steal it was to get him on a Gupta Special!

Full voting results:

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Luka Garza

B

Previous grade: B

Gar-zilla didn’t get much burn to end the season because of his two-way contract limitations. There were rumors that the Wolves front office was ready to sign Luka to a Gupta Special before the end of the season, but things never came to fruition. The G-League MVP candidate still dominated that league once again. Will the Wolves be able to retain him this offseason, or will he seek warmer waters elsewhere with less congested front courts?

Full voting results:

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Coaching staff

B

Previous grade: B

Finchy & Co. have earned mixed reviews from Wolves fans. At the end of the day, he became the second winningest coach in franchise history in just his second and a half season with the organization. He was dealt a rough hand this season, but still managed to guide the Wolves into the postseason for the second straight time; A drought that dated back to the KG era. There is certainly still plenty of juice to squeeze out of this team, but hopefully he will be at the helm moving forward. He did just sign a multiyear extension a year ago.

Full voting results:

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Front office

C+

Previous grade: C+

If we’re using rose-colored glasses, the Gobert trade can currently be described as “Not great.” The fit on the court has been awkward with everyone healthy. The fit in the locker room appears to be opposite to the ‘21-’22 Wolves Back crew. Connelly deserves much, if not all, the blame for mortgaging the future for this. If you’re able to stick with him past that, he drafted Walker Kessler (Whoops), Wendell Moore (Eh), and Josh Minott (Yay). He also signed Kyle Anderson. He snagged Luka Garza on a two-way contract. He moved D’Lo for Mike Conley, Nickeil-Alexander-Walker, and multiple 2nds. It’s going to take a lot more of these types of moves to right the ship after the Gobert fiasco, but this summer could be huge as decisions on a number of players will need to be made.

Full voting results:

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Ownership

C

Previous grade: C

Lore and Rodriguez made good on their second payment to purchase majority stake of the Timberwolves and Lynx last month. That’s a good sign! We are now just about 11 months away from Glen Taylor no longer steering the ships. What a time to be alive.

Full voting results:

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What do you hope the Timberwolves realistically accomplish during the postseason?

Win 2-3 games (30%)

Previous grade: Earn a top 6 seed (49%)

Winning a few games against the Nuggets seems relatively achievable. Yes, even after the game one smackdown. Will they end up advancing to the second round, or better yet to the finals? You never know with this team. That said, we can all agree that the 9% of voters who voted “Don’t punch anything” are 100% correct.

Full voting results:

With the regular season over, my feelings on the direction of the Timberwolves are...

Photo by Barry Gossage/NBAE via Getty Images

Slightly optimistic (42%)

Previous grade: Slightly optimistic (70%)

Things sure felt optimistic after steamrolling the Oklahoma City Thunder in the final play-in game. If you look at the graph below, high-time for optimism ended just after the start of the regular season. Things seemed to hit an all-time low after the KAT injury and have bounced back around the All-Star Break/trade deadline. The rollercoaster of emotions continue moving forward.

Full voting results:

Link to the full results: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1R8jyWXBae3GkxcqcGZPsF2jh6fG-2i21ngWPNJBcSIQ/edit?usp=sharing

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The Timberwolves finish the regular season with a 2.75 GPA, so we didn’t make the honor roll. But surprisingly, no one failed! If you look back to the first year of Canis Pulsus, the ‘19-’20 Wolves finished with a 2.62 GPA. The ‘20-’21 Wolves achieved a 3.35. So this season nestles in right in the middle of them, which feels just about right for a swinging pendulum of a year.