With a ferocious start to the season, the Minnesota Timberwolves have had plenty of positive surprises coming into the season. Their team defense has been unmatched so far to begin the season. Anthony Edwards is on pace for a career year. Rudy Gobert has returned to his Defensive Player of the Year form. With plenty to choose from, the Timberwolves’ most pleasant surprise early in the 2023-24 NBA season is the collective performance of their starting lineup.
Questions on Timberwolves' fit
Before we discuss why the starting lineup has been a pleasant surprise, it is important to note that there were plenty of questions about the team heading to the season.
The Timberwolves were met with heavy skepticism as soon as they made the league-altering trade for Rudy Gobert. The Frenchman's first season with the Wolves didn't help cool the skepticisms, as Minnesota limped into the playoffs and star big Karl-Anthony Towns missed most of the season with a calf strain. The common questions regarding how the two bigs would work together were not answered due to injuries and inconsistencies when they were healthy.
Despite a lot of individual talent, Minnesota came into the 2023-24 season with an Over/Under Win Total of 44.5 Wins. Clearly people were still pessimistic about how Minnesota would piece together wins with the players on roster. With the Timberwolves' long-term cap table concerns, finding success this season was a necessity before making big decisions about the franchise’s long-term future.
Timberwolves' most pleasant surprise: Finding success with starting lineup
Flash forward to today and there is a growing optimism about the Wolves’ collection of talent. After a blazing 7-2 start to the season, the Timberwolves are a force to be reckoned with in the Western Conference. A massive amount of this early success comes from the lineup, specifically the top eight players in their rotation and how they are playing together.
Lineup data is a great way to see which players are working well together on the court. As of Tuesday, November 14, the Wolves have multiple great lineup combinations. Here are some intriguing three player lineup combinations that have been huge positives for the Wolves so far this year:
Kyle Anderson – Karl-Anthony Towns – Rudy Gobert (+18.3 points per 100 possessions)
This lineup data is my favorite. This trio’s size and unique individual skill sets have been a beautiful combination in surprising fashion. Anderson and Towns constantly connect with Gobert on back-side lobs off of dribble penetration on big-to-big passes.
Mike Conley – Anthony Edwards – Rudy Gobert (+16.9 points per 100 possessions)
Last season, Tim Connelly and the Wolves traded for Mike Conley at the trade deadline in a three-team deal with the Los Angeles Lakers and Utah Jazz. Since arriving, Conley has been a great presence not only for the team, but specifically for Gobert and Edwards. As a veteran leader, he works well in stabilizing the Wolves' offense and his fit with Ant is seamless, both on and off the ball.
Conley's arrival has also made Gobert much more comfortable due to their history together in Utah.
Anthony Edwards – Kyle Anderson – Karl-Anthony Towns (+28.5 points per 100 possessions)
A total of +28.5 points per 100 possessions is insanely good. This lineup is a conventional collection as Anderson fills the typical power forward role next to Towns at center. Edwards and Towns provide the scoring punch and Anderson does a lot of the little things to fill in the gaps.
Anthony Edwards – Kyle Anderson – Rudy Gobert (+27.9 points per 100 possessions)
During the 2022-23 season, Gobert and Edwards were only a +1.0 per 100 possessions. This season, they are an outstanding +16.2 per 100 possessions. This change should be considered the biggest headline of the Wolves season. Anderson again complements both stars smoothly and the lineup data shows how positively he’s impacted the team this year.
Nickeil Alexander-Walker – Anthony Edwards – Naz Reid (+21.9 points per 100 possessions)
Questions about the depth should be quieted a bit. So far, we've seen Anderson, Reid and Nickeil Alexander-Walker all positively impact the Wolves next to the starters. The lineup with NAW, Naz and Ant gives Minnesota shot-making, post-up play, playmaking without sacrificing on the defensive end of the floor.
Anthony Edwards – Karl-Anthony Towns – Rudy Gobert (+7.6 points per 100 possessions)
This is the trio everyone panicked about as soon as the Gobert trade became official. Last year, this trio was only a +2.2 points per 100 possessions. While they weren’t bad, it’s fair to say that your three best players have to be better together. This season, they have been much better: +7.6 points per 100 possessions is a solid mark. Towns' flexibility offensively and improvement on defense is a massive reason why the three players are working together.
These specific three player lineup combos are great examples of how Minnesota has been so good start the season. Their flexibility and optionality in lineup choices has been a huge strength for the Wolves and head coach Chris Finch to start the year.
Timberwolves' starting lineup strength
The Wolves' typical starting lineup of Conley, Edwards, Jaden McDaniels, Towns and Gobert has also been quite good this season. This lineup is +9.3 per 100 possessions. For a team with reliable depth, winning the starting and closing minutes of the game has been a huge difference from last year for Minnesota.
Essentially every lineup with Anthony Edwards has been excellent this season. Not only does this show his growth into true superstar territory, it shows the Wolves have placed a great collection of pieces around him. It’s hard to win in the NBA. Minnesota has done so convincingly to start the season. With reliable lineups to go to, Chris Finch's ability to go to specific lineups in key moments will be massive for Minnesota winning a large number of games this season. Their lineup’s dominance to start the season is their most pleasant surprise to start the 2023-24 season.
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