The Minnesota Timberwolves suffered a devastating loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder on Saturday night. In a game where OKC’s starters outplayed Minnesota’s, the Timberwolves' bench stepped up to keep the Wolves in the game. Naz Reid has been the standout force as a dominant sixth man all season for the top-seeded Wolves.

On the season, Reid is averaging a career-high 13.0 points in just 22.6 minutes per game. Shooting over 50% from the field and over 41% from 3-point land, the former undrafted free agent is breaking out in a big way.

Against Oklahoma City, the Wolves’ backup big man rattled off 18 points in 26 minutes behind another efficient night. In the five-point loss, Reid posted a +17 plus-minus to lead the Wolves and help put them in position to get a win before a late collapse. Here are three observations from Naz Reid’s play against the Thunder.

Catch-and-shoot threat

Naz Reid has become a versatile weapon on the offensive end, with the ability to push the ball up the floor in transition, knock down triples at a high rate and put the ball on the deck as a driver. His well-rounded scoring skill set makes him a unique scorer at his size.

The most important attribute Reid possesses is his willingness to simply catch and shoot. While it doesn’t sound like much, Minnesota’s offense badly needs more catch -and-shoot opportunities.

The 24-year-old capitalized on these catch-and-shoot attempts Saturday night on multiple occasions. His readiness to pull the trigger on kickouts, extra passes and as a spot-up threat outside of the pick-and-roll is important:

Reid currently ranks third on the team in spot-up possessions per game according to NBA.com's tracking data. With 4.8 spot-up possessions per game, Minnesota’s sixth man falls just behind Karl-Anthony Towns (5.0 spot-up possessions per game) and Jaden McDaniels (5.2 spot-up possessions per game) despite playing significantly fewer minutes than those two on average.

Postgame, Timberwolves head coach Chris Finch referenced the team passing up open shots from the perimeter. With Minnesota ranked just 19th in the NBA in team offensive rating, in part due to spacing, an increased willingness to shoot rather than force a drive could go a long way in boosting the Wolves’ offensive attack.

Naz Reid playcalls

Target Center erupts every time Minnesota’s sixth man checks into the game, and for good reason. Outside of just playing off the catch, Finch called up some plays for Naz Reid who, again, delivered on those opportunities:

This play works as a counter to a common set the Timberwolves run. Opening their offense with a lot of staggered pindowns, Minnesota goes to that look simply to set up the defense for something else. McDaniels takes the first pindown screen from Reid, but then rejects the second pindown screen from KAT. Off of this, Reid flips his hips and uses the Towns screen himself.

With Oklahoma City intentionally sagging off Jordan McLaughlin, the passing angle is wide open as Reid curls the screen. Thunder wing Kenrich Williams realizes he has to switch onto Reid, but at this point it’s too late. The bigger player with a step advantage finishes this play often, which Reid does on this occasion.

The second play uses a similar flare screen action to what they typically run out of Horns looks:

 

However, this time they operate through a Kyle Anderson post-up. As Reid feeds Anderson in the post, Nickeil Alexander-Walker fakes a slow cut through. He is setting up his defender to be well inside the arc. As Reid’s defender, Aaron Wiggins, stunts at Slow Mo in the post, NAW sets a well-angled flare screen, giving Naz a ton of room to catch and shoot.

Reid’s offensive versatility was on full display against the Thunder. With Minnesota finding ways to utilize his unique skills both on the perimeter and as a slasher, Reid continues to be a staple in the Wolves’ great play this season.

Defensive versatility is at an all-time high

On top of his offensive production, Naz Reid is quietly having the best defensive season of his career. The backup big is posting a career-best 107.8 defensive rating. As a former college center, Reid’s defensive assignment looks much different on a night-to-night basis now. Minnesota relies on his foot speed to guard quicker, smaller matchups while playing him next to one of Towns or Gobert. Postgame, Reid shared he was feeling “very comfortable” defending out in space against wings and guards.

His activity level as been absurd lately as well. Making plays all over the court, Reid blocked a game-high four shots against OKC on Saturday night. Over his last six games, Reid has posted 17 stocks. With nine steals and eight blocks in that stretch, not only is he defending well at the point of attack, he’s making plays in the passing lanes and as a shot blocker, adding to Minnesota’s already stifling defense.