Analytics have never been more popular in sports and the NBA is one of the many leagues around the world whose teams are utilizing the data to gain a competitive advantage against the opponent. The Minnesota Timberwolves are one of those teams and head coach Chris Finch, appearing on The Old Man & The Three podcast, said that while analytics can help a team win, knowing how to use them is what makes a team great.

“These analytics, they’re guides. They’re not gods,” Finch said. “We’re not doing this stuff just because the numbers say it. We have to figure out what’s best for our team.”

The Timberwolves have an interesting dynamic to their team with big men Rudy Gobert and Karl Anthony-Towns playing with each other frequently. The two big men get clogged together on the court at times, something that Finch wants to fix for the upcoming season.

Knowing what analytics to look at is one thing, but figuring out how to coach the roster on it and implement that data into the game plan makes the difference.

Finch said that he wants the Timberwolves to shoot more threes and get better on the offensive glass. Minnesota doesn’t necessarily need analytics to know that, but the data further shows the need for the Timberwolves to get better in those areas.

Every team has a different approach to how they utilize analytics and some use it much more than others. Chris Finch's Timberwolves seem to know what they need to do to improve next season, with a little help from crunching the numbers.