With the key pieces the Minnesota Timberwolves added made over the summer, it has made head coach Tom Thibodeau decide to relegate Gorgui Dieng to the bench, in favor of Taj Gibson at the power forward spot. Despite playing and starting all 82 games for them last season, the 27-year-old Senegalese international now has a sixth man role and is receiving less playing time.
However, instead of seeing it as a demotion, Dieng instead remains positive and only has his team’s best interest in mind. Although he admitted, via Jerry Zgoda of the Star Tribune, that it is a difficult adjustment for him, he thinks he’s playing well every time he’s put in. He then added that he still works hard to be in good shape, and ready to give his best whenever he’s needed by the Wolves.
“It's not easy,” Dieng said. “I thought when I got on the bench I probably was going to play more. It's not something I can control, but it's not easy. Basically when you start getting a rhythm, that's when you're going to come out. With the minutes I've been playing, I think I'm playing OK. It's tough to do a lot of things in 12 minutes … I don't know, man. I'm sure everyone wants to play.”
“I'm not trying to be here stealing or nothing,” Dieng said. “I don't want to have the mentality, `OK, I got paid.' I'm here for a reason. I'm here to play well. I'm here to play to win. We have a better team this year. That's the most important thing right now. So I'm coming in here every day, working. If I don't play a lot of minutes, I get in early, work on my conditioning, work on my game, try and stay ready.”
Through eight games so far, Dieng’s minutes are down to 15.1 this season, compared to 32.4 last year. His numbers across the board have also dipped, as he is only averaging 6.3 points, 4.3 rebounds and 1.0 assists. He is not complaining though, for he knows they have a stacked lineup now, and are in a good spot to make a lot of noise in West.
Dieng’s comments definitely say a lot about him being a professional. While there may be others that will react differently when moved to the bench, the Louisville product takes it on as a challenge, and only has winning on his mind. If he keeps the same mindset, and continues to play well as the season progresses, the Timberwolves may just be able to live up to expectations, and emerge as a contender for the title in the tough Western Conference.
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