Minnesota Sports Forum

With the addition of JK as our starting PF, I think we now have a pretty good idea of what the 9-man rotation will look like...and it looks quite promising to me. I think it will look something like this:

C: Rudy 32, Joan 16
PF: JK 32, Lyles 16
SF: Jaden 35, TJ 13
SG: Ant 38, Ayo 10
PG: Ball 32, Ayo 16

Assuming good health and performance, Donte will make it a 10-man rotation when he returns...with his minutes coming from Ant, Ayo and TJ. And we still have Clark and Bones as rotation-worthy options waiting in the wings. I really like what TC has built here.

FNG wrote: ↑Thu Aug 27, 2026 9:43 am With the addition of JK as our starting PF, I think we now have a pretty good idea of what the 9-man rotation will look like...and it looks quite promising to me. I think it will look something like this:

C: Rudy 32, Joan 16
PF: JK 32, Lyles 16
SF: Jaden 35, TJ 13
SG: Ant 38, Ayo 10
PG: Ball 32, Ayo 16

Assuming good health and performance, Donte will make it a 10-man rotation when he returns...with his minutes coming from Ant, Ayo and TJ. And we still have Clark and Bones as rotation-worthy options waiting in the wings. I really like what TC has built here.

That makes sense, and is probably pretty close to the mark. This move pretty clearly establishes JK as the "X factor" for the season.

It will be very very interesting to see what move/s happen to create the space for JK, but I personally am somewhat bummed that Green is most likely off the team. What I'm also seeing from your outline is that there isn't any true SF behind Jaden. We can put Shannon in that spot but to this point he hasn't faired well, and he's really a guard imo.

What I like about the Kuminga signing is that if done right him and Jaden should be pretty interchangeable and switchable on defense. If JK plays anywhere close to his abilities as a defender, this is gonna be a hell of a frontcourt.

If Shannon isn’t playing PG in the second unit as a creator on ball like he was an obvious threat in the playoffs then I will switch my Pro Finch stance. Trade the guy or let him be his best self on a second unit pleeeeeease. Ayo and him take turns as creator with Clark and Lyle’s in the corners crashing with Joan in the post.

FNG wrote: ↑Thu Aug 27, 2026 9:43 am With the addition of JK as our starting PF, I think we now have a pretty good idea of what the 9-man rotation will look like...and it looks quite promising to me. I think it will look something like this:

C: Rudy 32, Joan 16
PF: JK 32, Lyles 16
SF: Jaden 35, TJ 13
SG: Ant 38, Ayo 10
PG: Ball 32, Ayo 16

Assuming good health and performance, Donte will make it a 10-man rotation when he returns...with his minutes coming from Ant, Ayo and TJ. And we still have Clark and Bones as rotation-worthy options waiting in the wings. I really like what TC has built here.

Those would be career-high MPG for Kuminga, Jaden, and Ant. I don't see any of them playing that many minutes, with all of them playing 2-5 MPG less than you are forecasting here.

I also think Lyles might be a bit more situational now, meaning he may be the 9th man against bigger, slower teams and out of the rotation against faster, smaller teams.

Finally, I expect Clark to get another shot at being in the regular rotation, especially with Green most likely being let go.

BeenLurkin wrote: ↑Thu Aug 27, 2026 10:38 am If Shannon isn’t playing PG in the second unit as a creator on ball like he was an obvious threat in the playoffs then I will switch my Pro Finch stance. Trade the guy or let him be his best self on a second unit pleeeeeease. Ayo and him take turns as creator with Clark and Lyle’s in the corners crashing with Joan in the post.

Health is the biggest thing for TJ, he hasn't shown he can handle playing even small minutes and not get hurt. I think he works out too hard off the court, leading to overuse injuries. He will have the ball in his hands at times, and other times he will be off ball. Shannon is excellent against bad defenses like Denver, but he needs to show he can pass the ball as well if you put the ball in his hands whenever Ball is on the bench. He hasn't shown the ability to make the simple passes.

rapsuperstar31 wrote: ↑Thu Aug 27, 2026 11:17 am

BeenLurkin wrote: ↑Thu Aug 27, 2026 10:38 am If Shannon isn’t playing PG in the second unit as a creator on ball like he was an obvious threat in the playoffs then I will switch my Pro Finch stance. Trade the guy or let him be his best self on a second unit pleeeeeease. Ayo and him take turns as creator with Clark and Lyle’s in the corners crashing with Joan in the post.

Health is the biggest thing for TJ, he hasn't shown he can handle playing even small minutes and not get hurt. I think he works out too hard off the court, leading to overuse injuries. He will have the ball in his hands at times, and other times he will be off ball. Shannon is excellent against bad defenses like Denver, but he needs to show he can pass the ball as well if you put the ball in his hands whenever Ball is on the bench. He hasn't shown the ability to make the simple passes.

Legit, but what I’m saying is give him minutes doing what he shows the most promise doing or trade him if his value is high and we would only put him in the corner where he has shown no promise.

Obviously you can’t play guys who can’t stay healthy.

If he never gets minutes doing it in the regular season he won’t learn to make the right plays. He has had such a small amount of opportunity and shown A LOT of potential. Either give him more or trade him. It’s silly to just let him whither in the vine as a 9th guy playing out of position at forward.

BeenLurkin wrote: ↑Thu Aug 27, 2026 11:22 am

rapsuperstar31 wrote: ↑Thu Aug 27, 2026 11:17 am

BeenLurkin wrote: ↑Thu Aug 27, 2026 10:38 am If Shannon isn’t playing PG in the second unit as a creator on ball like he was an obvious threat in the playoffs then I will switch my Pro Finch stance. Trade the guy or let him be his best self on a second unit pleeeeeease. Ayo and him take turns as creator with Clark and Lyle’s in the corners crashing with Joan in the post.

Health is the biggest thing for TJ, he hasn't shown he can handle playing even small minutes and not get hurt. I think he works out too hard off the court, leading to overuse injuries. He will have the ball in his hands at times, and other times he will be off ball. Shannon is excellent against bad defenses like Denver, but he needs to show he can pass the ball as well if you put the ball in his hands whenever Ball is on the bench. He hasn't shown the ability to make the simple passes.

Legit, but what I’m saying is give him minutes doing what he shows the most promise doing or trade him if his value is high and we would only put him in the corner where he has shown no promise.

Obviously you can’t play guys who can’t stay healthy.

If he never gets minutes doing it in the regular season he won’t learn to make the right plays. He has had such a small amount of opportunity and shown A LOT of potential. Either give him more or trade him. It’s silly to just let him whither in the vine as a 9th guy playing out of position at forward.

As we know in the modern NBA, what position label you are given on the roster has very little to do with what role you play offensively. To point to an extreme example, Jokic is a Center and mostly guards Centers on defense, but functionally is a point guard on offense. Jaylen Clark is listed as a guard, but offensively he's less skilled than a lot of PFs in terms of his handles and shooting and sometimes guards opposing SFs.

I think Finch learned his lesson last season and knows that Shannon needs to be more on the ball in half court sets. That doesn't make him a point guard though.

Q-is-here wrote: ↑Thu Aug 27, 2026 11:40 am

BeenLurkin wrote: ↑Thu Aug 27, 2026 11:22 am

rapsuperstar31 wrote: ↑Thu Aug 27, 2026 11:17 am

Health is the biggest thing for TJ, he hasn't shown he can handle playing even small minutes and not get hurt. I think he works out too hard off the court, leading to overuse injuries. He will have the ball in his hands at times, and other times he will be off ball. Shannon is excellent against bad defenses like Denver, but he needs to show he can pass the ball as well if you put the ball in his hands whenever Ball is on the bench. He hasn't shown the ability to make the simple passes.

Legit, but what I’m saying is give him minutes doing what he shows the most promise doing or trade him if his value is high and we would only put him in the corner where he has shown no promise.

Obviously you can’t play guys who can’t stay healthy.

If he never gets minutes doing it in the regular season he won’t learn to make the right plays. He has had such a small amount of opportunity and shown A LOT of potential. Either give him more or trade him. It’s silly to just let him whither in the vine as a 9th guy playing out of position at forward.

As we know in the modern NBA, what position label you are given on the roster has very little to do with what role you play offensively. To point to an extreme example, Jokic is a Center and mostly guards Centers on defense, but functionally is a point guard on offense. Jaylen Clark is listed as a guard, but offensively he's less skilled than a lot of PFs in terms of his handles and shooting and sometimes guards opposing SFs.

I think Finch learned his lesson last season and knows that Shannon needs to be more on the ball in half court sets. That doesn't make him a point guard though.

I think we all mostly know this, but it's still a good point to bring up

To be more precise, the point I wanted to make is that TJ is best in the ball in his hands. Meaning he shouldn't play a lot next other handlers.
The current line up is setting up for him to being playing off ball more I think, which could be a problem unless he takes some major steps forward.

Like the signing, especially at that price. JK brings top level athleticism. Watching video on him the last couple of days he clearly plays like he's bigger than he is. Impressive strength with next level athleticism. He'll start in the front court, but think he will get a lot of run with the 2nd unit being the primary scorer.

Surely we won't have to waive and stretch Josh Green. He's a solid rotation player on an expiring contract. We also have a 2031 2nd RP we can attach if need be.

Josh Green and that pick to CHI for Jalen Smith would be perfect. Not sure if CHI would though.

Q-is-here wrote: ↑Thu Aug 27, 2026 10:51 am

FNG wrote: ↑Thu Aug 27, 2026 9:43 am With the addition of JK as our starting PF, I think we now have a pretty good idea of what the 9-man rotation will look like...and it looks quite promising to me. I think it will look something like this:

C: Rudy 32, Joan 16
PF: JK 32, Lyles 16
SF: Jaden 35, TJ 13
SG: Ant 38, Ayo 10
PG: Ball 32, Ayo 16

Assuming good health and performance, Donte will make it a 10-man rotation when he returns...with his minutes coming from Ant, Ayo and TJ. And we still have Clark and Bones as rotation-worthy options waiting in the wings. I really like what TC has built here.

Those would be career-high MPG for Kuminga, Jaden, and Ant. I don't see any of them playing that many minutes, with all of them playing 2-5 MPG less than you are forecasting here.

I also think Lyles might be a bit more situational now, meaning he may be the 9th man against bigger, slower teams and out of the rotation against faster, smaller teams.

Finally, I expect Clark to get another shot at being in the regular rotation, especially with Green most likely being let go.

Q, you're correct that JK has never played close to 32 minutes a game. But I would push back that he has never been the default starter on any team he has been on...he did start half the games for GS in 23-4 when he averaged 26.3 MPG, but his MPG were limited by all the games he came off the bench. Further, how often does a Finchy starter play less than 30 MPG...barring injury or foul trouble? I agree with you though that it might be beneficial to dial back Ant's minutes a little.

Then there's Clark. I kept a tally last season of how will the Wolves did when he played 14 minutes or more. It was impressive for a while, but I stopped keeping track when the data reversed on him. I so much want Clark to succeed and be a rotation player, but his shooting struggles and over-exuberance at times on defense seems to hold him back. I still see him getting only spot minutes when one of our top 10 is out.