Minnesota Sports Forum

I don't remember if it was Lloyd or Connelly or both that said Beringer's athletic ability was elite in all the ways possible and I was like OK that's a pretty big deal if that's true. Watching him play on highlights etc I wasn't sure if if that was the case. It's harder when you have less context of the players he is facing and all that. Plus to be honest I watch a lot of games faster than regular speed so that kinda messes with how I view players at times.

Well game one of summer league what they said looked pretty legit. It wasn't hard to figure it out. Lol I don't think it was a fluke but I'm definitely looking forward to seeing it more espcilaly since Holmes for Denver had a good first game and is supposed to be a nice enough prospect.

Star Tribune with a good article on Joan.

For the first time in his life, Timberwolves center Joan Beringer is learning how to speak English.
The 19-year-old rookie is taking online classes. He is even learning how to drive as he adjusts to life in America after growing up in France and playing professionally in Slovenia last year.
Beringer, selected with the 17th overall pick in June’s NBA draft, said he is getting better at understanding his coaches and his teammates. He is also able to conduct interviews in English.
But when he arrived with the Wolves this summer, there was one teammate who really tested his English proficiency — the fast-talking, slang-dropping Anthony Edwards.
“Ant — when he speaks English, honestly I don’t really understand everything, but I try,” Beringer said. “I get to understand him more and more … but words I never heard. His vocabulary is like a dictionary. I really learn everything. Every word he says is a new word for me.”
There’s a lot that’s new for Beringer as he adjusts to life in the NBA and America. That’s true for all international prospects, but especially in Beringer’s case, since he was a soccer player who converted to basketball in his teens.
Overcoming the language barrier has been a significant step in Beringer’s development during this critical time. A few months into the season, everyone has found a rhythm making Beringer feel included and making sure the instructions they’re giving him are getting through, with Beringer working every day to improve his English and get up to speed.
“When I came here this summer in June, it was really hard,” Beringer said. “But now I try to learn … but every day, I think I’m better. I really learn every day about English, but also basketball and even the life off the court. It’s great to be here.”

Plenty of help
Before every game, the Wolves locker room is open for the media to come in and talk to players, typically in an off-the-record fashion. Players are coming in and out of the room as they go through on-the-court warmups or off-court treatment and training.
Some eat pregame meals at their locker, and if you walk in during that time, you are likely to find the 6-11 Beringer and countryman Rudy Gobert, a 7-footer, sitting next to each other, sometimes eating the same kind of acai bowl.
They will speak in French, and it’s one of the few times Beringer can speak in his native language. The Wolves also have assistant coach Max Lefevre and assistant video coordinator Jonathan Mesmacque who can speak French.


Plenty of help
Before every game, the Wolves locker room is open for the media to come in and talk to players, typically in an off-the-record fashion. Players are coming in and out of the room as they go through on-the-court warmups or off-court treatment and training.
Some eat pregame meals at their locker, and if you walk in during that time, you are likely to find the 6-11 Beringer and countryman Rudy Gobert, a 7-footer, sitting next to each other, sometimes eating the same kind of acai bowl.
They will speak in French, and it’s one of the few times Beringer can speak in his native language. The Wolves also have assistant coach Max Lefevre and assistant video coordinator Jonathan Mesmacque who can speak French.
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“Every day I try to understand when everybody just speaks English, so when I’m with Rudy, Max or Jon, those moments I can a little bit rest my mind,” Beringer said.
Lefevre and Mesmacque play an important role in practices for Beringer, who primarily works with Wolves assistant Kevin Hanson. Hanson, who joined the staff in 2019, has worked under head coaches Ryan Saunders and Chris Finch, and has overseen the development of the team’s big men, like Gobert, Naz Reid and now Beringer.
Hanson doesn’t speak French, but he can relate to what Beringer is going through after playing professionally in Germany.
“Basically you got to slow it down and speak in terms that you know that they’re gonna understand,” Hanson said.
When doing individual work with Beringer, Hanson said he will sometimes “just see the glaze in his eyes,” and he will get Lefevre or Mesmacque to help translate a point.
“You can see when he’s not processing something, and you’re able to slow down,” Hanson said.

Beringer has played in nine games this season, mostly in garbage time, and is 8-for-11 from the floor. He will do his developing in practice, and with the G League Iowa Wolves at some points of the season.
The ultimate test for Beringer is during five-on-five drills with the team, when he has to absorb coaches yelling things out or communicating with teammates. These have tended be the most challenging situations.
“Generally want to keep the drill moving a little bit, and so sometimes it gets lost in there,” Hanson said. “We have coaches on the side that will pull him. But a lot of times, these reps are happening pretty quick, and there’s not enough time to make sure he’s got everything. It’s gonna come with time.”
Hanson said Beringer has an advantage of playing center, where the terminology isn’t complicated and Beringer can learn the responsibilities of the position easier than if he was a wing or a guard.
“Basically, [on defense] he’s gonna be a drop coverage or he’s gonna be in a switch,” Hanson said. “There’s not a whole lot on a day-to-day basis that changes for him as far as what he has to do. And he’s done a pretty good job of picking up the actual offense. He can hear what a play call is and pick that up.”
Learning to drive
Wolves General Manager Matt Lloyd said shortly after the team drafted Beringer, they were still communicating with him on WhatsApp instead of texting because Beringer had not gotten an American phone number. They eventually fixed that. The Wolves have been cognizant of making Beringer’s transition to the NBA as smooth as possible.

“It was our responsibility and remains our responsibility to make sure that he’s OK,” Lloyd said.
This includes helping Beringer get his driver’s license. This job has become one of the tasks for front office assistant Dell Demps, who has taken Beringer for driving lessons around the parking lots of Minneapolis.
Demps has a video on his phone of Beringer getting out of his car and celebrating after parking between a set of cones.
When Beringer was playing in Slovenia, he couldn’t get his license because the material he needed to study was in Slovenian. While Minnesota doesn’t have an instruction manual in French, he said, he’s getting along OK studying the English book.
“It’s not really hard, I have a good feeling with this, so just very happy and very excited to get my license, learn to drive,” Beringer said.
Although after a recent snowstorm over Thanksgiving weekend, Beringer said he and Demps didn’t get out to practice driving in the snow. Small steps.
Lloyd said the team has seen Beringer make great progress in both his on-court development and overcoming the language barrier.
“It does affect things,” Lloyd said. “But that impact and effect has become so marginalized, and it was the interpretation of these technical things he just didn’t have much awareness of or experience or exposure to.”
The term the Wolves often use with Beringer is a “ball of clay” because he has only played basketball for a handful of years, he has no bad habits to his game, and they can mold him accordingly.
“We have the luxury of helping him develop those habits himself,” Lloyd said. “He’s really a unique … character in the NBA because he doesn’t have bad habits. He hasn’t really been exposed to anything other than just hard work and incremental gains.”
Added Hanson: “Figuring out what he’s going to be is the most exciting thing, because we don’t know at this point.”
Just as there’s a lot for Beringer to learn about speaking English and life in the NBA, there’s still a lot for the Wolves to learn about one of their brightest prospects.
“The thing that has probably been most surprising is his ability to see something once and integrate into his game. He’s a very fast processor,” Lloyd said. “So as we watch him, we shouldn’t put limits on him. There should be no ceiling on Joan.”

Great article, Rap31. I hadn’t seen this. Thanks for posting. Hard to know what Joan’s timetable is but it sounds like he’s a very quick learner. Just a reminder that there’s another, and I think more exciting, version of the Wolves just around the corner built around Ant, Jaden and Naz in their prime with guys like Beringer, Rocco, Clark, Shannon, and Rob (maybe Miller) around them. We need most of these recent picks to pan out given our lack of draft picks.

Saw a report that Joan is going down to Iowa soon with Ricco joining the big team for a couple weeks.

DNatagal wrote: ↑Sun Dec 07, 2025 11:06 am Saw a report that Joan is going down to Iowa soon with Ricco joining the big team for a couple weeks.

Yeah, Joan needs to get some playing time under his belt, so that makes sense.

Freeman, after being up for a couple weeks, went back down and started at C last night. I liked him because his super power seemed to be rebounding. But I haven't seen it on display -- his 2-way may be short-lived. Rocco came off the bench, and while he was able to score, he was a -13 in 13 minutes with 4 fouls and 3 turnovers. Ouch!

When Joan goes down he damn well better be starting. The Iowa Wolves play again today at 3pm. I might check that out after the Vikings game...

Joan has been sent to Iowa and will play this Friday. I see this as part of his development process, and a necessary prelude to him getting spot rotational minutes with the big club. Looks like I'll have a double-header to watch on Friday!