Ex-Husky Nowell Flourishes Once More from a Coaching Change

Once the Minnesota Timberwolves changed coaches — from Ryan Saunders to Toronto Raptors assistant Chris Finch — Jaylen Nowell's NBA career went in a different direction, too.

All good.

Nowell easily made the transition once the Timberwolves' replacement leadership was installed, watching his minutes immediately climb from 13.2 per game for the old guy to 23.8 under Finch.

At midweek, the former University of Washington guard and the 2019 Pac-12 Player of the Year broke loose for a pro basketball-best 28 points against the New Orleans Pelicans, converting 11 of 13 field-goal attempts, including 6 of 7 from 3-point range, in a 135-105 victory.

Asked why this period of transition has gone so well for him, Nowell had a ready answer.

It was nothing new. He'd been through something similar in 2017 — when the UW fired the guy who recruited him, Lorenzo Romar, and brought in his successor, Mike Hopkins, the former Syracuse assistant.

"I'm kind of used to it," Nowell told Hoops Rumors of Romar's ouster. "I wasn't playing there, but it was a coaching change nonetheless. It was the year before I came in, so I was affected by it. I've dealt with it before."

Nowell introduced himself and played two years for Hopkins, helping the newcomer become Pac-12 Coach of the Year in consecutive seasons.

Following his sophomore season, in which he averaged 16.2 points, 3.1 rebounds and 5.2 assists per game for a 29-7 team, Nowell felt he was ready for the NBA.

As a second-round draft pick, he had to pay some basketball dues as a rookie, shuttling between the G-League and the Timberwolves.

He played in just 15 NBA games and averaged 3.8 ppg.

This season, Nowell made the opening-day roster and patiently waited for his opportunity to play.

He still can't believe he plays alongside Minnesota's Ricky Rubio, Ed Davis, Karl-Anthony Downs and especially All-Star point guard D'Angelo Russell.

"I used to watch all these guys before I was even in the league," Nowell said. "To call them my teammates, that's already an accomplishment in itself. Being able to actually be around them, and talk to them and see how they work, and see how they approach the game, that's been great for me."

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