What the Timberwolves can glean from the NBA GM survey
Results of the annual NBA GM Survey were released Tuesday and it gives a pretty good idea of what the league's top executives think of the Minnesota Timberwolves. The short answer: good, but how good?
GMs who participated picked the Wolves and Mavericks to finish tied sixth in the Western Conference. The Clippers are the favorite to finish atop the West, followed by the Warriors, Suns, Nuggets and Grizzlies.
The underlying theme from the survey is that GMs favor players and teams with a proven track record. Minnesota, with the exception of Rudy Gobert on defense, doesn't yet fit that criteria.
Why are GMs so high on the Clippers? Because Kawhi Leonard and Paul George are back and healthy. They've both been there and done that.
Why do the Nuggets have so much respect? Because they have the two-time reigning MVP Nikola Jokic and they're getting Jamal Murray and Michael Porter Jr. back from injury. Been there, done that.
Nobody questions the Warriors. They're the champs and they might be even better with a full year of Klay Thompson and the ascension of James Wiseman, whom they got in the D'Angelo Russell trade with the Wolves.
Memphis, even without Jaren Jackson Jr. (recovering from foot surgery), still has trust in been-there-done-that guys Ja Morant, Dillon Brooks, Desmond Bane and Brandon Clarke. Those four were cornerstones on the team that won 56 games last season.
Dallas has Luka Doncic, who shoved it down the Suns' throats in the playoffs to lead the Mavericks to the conference finals.
The Suns won 64 games and they return almost the entire roster. They were a massive failure as the No. 1 seed in the playoffs, but they also are less than two years removed from going to the NBA Finals. Been there, done that.
Minnesota came close but failed against the Grizzlies in the playoffs. How they apply what they learned in that series will be key for them this season. Until they do apply the lessons learned too many questions remain to put them higher in the minds of NBA execs.
- Will Karl-Anthony Towns show up in big playoff games?
- How big of a leap will Anthony Edwards make in Year 3?
- How will D'Angelo Russell respond after getting benched in the playoffs?
- Can Jaden McDaniels live up to the offseason hype?
- Will Rudy Gobert really make Russell better?
- Can Towns guard power forwards and stay out of foul trouble?
- Will the illness that put Towns in the hospital affect him?
Those are just some of the questions that need answers. Answers that everyone will get over the next 7-9 months.
Notable Wolves stuff from the survey
The Wolves got the second most votes for best offseason moves and they garnered 10% of the vote for the team GMs think will be most improved. The Clippers won the most improved category with 41% of the vote, followed by Cleveland and New Orleans at 17% each.
Anthony Edwards tied Detroit's Cade Cunningham with 17% of the vote for second place in the breakout player category. Cleveland's Evan Mobley topped the category with 21% of the vote.
Edwards came in third behind Ja Morant and Giannis Antetokounmpo as the most athletic players in the NBA.
Rudy Gobert received 83% of the vote as the best interior defender in the NBA and 10% (third place) for the best overall defensive player. Giannis Antetokounmpo and Draymond Green finished 1-2 in the best defensive player vote.
Which one player acquisition will make the biggest impact? The winner of that question is Donovan Mitchell, who joins an extremely talented roster in Cleveland. Gobert finished second in that vote.
The head coach who runs the best offense? Chris Finch finished second (14% of the vote) to Golden State's Steve Kerr (62%).
Related: Illness put Karl-Anthony Towns in the hospital
Related: No reason Timberwolves shouldn't get off to a very fast start
