Rookie Fit Preview: Will Josh Minott and Wendell Moore Help Minnesota Win This Season?

The Minnesota Timberwolves, almost surprisingly, ended up with two rookies on their roster after trading mostly everything for center Rudy Gobert this summer.

Of course, the move signaled new waves. The Wolves, an organization that has rarely found themselves in the postseason over the past two decades, are now going all-in. They cashed their chips in the hopes of becoming an NBA championship contender, which the upcoming season will reveal is a smart decision or not.

In the meantime, two rookies will have to arm themselves with patience, as their chances of earning consistent minutes could be fairly far away.

The Rookie Class

Wendell Moore Jr (wing) | No #26 overall

Do-it-all wing with a sound floor, and questionably long-term upside.

Josh Minott (wing big) | No #45 overall

Raw prospect with tremendous defensive upside, who is in strong need of rounding out his offensive game.

Roles and Opportunities

Moore Jr is - no pun intended - more likely to get minutes right off the bat than Minott. The 6-foot-5 wing has an established all-around game, can make solid reads with the ball in the his hands, play off the ball as a shooter, and is generally regarded as a plug-and-play type of player who can be thrown into most situations.

During his junior season at Duke, Moore Jr not only averaged 13.4 points, 5.3 rebounds and 4.4 assists, he also drained over 41% of his attempts from range, hitting 52 three-pointers on the season. With that kind of flexibility to his game, Moore Jr can be used in a variety of ways, and with a large group of the current Wolves roster.

It's not particularly realistic to expect Moore Jr to get major minutes given that the roster already sports loaded two-guard depth, and flexible wings such as Jaden McDaniels, Kyle Anderson, and Taurean Prince.

It only adds to the difficulty that Karl-Anthony Towns will now play the power forward position, given the acquisition of Gobert, which pushes McDaniels in particular down to the three spot. With both guard spots being occupied by D'Angelo Russell, Anthony Edwards, Jaylen Nowell, Bryan Forbes, and Jordan McLaughlin, locating minutes for either Moore Jr or Minott becomes challenging.

Projections

While Moore Jr easily projects as the player with the most known and established floor, Minott's upside is undeniable. The 6-foot-8 wing is hyper productive on a per minute basis (16.2 points, 9.2 rebounds, 2.0 steals and 1.6 blocks per 36 minutes at Memphis), but he can't shoot (14.3% from range), and played just 14.6 minutes per game, which means he only had 483 minutes of college experience. How many organizations will trust a player with less than 500 minutes to his name since he last played in high school?

Minott, down the road, could become a switchable high-impact defender, which would be a win for anyone drafted 45th overall. But it'll take time, and it'll take on-court reps, which he isn't sure to get.

It shouldn't come as a surprise if Minnesota decides to give Minott quite a lot of time with their G-League affiliate, the Iowa Wolves, just in order to give him some much-needed burn. Whether Moore Jr follows suit, remains to be seen.

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