The Minnesota Timberwolves used the No. 33 pick on Duke’s Isaiah Evans, and the appeal was obvious right away. At 6-foot-6, he brings the kind of shooting that can make a rookie look playable fast. But a few things changed almost immediately, and now his path to minutes looks a lot less straightforward.
Trading for LaMelo Ball and Josh Green roughly 12 hours later crowded the backcourt picture. Chris Finch’s usual reluctance to lean on rookies doesn’t exactly help Evans either. Add in a summer league showing that didn’t do him many favors in Las Vegas, and the rookie wing suddenly has some real proving to do.
The biggest question is the one Minnesota has to hope answers itself: was the summer league shooting just a blip?
Evans was viewed as one of the draft’s best movement shooters, which is why his 20.5 percent mark from 3-point range in four summer league games stood out so sharply. Summer league doesn’t tell the whole story, of course, but it also didn’t give the Timberwolves much extra confidence.
His shooting at Duke is still the cleanest reason to believe he can recover, and Minnesota’s more established talent should help create open looks for him. Even so, if the jumper doesn’t rebound, his rookie season could get stuck on the bench.
That leads to the next issue: what else can he bring?
For Evans to matter early, the shot can’t be the only thing on the résumé. The league doesn’t really have room for one-trick players anymore, and he’ll need to show he can affect the game in more than one way.
He took a noticeable step forward as a self-creator in his sophomore year at Duke, which helped push him into the draft, but his handle still isn’t especially tight. That raises questions about how much of that creation translates at the next level.
His playmaking and shot selection also need work if he’s going to earn Finch’s trust.
There are some encouraging defensive signs, too. Evans was disruptive off the ball at Duke, averaging 1.4 stocks last season, and he held up reasonably well defending on the ball in summer league.
Still, at 186 pounds, he’ll have to deal with the size and physicality jump that comes with the NBA. That adjustment won’t be automatic.
And then there’s the simplest question of all: is there even room?
Minnesota’s rotation already includes LaMelo Ball, Anthony Edwards, Ayo Dosunmu, Bones Hyland, Terrence Shannon Jr., Jaylen Clark, and Josh Green on the wing and in the backcourt mix. If that group clicks, Evans’ route to minutes gets extremely narrow.
Finch is likely to trust the more established names first. At the same time, the bench group of Hyland, Shannon, Clark, and Green doesn’t exactly come with ironclad certainty, which leaves open the possibility that one or more of them struggle and create an opening.
That’s the reality for Evans. The talent that got him drafted is real, but the role won’t just appear. He’ll need to show the Timberwolves he’s ready, and he’ll need the rotation to crack in his favor.
In Other News...
Timberwolves New Lineup Could Cost Them The Identity That Fueled Their Rise
The Timberwolves have spent the past couple of seasons building an identity around size, edge and defense, so any major roster shakeup naturally comes with a price. Moving Julius Randle in a salary dump and bringing in LaMelo Ball to fix the point guard spot gives Minnesota a very different look, one that could change the way the group functions on both ends. Jaden McDaniels remains the kind of defender who can cover ground and make life miserable for opposing wings, but the broader question is whether the new mix preserves the physical tone that helped push the Wolves forward.
Ayo Dosunmus recent contract extension only adds another layer to the roster conversation, especially with his expected role shifting after spending time as a bench piece. The bench unit has been part of Minnesotas strength, and adjusting the rotation could alter how much pressure the starters can absorb during the long grind of the season. For a team that has benefited from having McDaniels and Anthony Edwards together in a tough, disruptive alignment, the concern is not just fit but whether the perimeter is as sturdy as it used to be. [Read more 🡒]
Timberwolves Still Have A Frontcourt Hole But One Fix Changes Everything
The Timberwolves are still staring at a frontcourt question as the roster comes into focus, with power forward shaping up as the clearest soft spot on the depth chart. Jaden McDaniels and Trey Lyles are the only forwards mentioned in the mix, which leaves Minnesota likely leaning on either a veteran addition or a patchwork rotation to get through the position.
Even so, this is not the same kind of roster alarm it would have been a year ago. The team already solved its bigger problem by bringing in LaMelo Ball, a move expected to lift the guard play in a major way, and that changes the level of urgency everywhere else. Power forward still matters, but in Minnesotas view it no longer carries the same weight the point guard issue once did. [Read more 🡒]