The Minnesota Timberwolves are back on the floor Monday, and even if it’s only preseason, their opener in Milwaukee should tell us a lot about where this team is headed. A road matchup with the Bucks is the first live look at a reshaped roster, and there are real questions waiting to be answered.
The biggest one is how Anthony Edwards and LaMelo Ball fit together. Minnesota changed course by trading Julius Randle and Naz Reid for Ball, and the injury to Donte DiVincenzo forced another adjustment.
Now the Wolves are rolling out a starting group that looks nothing like last year’s, and Edwards-Ball is the pairing that will define the season. How smoothly Ball’s playmaking and shooting open things up for Edwards - and how the two divide the usage - is the kind of detail that can tell you plenty about this team’s ceiling.
The other frontcourt fit worth watching is Jonathan Kuminga alongside Rudy Gobert. Minnesota already dealt with spacing issues with Randle next to Gobert, and Kuminga brings some of the same questions.
He has said all the right things since signing with the Wolves, talking about defense and rebounding, but now it has to show up in actual games. Monday is the first chance to see whether that concern is real or whether he can make the pairing work.
Head coach Chris Finch said after training camp practice that the starters will play Monday and will get a good amount of time, so those combinations should come into focus quickly.
Another name to circle is Joan Beringer. Since Minnesota drafted him 17th overall in the 2025 NBA Draft, the Wolves have been high on him publicly and privately.
The defensive upside is obvious, but they also believe there’s offensive potential there too. With Randle and Reid gone, Beringer has an every-night role in front of him, with about 12 to 18 minutes available each game.
That makes the preseason opener an important first test.
What does he need to show? On defense, the Wolves want him to avoid foul trouble and improve his defensive rebounding. Offensively, he should have chances to finish lobs from Ball and others, but he can’t become a spacing problem without a three-point shot.
Trey Lyles is in a very different spot now than he was before Minnesota signed Kuminga. At one point, he looked lined up for a major role because the Wolves didn’t have a traditional power forward and his three-point shooting would have fit well next to Gobert and the starting unit.
Now the road is much tougher. The starting five is set, and Ayo Dosunmu, Terrence Shannon Jr., and Beringer are all ahead of him in the rotation.
Add Jaylen Clark and Bones Hyland, and Lyles could be staring at as many as 10 players in front of him.
Lyles has 10 NBA seasons on his résumé and spent last season in Europe, so the question is whether he can still produce at the same level. If he wants steady minutes, he’ll need to hit corner threes at a high rate, rebound on the defensive glass, and hold up against opposing bigs.
There’s also one more name getting attention in camp: Cody Williams. Asked Saturday which player had impressed him most, Edwards answered right away: "Cody Williams."
“I just love his defensive instincts," Edwards elaborated. "I think he can be really good in the NBA.
His care factor gotta go up a little more, just showing it. Everyone knows he cares; it’s just showing it.
You get a stop, let somebody know about it. That’s all I want from him."
Edwards does not hand out praise casually, so that endorsement matters. Williams, who came over as a throw-in in the Josh Green-John Konchar deal, still has the kind of upside that made him the 10th overall pick in the 2024 Draft. His first two seasons with the Utah Jazz did not go the way anyone wanted, but a fresh start on a team trying to win could help.
Monday’s preseason game will be the first chance to see whether that practice buzz carries over once the lights come on in Milwaukee.
In Other News...
Joan Beringer Could Fix A Timberwolves Problem Fans Know Too Well
Joan Beringer enters his second season with a clear opening on the Minnesota Timberwolves roster: the chance to handle the minutes behind Rudy Gobert. For a team that has long had to manage the non-Gobert stretches carefully, that matters. Beringers appeal is straightforward enough for a coaching staff to appreciate. He brings athleticism, a promising defensive profile and enough presence around the basket to give Minnesota a different look at center when the starter sits.
The bigger question is how much of that potential shows up right away. Beringer is still a developing player, but his value could reach beyond simple backup duty if his defense translates the way the Wolves hope and his offense adds some easy finish opportunities at the rim. For a team built on making life difficult for opponents, even modest progress there could make a noticeable difference in the minutes that have too often been a soft spot. [Read more 🡒]
Chris Finch Sees One Early Sign Wolves Fans Will Love In LaMelo Ball
As Minnesota settles into the early stages of the season, Chris Finch has been paying close attention to LaMelo Balls fit and, more importantly, to the parts of his game that can sharpen the Timberwolves right away. The coachs perspective matters here because Minnesota is not looking for a reinvention so much as a seamless addition of talent, and Finchs read on Ball has centered on the idea that the guard can bring his usual style without being boxed into something unfamiliar.
The encouraging part for Wolves fans is the way Finch has framed Balls preseason work on the defensive end, where Minnesota has been searching for signs that his tools can translate beyond the highlight plays. With his length and awareness already drawing notice alongside Rudy Gobert, there is at least a real opening for Ball to contribute in a way that fits the Wolves identity, even if the full picture of his role is still coming into focus. [Read more 🡒]
Joan Beringer Just Gave Timberwolves Fans A Reason To Watch Him Closely
Joan Beringer gave the Timberwolves a useful look in their preseason meeting with the Bucks, showing why the front office is still intrigued by his long-term upside in the frontcourt. The young big man looked more comfortable as a screener and more dependable around the rim than he did as a rookie, which matters for a Minnesota team that is always searching for size and reliability inside.
The performance also came with a reminder that his development is still a work in progress. Foul trouble clipped his stint and kept him from building on the strong stretches he flashed, leaving the Wolves with the same kind of question they have had around him all along: how quickly can he turn promising tools into something they can count on every night? [Read more 🡒]