The Minnesota Timberwolves may have quietly built one of the youngest starting groups in the West, and the numbers point to a possible edge that no other Western Conference team can match when the 2026-27 season opens.
After an offseason that reshaped the roster, Minnesota is suddenly leaning much younger. Julius Randle, Mike Conley, Kyle Anderson, and Joe Ingles are out.
In their place are LaMelo Ball, Jonathan Kuminga, Isaiah Evans, and Cody Williams. That turnover leaves Rudy Gobert as the clear veteran presence, both on the team and in the projected starting five.
Gobert is 34, but the rest of the group skews well below that. Ball and Anthony Edwards are both 25, Jaden McDaniels turns 26 on September 29, and Kuminga turns 24 on October 6. That gives the Wolves four projected starters no older than 26, a setup that could make them the only team in the West able to say that heading into 2026-27.
There are a couple of teams that could end up in the same neighborhood. The San Antonio Spurs’ answer depends on whether they start free agent addition Tobias Harris or keep the same group that carried them to last season’s NBA Finals. If Harris is in the lineup, he would join De’Aaron Fox as one of just two players over 26.
Memphis has a path to it as well, though it looks less certain. A healthy Grizzlies team would likely start Cedric Coward, Cameron Boozer, and Zach Edey, all 24 or younger.
But if they choose what the source describes as arguably the two best remaining players to round out the five, that would push Ty Jerome, 29, and Jerami Grant, 32, into the starting mix. Jaylen Wells, 23, is also mentioned as a strong candidate.
If you widen the lens to the East, the Charlotte Hornets would also fit the same general mold. Their projected starting five would have Naz Reid as the oldest at 27, while Coby White turns 27 on February 16.
Minnesota’s youth doesn’t stop with the starters. The bench includes Ayo Dosunmu, Bones Hyland, and Terrence Shannon Jr., all of whom will be 26 when the regular season begins. Jaylen Clark turns 25 on October 13, Cody Williams will be 22 on November 20, and Joan Beringer turns 20 on November 11.
That kind of age profile gives the Timberwolves a roster built to stay fresh in the years ahead. It also leaves room for high-end talent like Edwards and Ball to keep climbing, since neither may have reached his prime yet.
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For the Timberwolves, that opens a more believable path back into the chase at the top of the West, especially after their own roster changes this summer. Minnesota still needs a few things to break right to turn that opening into a real threat, including younger pieces becoming steady rotation options, but the door is no longer closed the way it looked in May. [Read more 🡒]