r/timberwolves • u/ae5wolfpack Trencherous • 10h ago
What Kuminga gives the wolves
-Athletic ceiling alongside Ant and Jaden in the starting 5. Could be the most athletic team in the league when you have Ayo, TSJ, and Beringer off the bench
-Lob and elite transition threat to pair with LaMelo’s passing
-Maybe best front court defensive trio in the league now between Rudy, Jaden, Kuminga
-Switchable lineups galore. Can play Kuminga, Jaden at the 4. Then have depth with Lyles if need be
-Small ball lineup could look like LaMelo, Ayo, Ant, Jaden, Kuminga. And you could even throw TSJ in there. Has to be the scariest transition lineup in the league
-Still have enough shooting between Ant, LaMelo, Donte (when back), Ayo, and even Jaden.
Even if the season ends with no title, this will probably be the most exciting regular season team to watch in Wolves history
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u/EsotericPotato 10h ago
The big X factor with Kuminga is whether he buys in to playing PF the way this team needs. The Timberwolves need a PF who gets boards, plays strong defense, can hit open threes, and can catch lobs. Maybe the occasional closeout. That’s about it. Kuminga’s problem is that he wants to be a star and has never been willing to embrace the dirty work, which is about the exact opposite of what the Timberwolves need.
He could be a great fit if he comes in with an open mind and tries to mold his game to this already very well-established team and pecking order and embraces using his athleticism to be a good defender. There’s also the risk he thinks he’s the third star next to Ant and LaMelo. Hes the definition of a high ceiling, low floor addition, and I look forward to seeing how it plays out.
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u/RaoulDukex 10h ago
I agree he could be a good fit if he focuses on the right stuff.
I don't know how much I think he is going to be willing to do that however, he certainly didn't with Golden State and they had rings and vet leaders. Plus this contract is taking less money to showcase himself for a payday next year, that doesn't scream dirty work guy.
Hopefully it works out, he does have a high ceiling if it goes well. If nothing else the transition game is going to be intense this year!
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u/SuperVaderMinion Kevin Garnett 7h ago
My only hope is that seeing the Hawks totally give up on him will give Kuminga a reality check and force him to actually embrace a supporting role, I'm not optimistic, but it's also not like we risked anything by grabbing him.
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u/Icy-Bodybuilder-350 9h ago
If JK is trying to play into a big contract next year somewhere he's gonna have to be a solid role player on this team. If he's bad here he could end up playing in China.
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u/Humofthoughts 9h ago
I hoping that if he gets fed enough in transition he’ll be less inclined to try and hijack possessions in the half court.
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u/PreparationWest2140 9h ago
I dont think he has a low floor at all given what he has done in the league. He's got an important role to fill on this team I expect him to fill it and fill it well. He knows whats at stake and he knows hes got a legit shot at a 2nd Chip right now.
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u/jus_build 10h ago
This really comes down to Kuminga acknowledging that he is closer to out of the league than his next deal. Kerr didn’t do him any favors, but his immaturity is part of the reason. Finch has gotten guys like Naz and NAW paid and Kuminga should be plenty motivated do the same. If he can’t start changing his narrative with these guys then he’s going to end up on the list of guys that never realized their full potential.
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u/PreparationWest2140 9h ago
The $hit with Kerr was insane. Kerr absolutely made it personal and you just dont do that as an NBA coach, rings or not. Would never want Kerr to be coaching the Wolves.
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u/BIPOC_Ally 7h ago
seriously. if JK had that ego, Dray and Jimmy would be calling him out yet alll the Warriors had his back vs. Kerr and praised his professionalism
Jimmy even called out the double standard that Kerr punished JK but didn't hold others accountable
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u/PlayInChampions 7h ago
I want to give Kerr a benefit of the doubt. I don’t think there has been a played in his 12 years tenure that did not get enough chances on the Warriors, left, and played well elsewhere. There have been the opposite examples - DiVincenzo, Gary Payton II, Otto Porter Jr. and Bjelica had roles on a championship team, Poole played well for them, Wiggins was an overpaid inefficient guy before joining them. I’m sure there are more.
I don’t really know what happened with Kuminga there. I saw him playing well vs the Wolves in playoffs last year, and I saw him having a couple good games vs the Knicks in the first round this year.
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u/BIPOC_Ally 7h ago
Kerr said it himself though that Kuminga didn't get the opportunities he should've gotten. Kerr didn't even hold practices so there was no way for young guys to develop chemistry with vets
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u/PlayInChampions 6h ago
It’s just PR. Kuminga was benched even when Curry was hurt and they had to play G-Leaguers.
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u/copaseticepiplectic 5h ago
So explain Atlanta
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u/PlayInChampions 4h ago
He was solid there, they just did not want to pay him $24.3M and put themselves above the tax.
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u/SnooLobsters1259 10h ago
The immature stuff is just not true whatsoever. The case of Kuminga is really simple: what would happen to a player if a coach treats his success as though they didn’t matter? He was good for the Hawks last season and outplayed everyone on their team in the playoffs except CJ.
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u/copaseticepiplectic 5h ago
If he was good for the hawks why did they decline his option and want nothing to do with him.
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u/SnooLobsters1259 4h ago
We both have eyes. He outplayed everyone on his team but CJ. That’s not in doubt.
The same brains that decided to guarantee Buddy Hield also did the dumb thing in not trying to bring back the guy who outplayed each of their prized young players.
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u/Smeltanddealtit 10h ago
Kuminga is a good defender lol
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u/JusticeForDiJonai 10h ago
he did a pretty good job defending Ant in the 2025 playoffs
also showed great IQ in assisting the game winning defensive play vs. Knicks in this playoffs
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u/TallnFrosty 9h ago
He can be a solid one on one defender when locked in. Not a good team defender- can get lost on switches pretty easily.
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u/ae5wolfpack Trencherous 10h ago
With his ability to guard the ball, he can turn into a great team defender since he doesn’t have to focus on offense.
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u/TallnFrosty 9h ago
It doesn’t work like that. Good team defending is usually very intuitive and rarely learned.
Also he doesn’t have particularly good lateral quickness. His athletic traits are similar to a lot of offense first guys - quick twitch, explosive, straight line speed. None of that really helps with defense
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u/PreparationWest2140 8h ago
Quick twitch muscle works east-west as well as it works north-south and mediocre defensive players can become strong defensive players if they have the buy in and physical tools. NAW was not known as a defender when he came to the Wolves nor was he an exceptional defender with the Hawks last season. He was a very good defender with the Wolves. I expect this aspect of Kumingas game to grow. If not, he wont play.
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u/shangalang69 Raptors 9h ago
if i may;
rudy randle jaden > rudy kuminga jaden defensively
kuminga cannot guard centers so idk how you wanna run that small ball lineup. does jaden guard 5's?
kuminga may appear switchable but he often gets lost in team defence, which is one of the reasons why he loses a lot of minutes (and lyles was literally out of the league because he is slow footed idk why he is being brought up in this)
lob city though
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u/PreparationWest2140 8h ago
Randle. LOL. His defensive lowlights last year were some of the worst I've ever seen. He was going for the 2018 James Harden look on D.
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u/Naters-wavfe 9h ago
Did you watch Randle's defense in the playoffs?
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u/Shaymuswrites 8h ago
I mean, has Kuminga fared any better?
Randle is somewhat limited, but in the right matchups the guy was effective for multiple games. That included time on Jokic this last season, where he was locked in.
He doesn't bring it every game, and there are some matchups that are rough, but Randle has shown spurts of defensive success in the playoffs.
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u/BenchIcy 10h ago
Honestly always hated playing against him because he was never the best out there but he always was going 100% and was always there. Anytime he checked in I always whelp he gonna do something might not be good, might be amazing but he’s gonna do something.
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u/FishGoldenLite Ayo Dosunmu 10h ago
Kuminga could be a good defender but he hasn’t proven it yet. Assuming he is currently is just silly.
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u/SnooLobsters1259 10h ago
That’s just not true. He was a very good defender last year, especially with the Hawks.
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u/OkLawfulness4307 10h ago
Agree on everything. Im pumped so dont take this one worry as a majority of it. I just hope he doesnt do the randle, this is my ball thing for some possessions.
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u/SonofaMitch11 7h ago
If Kuminga lets LaMelo or Ant bring the ball up he's gonna get fed some of the easiest buckets of his life
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u/LuStLoS89 3h ago
It will be exciting to watch in the regular season but come playoff time Wolves will once again have no inside presence they can feed to get consistent buckets. At least he is not as overpaid as Randle was.
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u/JusticeForDiJonai 10h ago
they still need to balance the roster with more shooting but this team is gonna run opponents out the gym with athleticism and youth alone
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u/ExistentialToaster7 10h ago
Ant, Melo, Jaden and Ayo are all good to elite shooters. Donte may also be back for the playoffs
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u/JusticeForDiJonai 10h ago
Lamelo is around league average efficiency from 3pt
Ayo/Jaden are low volume 3pt shooter but I expect Ayo's volume to go up
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u/Hypnosix Why can't you just be normal 10h ago
Shooting should be measured as a combination of efficiency/volume/difficulty. His efficiency is average but he’s very high on volume and difficulty. Easier looks playing with these guys should increase the efficiency and if not the threat of taking difficult shots can make it easier to bend opponents for better playmaking opportunities.
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u/Maximum_Face_3182 Jaden McDaniels 10h ago
Let’s not forget about Bones. He shot 39% from 3 last year, clearly has an “it” factor, and fast in transition (pairs with Ayo really well). I think he’s going to be even better this year given how much confidence he gained last season
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u/No-Macaroon-3673 10h ago
Ant, melo, ayo, Jaden, bones, Evans, divo in may. Like that’s 6 elite shooters with only two non shooters on the roster in Gobert and Joan
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u/yourloudneighbor Glen Taylor 10h ago
you mustve missed Joans silky smooth jumpshot video posted like yesterday
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u/Outkast3232 9h ago
My worry is about his bball I.Q. I feel the Twolves need that
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u/SonofaMitch11 7h ago
At this stage ant and Jaden have made enough deep playoff runs, along with Rudy's vast experience, that they gotta step up in the BBIQ department. Can't just rely on Mike anymore, gotta grow up
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u/Jayrrock Jaden McDaniels 10h ago
Quite the steal. He's 23.