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Minnesota Timberwolves: 2016 Offseason Grades

By Gerald Bourguet

Jun 23, 2016; New York, NY, USA; Kris Dunn (Providence) walks off the stage after being selected as the number five overall pick to the Minnesota Timberwolves in the first round of the 2016 NBA Draft at Barclays Center. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports
Jun 23, 2016; New York, NY, USA; Kris Dunn (Providence) walks off the stage after being selected as the number five overall pick to the Minnesota Timberwolves in the first round of the 2016 NBA Draft at Barclays Center. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports /
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Minnesota Timberwolves
Dec 18, 2015; Minneapolis, MN, USA; Minnesota Timberwolves forward Kevin Garnett (21) walks to the bench with forward Andrew Wiggins (22) and center Karl-Anthony Towns (32) in the third quarter against the Sacramento Kings at Target Center. The Minnesota Timberwolves beat the Sacramento Kings 99-95. Mandatory Credit: Brad Rempel-USA TODAY Sports /

Overall

The Minnesota Timberwolves may not be a playoff team again in 2016-17. Their best player is still a 20-year-old, their second-best player is still a flawed 21-year-old, and they still have a completely new head coach to adjust to.

But with as competitive as Tom Thibodeau is, the Wolves making it through the summer without engineering some kind of shortsighted move to get Minnesota back into the postseason is a small victory in and of itself.

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Trading for Jimmy Butler would’ve been nice, but he’s not exactly on the same timeline as KAT, Wiggins and the rest of Minny’s baby-faced crew. Instead, the Wolves added the fiery Kris Dunn to the mix, providing the roster with depth and a potential long-term replacement should the franchise move on from Rubio.

Rubio is more valuable to this team than people realize, but Dunn’s potential should not be overlooked, especially as he grows with Wiggins, KAT and LaVine under a head coach who will instill proper defensive values in his players.

The Timberwolves didn’t completely address their need for locker room veterans, as Aldrich and Hill can hardly be considered for that designation. But Minny provided depth for the frontcourt, nailed the draft, added a helpful perimeter shooter, and even if Garnett retires, they’ll still have Thibodeau to fall back on to teach these youngsters proper habits.

More hoops habit: Denver Nuggets: 2016 Offseason Grades

For a franchise relying primarily on internal growth for their exceedingly bright future, Minnesota’s patient summer and successful draft was more than enough for a good grade, even if the rest of their offseason was a bit low-key.

Grade: B

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