3 reasons the Minnesota Timberwolves need to push the pace

3. It would force Thibodeau to open up the rotation

Tom Thibodeau is an old-school coach (understatement of the year) who likes to run a tight nine-man rotation. Since stretch-4 Nemana Bjelica has been out, Thibs has shortened his rotation to eight players. It is an extremely unconventional strategy in today’s NBA, but it is not what most have in mind when they discuss Thibodeau trying new methods.

To his credit, Thibodeau has played nine men as of late, finding 9-10 minutes for Marcus Georges-Hunt. This is something I have been pushing for as of late. Thibodeau’s main message is giving a 110 percent in the time you are on the floor. That would be a much easier proposition if players know they have the occasional breather coming.

The rotation in Minnesota has Crawford struggling in a diminished role and it has Wiggins playing the worst basketball he has played since his rookie year, partly due to his usage rate. Butler helps cut into his usage rate, but his free throw rate is down as a result of playing with KAT and Wiggins.

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My main point here is that so many of their problems on offense are as a result of player tendencies. Thibodeau needs to stagger the minutes of his stars more to prevent overlapping skill-sets from being on the floor so often. And since Thibodeau isn’t changing overnight, an up-tempo offense tires players out faster, but would allow more short stints for players like Tyus Jones and Georges-Hunt. These players need real game action to become useful in any hypothetical playoff run.