The Timberwolves are taking more contested shots than anyone
The Timberwolves are hardly known for their offensive prowess or creativity. Minnesota currently ranks 25th in points per possession, putting it near the bottom of the league once again, a trend in recent years.
The Wolves are exaggeratedly young or old. There isn't much in between, not many guys in their primes. For every 20-year-old Zach LaVine, there's a 39-year-old Kevin Garnett. For 20-year-old Andrew Wiggins, there's 35-year-old Tayshaun Prince. The roster continues to be intentionally structured like that. Karl-Anthony Towns, Shabazz Muhammad, even Ricky Rubio are all young. Andre Miller isn't.
So, because of that makeup, without any players in their actual primes (except for maybe Rubio, who's still just 25), the offense suffers. But that's not the only reason, as Lucas Seehafer of Canis Hoopus will tell you:
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It all comes down to priorities. The Wolves don't prioritize the game's most efficient shots, and thus, they're not often getting them. Too often, Rubio will get into the paint to make an actual drive-and-kick play only to find his guy to kick to is at 21 feet instead of beyond the three-point line. Minnesota will send seemingly random cutters to the hoop, too, when it mucks up spacing. It'll stifle off-ball movement too much at moments, as well.
This is still a learning process for many of the Timberpups, some more than others. But the offensive system is far from where it could be at its best. That's not something that will (or can) change in the middle of the season. It can adjust, but it can't fix itself completely. Moving forward, though, the Wolves have to execute some of the more simple spacing concepts the best offenses around the league have mastered in order to hit their ceiling.
