Timberpups Tracker: Andrew Wiggins is a bad, bad man
The Minnesota Timberwolves have one of the most exciting collections of young players on an NBA roster with nearly half of their players 25 or younger. Every Thursday, FOX Sports North tracks the progress of those young Timberwolves.
This is the 14th edition of the 2016-17 Timberpups Tracker.
NOTE: With the All-Star break upon us, the Timberpups Tracker will take next week off and return March 2.
(A glossary of the advanced statistics used for season totals, which are from basketball-reference.com. can be found at the end of this article)
KRIS DUNN (age 22, first season)
Statistical season averages: 16.6 minutes, 3.6 points, 2.2 rebounds, 2.5 assists, 0.9 steals, 0.5 blocks, 36.3 FG%, 26.5 3PT%
Statistical averages, last week: 12.6 minutes, 1.0 points, 1.5 rebounds, 2.5 assists, 0.5 steals, 0.5 blocks, 18.2 FG%, 00.0 3PT%
Advanced stats, season: 7.4 PER, 42.0 TS%, 14.9 USG%, 86 ORtg, 109 DRtg, -0.3 VORP
Notable: Dunn has had a rough time since missing four games with a wrist injury last week. He has just two field goals since his absence, and is a combined 2-for-11 shooting over his last four games.
TYUS JONES (age 20, second season)
Statistical season averages: 11.4 minutes, 3.2 points, 0.9 rebounds, 2.2 assists, 0.7 steals, 0.1 blocks, 40.9 FG%, 37.2 3PT%
Statistical averages, last week: 7.9 minutes, 1.7 points, 0.0 rebounds, 1.0 assists, 0.3 steals, 0.0 blocks, 28.6 FG%, 00.0 3PT%
Advanced stats, season: 13.8 PER, 54.1 TS%, 14.0 USG%, 115 ORtg, 111 DRtg, 0.0 VORP
Notable: Just a week after his heroic performance against the Raptors, Jones is back to logging DNPs and playing trivial minutes. He played just under three minutes against in a blowout win over the Chicago Bulls, before sitting for the Wolves' loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers. He finally got on the floor in the Wolves' win over the Denver Nuggets, going 2-for-5 from the field and grabbing a steal.
SHABAZZ MUHAMMAD (age 24, fourth season)
Statistical season averages: 19.6 minutes, 9.4 points, 2.9 rebounds, 0.5 assists, 0.3 steals, 0.1 blocks, 47.1 FG%, 41.4 3PT%
Statistical averages, last week: 18.0 minutes, 9.8 points, 2.0 rebounds, 0.8 assists, 0.5 steals, 0.0 blocks, 51.9 FG%, 00.0 3PT%
Advanced stats, season: 14.3 PER, 57.0 TS%, 20.1 USG%, 115 ORtg, 115 DRtg, -0.5 VORP
Notable: 'Baaz remains Minnesota's best bench option by a sizable margin. The Wolves split a four-game week that could have been called pretty accurately based on how Muhammad played. He went 2-for-8 from the field in the loss to New Orleans, 5-for-7 in the win over Chicago, 2-for-5 in the loss to Cleveland and 5-for-7 in the win over Denver. If he gets to double digits the Wolves are probably coming out on top.
KARL-ANTHONY TOWNS (age 21, second season)
Statistical season averages: 36.5 minutes, 23.7 points, 11.8 rebounds, 2.9 assists, 0.7 steals, 1.4 blocks, 51.6 FG%, 33.9 3PT%
Statistical averages, last week: 37.2 minutes, 27.0 points, 10.5 rebounds, 2.8 assists, 0.5 steals, 0.3 blocks, 56.3 FG%, 32.1 3PT%
Advanced stats, season: 24.5 PER, 59.5 TS%, 27.4 USG%, 117 ORtg, 109 DRtg, 3.4 VORP
Notable: Wiggins has made headlines with his two-game dominance going into the break, but Towns has kept churning out quality games as well. He hasn't dropped below 20 points in three weeks, and went off for 36 in the New Orleans game. Towns had one of his best double-doubles of the season against Denver, scoring 24 points and grabbing a season-high 19 rebounds.
ANDREW WIGGINS (age 21, third season)
Statistical season averages: 37.2 minutes, 23.2 points, 4.2 rebounds, 2.5 assists, 0.9 steals, 0.4 blocks, 46.3 FG%, 35.5 3PT%
Statistical averages, last week: 37.4 minutes, 34.3 points, 4.3 rebounds, 2.5 assists, 2.0 steals, 0.3 blocks, 57.1 FG%, 45.0 3PT%
Advanced stats, season: 17.0 PER, 54.4 TS%, 28.2 USG%, 108 ORtg, 114 DRtg, 0.0 VORP
Notable: First, a moment of silence for Nikola Jokic. The last image that NBA fans will have of the promising young big man before the All-Star break is of Wiggins unloading a vicious dunk on poor Nikola. Wiggins dropped 41 points on the Cavaliers and carried that energy into the Nuggets game, posting another 40-point game for good measure.
https://twitter.com/fsnorth/status/832076826528714752
Out for the season: Zach LaVine
GLOSSARY OF TERMS
PER -- Player Efficiency Rating: A measure of per-minute production standardized such that the league average is 15.
TS% -- True Shooting Percentage: A measure of shooting efficiency that takes into account 2-point field goals, 3-point field goals, and free throws.
USG% -- Usage Percentage: An estimate of the percentage of team plays used by a player while he was on the floor.
ORtg -- Offensive Rating: An estimate of points produced per 100 possessions.
DRtg -- Defensive Rating: An estimate of points allowed per 100 possessions.
VORP -- Value over Replacement Player: A box score estimate of the points per 100 TEAM possessions that a player contributed above a replacement-level (-2.0) player, translated to an average team and prorated to an 82-game season.
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