Minnesota Timberwolves vs. Denver Nuggets
Date: July 11th, 2026
Time: 6:30 PM CDT
Location: Cox Pavilion
Television Coverage: Prime Video
After what felt like an eternity, nearly two months since the Minnesota Timberwolves’ season came to an abrupt end against the San Antonio Spurs, Wolves fans finally got to celebrate another victory.
No, it didn’t carry the emotional weight of Game 4 against San Antonio, when Anthony Edwards dragged Minnesota back from the brink to even that second-round series.
Nobody is hanging a Summer League banner. Nobody is pretending July basketball belongs in the same conversation as playoff basketball. But after weeks of trade speculation, draft debates, LeBron fantasy scenarios, and endless roster discussions, it was simply refreshing to watch a Timberwolves team take the floor, wear the uniform, and come away with a win.
The 103-90 victory over the New Orleans Pelicans also marked something much bigger than the score itself. It served as the official on-court debut of the Timberwolves’ new identity. The young Timberpups took the floor wearing the franchise’s redesigned royal blue and green color scheme, quietly ushering in what the organization hopes will become the next great era of Timberwolves basketball.
The previous era officially ended when the Wolves were eliminated by San Antonio. Julius Randle and Naz Reid are gone. LaMelo Ball has arrived. The roster has been reshaped. The logo has changed. The uniforms have changed. Even if it was “just” Summer League, this was the first real glimpse of what the next chapter actually looks like, and if there was one player who stole the show, it was Joan Beringer.
Coming into Summer League, Beringer was arguably the most important player on Minnesota’s roster, not because he was expected to dominate Las Vegas, but because the Timberwolves suddenly need him. Trading away Randle and Reid completely altered Minnesota’s frontcourt. What had been one of the deepest collections of big men in basketball has suddenly become one of the roster’s biggest question marks. Rudy Gobert remains the anchor, but beyond him there are opportunities to be earned.
Beringer looked like someone fully aware of that opportunity. His stat line of 18 points and 12 rebounds will immediately catch your attention, and deservedly so. Double-doubles always look nice in July. But what should excite Wolves fans even more was the simple fact that Beringer looked noticeably more comfortable than he did during stretches of his rookie season. Instead of simply surviving possessions, he looked like he was beginning to dictate them. He played with confidence around the rim, competed on the glass, and generally looked like a player beginning to understand where he belongs on an NBA floor.
That doesn’t suddenly mean Minnesota has solved its power forward problem. Let’s not do the annual Summer League thing where every solid performance immediately becomes proof that someone is ready for 28 meaningful minutes a night in May. We’ve all been down that road before. Last summer, Terrence Shannon Jr. looked like he was ready to kick the NBA’s front door off its hinges, only for injuries to derail much of his sophomore campaign. Summer League is filled with false positives every single year.
Now the attention immediately shifts to Sunday’s matchup with Denver. Obviously, nobody should confuse this with the epic battles these franchises have shared over the past few seasons. The last time Minnesota and Denver met in games that actually counted, the stakes involved advancing through the Western Conference playoffs. This time, we’re talking about Summer League, where half the players on the floor are trying to earn training camp invitations and the other half are hoping somebody remembers their name by October.
The Nuggets now get what amounts to the smallest, pettiest, and most meaningless revenge opportunity imaginable after Minnesota eliminated them from the first round. It won’t erase anything. It won’t change history. Nobody from Denver is going to feel significantly better if their Summer League roster beats Minnesota’s Summer League roster. Still, expect Denver to come ready.
For Minnesota, the priorities remain exactly where they should be. Can Beringer build on his impressive opener? Can the organization’s first glimpse into this new era continue building momentum? Those are the real victories that matter in July.
As always, Canis Hoopus will have you covered throughout Summer League. Grab a seat in the comments section, enjoy the basketball, overreact responsibly (or irresponsibly, we won’t judge) and let’s see what these young Timberpups have in store when they take on the Denver Nuggets.
