Who would’ve thought that the Minnesota Timberwolves would be 27-14 at the halfway point of the season? Probably the five of you who predicted that Minnesota would finish with a 54-28 record in our predictions
edition of Canis Pulsus! Three and a half months later, 72 voters shared their grades. Welcome to…
Canis Pulsus Vol. 46 – Semester 1 Report Card
(Note: Canis Pulsus Vol. 46 data was collected through 1/16 before the Houston Rockets game)
Anthony Edwards
A (40.3%)
Quarter 1: A- (47.1%)
There should be no surprise here, as the recently snubbed All-Star starter has been having a career season on the offensive end of the court. The Wolves are only going to go as far as Ant can carry them, and all indications is that he’s going to carry them very far.
Full voting results:
Julius Randle
A / B+ (31.9% each)
Quarter 1: B+ (38.2%)
Big Ju had an up-and-down first quarter of the season, but has rounded into form in the second quarter. He’s been fantastic in the games that Ant has been out and has been punishing any defender in front of him. What once felt like a salary cap placeholder now looks like a foundational part of the Wolves.
Full voting results:
Jaden McDaniels
A / A- (31% each)
Quarter 1: A- / B+ (35.3%)
Slim has his faults. He still gets into these funks when he’s in foul trouble or emotionally rickety, but he has certain continued to show his evolution, particularly on offense. The secondary playmaking is there, while he’s thriving when called upon as the primary scoring option.
Full voting results:
Rudy Gobert
A (33.3%)
Quarter 1: B+ (35.3%)
Rudy has really time-traveled back to his prime form. Or maybe that form never left. Whatever the case is, he’s certainly making his case for a NBA record fifth Defensive Player of the Year. Even more impressive has been his improvement on the other end of the court (Free throw woes not withstanding). He’s finishing with ferocity and making accurate reads in the short roll.
Full voting results:
Donte DiVincenzo
B (34.7%)
Quarter 1: B (35.3%)
The Donte rollercoaster from perimeter continues. He’s just below his career average from three (37.9%) and though that isn’t a terrible mark, it’s his worst since four seasons ago. Big Ragu will need to find more consistency in his stroke if he wants to improve from his B grades.
Full voting results:
Naz Reid
B (40.8%)
Quarter 1: B- (35.3%)
Naz Reid has really found himself as the season has progressed. Sure, he’s no dynamo on defense, but he’s been scorching hot on offense. In the second quarter of the season, he’s shooting about 50% from the field and over 40% from beyond the arc.
Full voting results:
Mike Conley
C- (23.9%)
Quarter 1: C (29.4%)
Minnesota Mike has continued to lose his touch. Sure, he’s not getting as much opportunity on the court, but he’s averaging almost all career lows across the board. Most telling is his field goal percentage which is down to career-worst 34.9%. These may be the final months of Conley’s career, sadly.
Full voting results:
Jaylen Clark
B- (31.9%)
Quarter 1: B+ (21.2%)
I believe the “Record When Jaylen Clark Plays At Least 15 Minutes” is sitting at 16-2, but we have seen a bit more slippage in his game. Not only is his three-point percentage down to sub 30%, but he hasn’t quite been the point-of-attack defensive ace that we were used to seeing. He’ll still make momentum changing energy plays, but we’ll need more from young Clark County moving forward.
Full voting results:
Bones Hyland
B+ (30%)
Quarter 1: Incomplete
Bones has entered the chat this second quarter of the season. The 25-year-old has shown many flashes in this second quarter of the season. He’s a classic fan favorite and not just for his chin waving celebration. Bones plays with a carefree attitude, for better or worse, that is reminiscent of a young Jamal Crawford. Will he be able to bring more consistency in his minutes while competing on defense? He sure seems to have the chance to do so, unlike…
Full voting results:
Rob Dillingham
F (26.1%)
Quarter 1: C- (32.4%)
It pains me to write this, but it seems like the Rob Dillingham Timberwolves era is over. Just the other night, we saw Johnny Juzang, then Leonard Miller, get meaningful minutes ahead of Dillingham. He might score some impressive buckets in garbage time, but even those highlights are sandwiched between unconfident play filled with mistakes.
Full voting results:
Terrence Shannon Jr. / Leonard Miller / Joan Beringer / Joe Ingles / Johnny Juzang
Incomplete
Coaching staff
B+ (33.8%)
Quarter 1: B (29.4%)
Chris Finch and his team has continued to try pulling different levers throughout the season. It wasn’t a smooth first quarter, but he seems to have found rotations and a mix of players who have played much more consistent basketball in the second quarter.
Full voting results:
Front office
A- (31.9%)
Quarter 1: B (29.4%)
Sometimes no move is the best move. The Wolves haven’t jumped the gun to trade for a Ja Morant (Pun not intended, kinda) or blow things up. There’s still smoke around whether or not they plan to add a guard or wing to the rotation, but by next quarter, the trade deadline will have passed and we will have seen what their plan is for the rest of this season.
Full voting results:
Ownership
A (31.9%)
Quarter 1: B (26.5%)
What happens when you make amends with the most important player in franchise history? That’s an easy A for Marc Lore and Alex Rodriguez. Bringing Kevin Garnett back into the fold is going to absolutely blow the roof off Target Center, whenever that’s going to happen.
Full voting results:
Will the Wolves make the play-in tournament?
No (Earn top 6 seed) (88.7%)
Quarter 1: No (Earn top 6 seed) (88.2%)
Full voting results:
Will the Wolves make the playoffs?
Yes (100%)
Quarter 1: Yes (100%)
Full voting results:
What do you hope the Wolves accomplish during the next quarter of the season the most?
Earn homecourt advantage with a top four seed finish
Quarter 1: Increase effectiveness and consistency of defensive effort
Over 20% of responses were focused on the Western Conference standings. It’s a going to be a photo finish to see how it all shakes it, but ideally, the Wolves can finagle their way into a top three seed, effectively “dodging” the Oklahoma City Thunder until a potential Conference Finals rematch.
Other common answers included fixing/trading Rob Dillingham, and finding more opportunities for Joan Beringer.
With a quarter of the regular season over, my feelings on the direction of the Wolves are…
Very optimistic (70.8%)
Preseason: Very optimistic (63.3%)
Quarter 1: Slightly optimistic (61.8%)
There’s that optimism we’ve been missing! It looks like voters are ready to believe in the Wolves again.
Full voting results:
It looks like the Wolves were sandbagging after that 2.92 first quarter progress report, as they ended up on Honors Roll with an impressive 3.13 GPA. Go ahead and order that bumper sticker, Wolves fans!
