It’s a small sample size, but the Minnesota Timberwolves lead the league in rebounding after the first three games this season.
The Wolves hauled in 52 boards against the Miami Heat, 61 against the Orlando Magic, and 49 against the Toronto Raptors. In all three contests, the Wolves dominated the glass, and it led to three blowout victories. Wolves head coach Chris Finch explained why there has been a shift in the team’s approach to rebounding over the weekend.
“It starts with Jaden (McDaniels) and
Anthony (Edwards) and JK (Jonathan Kuminga). Those guys just getting back in the play and rebounding the ball in the air. We’ve been harping on it,” Finch said.
“Obviously, it’s easier to rebound when you play really good kind of first-shot defense, and you can force them into shots where you’re not in rotations and stuff like that, so that’s been key to it as well – being able to be in good help spots and then go pursue the ball. That’s really what it is. It’s the pursuit of the ball on both ends of the floor. We were one of the worst teams in terms of watching rebounds and not actually pursuing the ball, and this year we’ve been able to switch our mentality to be more of a pursuit team.”
Crashing the glass on the offensive side of the ball has increased the number of possessions Minnesota gets. The more shots they’re taking, the more are falling. If the Wolves can continue this mindset across the course of the season, they should be one of the biggest threats in the Western Conference.
Many thought that the loss of Naz Reid and Julius Randle would hurt the team’s rebounding efforts, but going smaller in the lineup has forced everybody to prioritize rebounding when they are on the court.
Wolves center Rudy Gobert emphasized the importance of all five players contributing to the rebounding efforts and how much of a difference it is making.
“I think just compete, and just having the mindset of doing something… whatever is happening on the floor, finding a body, contesting the shots and I think it goes from one to five,” Gobert said. “Having five guys doing something… being active, and when we do that, it makes it easy for me, and it makes it easy for us as a team.”
It’s going to be difficult to keep up this trend, but this could be what sets the Wolves apart from their competitors.
