For the first time all season, Rocco Zikarsky was in uniform for the Minnesota Timberwolves. Zikarsky spent the entire year with the Iowa Wolves of the G League and was active for the Timberwolves, with Rudy Gobert suspended and Naz Reid missing his first game of the season.
With 3:53 left in their game against the Philadelphia 76ers on Sunday, and with Minnesota trailing by 25 points, Chris Finch emptied the bench, including bringing in Zikarsky. In his first NBA appearance, 19-year-old Australian tied Randy Breuer as the tallest player in franchise history at a listed height of 7-foot-1.
Zikarsky makes his debut in the regular season on Sunday
Nearly eight months after being selected with the 45th overall pick in the 2025 NBA Draft, Zikarsky finally got his first taste of NBA regular-season action on Sunday. He has been on a two-way contract all season and has spent all of his time in the G League this year ahead of Sunday’s performance against the Sixers.
Although Zikarsky didn’t score in his NBA debut, he at least grabbed his first career rebound.
There have been 15 players in NBA history who were ranked higher than Zikarsky, but none of them ever appeared in a game for the Timberwolves. Before Zikarsky, Breuer was the only Minnesota player who stood at 7-foot-1 and played for the franchise.
An 11-year NBA veteran, Breuer joined the Wolves on January 4, 1990, when he was acquired along with a second-round pick from the Milwaukee Bucks in exchange for Brad Lohaus and a second-round pick. Breuer would play the remainder of that season and the next two with Minnesota.
In 191 regular season games (116 starts) with the Timberwolves, Breuer posted averages of 6.9 points, 4.8 rebounds and 1.3 blocks. Exactly one month after being acquired by Minnesota, he scored a career-high 40 points in an outing against the Golden State Warriors.
Zikarsky has been productive in the G League
Going into the season, Zikarsky wasn’t expected to have a role for the Timberwolves, but it was nice to see him play in a game (even if it came in garbage time in what was a blowout loss).
The second-round pick has made 34 regular season/Tip-Off tournament appearances for the Iowa Wolves this season. The big man is averaging 14.1 points, 8.4 rebounds and 2.0 blocks in 23.9 minutes per game. Zikarsky is shooting 53.0% from the field, 32.1% from beyond the arc and 76.6% from the foul line.
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