For the second time in just over a week, the Minnesota Timberwolves will have a reunion with one of their former players. Although Mike Conley had only been with the Timberwolves for a few weeks, it has been almost two years since Kyle Anderson was a member of the team.
That will change now that it has been announced that the Memphis Grizzlies will buy out Anderson, and he will join the Timberwolves once he clears waivers. Once he returns to the team, there’s a good chance he’ll steal minutes from the struggling Terrence Shannon Jr.
Kyle Anderson’s return could be moving
When it comes to the higher offensive ceiling, 25-year-old Shannon Jr. or 32-year-old Anderson would probably choose the former. The problem is that TSJ probably hasn’t realized its ceiling since last year’s Western Conference finals. In most other areas, such as rebounding, playmaking and defense, Anderson is considered the better player.
It was a disappointing sophomore season for Shannon Jr., both on the field and injury-wise. The 27th overall pick in the 2024 NBA Draft missed 25 straight games from late December to mid-February with a left foot injury.
After not leaving the bench in his first game back, TSJ played the last three games. Last night, in a close win over the Los Angeles Clippers, he played just four minutes, all in the second quarter, and picked up two fouls. The previous performance saw Shannon Jr. only six minutes of floor time, and he made just one field goal in 18 minutes in his first appearance back from injury.
At this point, Shannon Jr. seems to be in the rotation, but barely. There’s a good chance this will change once Anderson arrives. With Minnesota off until Sunday afternoon, ‘Slo Mo’ might be in uniform by then, but if not, he will be shortly thereafter.
Now in his 12th NBA season, Anderson played for the Timberwolves in the 2022-23 and 2023-24 seasons. He was used primarily as a starter in his freshman year, but in 2023-24 he came off the bench more but still played a big role on a team that reached the conference finals.
Traded in the 2024 offseason, Anderson should get a nice ovation the next time he steps onto the Target Center court for the first time in a game (the next home game is next Tuesday against the Memphis Grizzlies team that just bought him out).
Injuries have limited Slo Mo to 24 games this season with the Utah Jazz and Memphis, but he has solid averages of 7.5 points, 3.3 rebounds, 2.7 assists and 1.2 steals. He has also been much more efficient than Shannon Jr., who is shooting under 40 percent from the field this season.
Give Tim Connelly and the front office credit for improving a known weakness throughout the season. Production off the bench has been difficult to come by all year, with the exception of Naz Reid. Since acquiring Ayo Dosunmu via trade and now adding Anderson, they still may not be seen as one of the better groups of reserves, but they are certainly a much better group than they had earlier this season.
#arrival #Kyle #Anderson #spells #doom #struggling #Timberwolves #wing