Nearly a month after the NBA season ended in a dramatic Game 7 of the NBA Finals, all eyes have shifted to the desert, where the league’s future is on display at Summer League in Las Vegas. What used to be a quiet period in the schedule for sickos only, Summer League is now a major showcase of young talent, featuring national broadcasts and championship rings.

A team coming off of back-to-back trips to the conference finals typically wouldn’t have much of a reason to care about Summer League. Still, the Minnesota Timberwolves have an abundance of young talent and have started the season 4-0.

Terrence Shannon Jr. is in the running for Summer League MVP and looks ready to make strong contributions to the Timberwolves next season. Rob Dillingham is averaging 6.5 assists (and 4.3 turnovers) and is learning the nuances of running an NBA offense. Jaylen Clark is picking everyone’s pocket and looks like the spiritual successor to Nickeil Alexander-Walker. And Minnesota’s first-round draft pick this year, Joan Beringer, started his Summer League with six blocks in just under 23 minutes in his first game.

7 BLOCKS FOR JOAN BERINGER 🤯

What a #NBA2KSummerLeague debut from Minnesota’s First Round pick!! https://t.co/t7CZIRSC6z pic.twitter.com/xk6xOH5r0Z

— NBA (@NBA) July 10, 2025

All four are expected to see significant rotational minutes in 2025. But there’s a fifth Summer League standout whose future with the Timberwolves is far less certain.

Leonard Miller is in his third Summer League after the Timberwolves acquired him with the 33rd overall pick in the 2023 NBA Draft. Miller was a young, raw, but high-upside swing as a 6’10” 19-year-old who played for the G League Ignite before entering the draft.

Miller handled himself adroitly in his first Summer League experience in 2023. He scored 16 points and pulled down 11 rebounds in his first-ever Summer League game in a win against the New Orleans Pelicans. He followed that up with games of 20 points and 18 points, and looked primed to be a steal in the draft and an immediate contributor.

However, that hot showing never translated to his rookie season with the Wolves. Miller played only 52 minutes across 17 games, all in garbage time, because Minnesota elevated to a championship contender and didn’t have time to develop young players.

Miller averaged 19.4 points and 8.4 rebounds for the Iowa Wolves in the G League and looked ready to graduate from the G League to the NBA full-time in 2024. He had another strong showing in Vegas during the 2024 Summer League with three 20-point games and improvements on both sides of the ball.

Still, his strong showing didn’t lead to NBA success. Miller played only 32 minutes across 13 games with the big club and saw his role diminish even further. He again dominated the G League, averaging 24.7 points and 11.5 rebounds for the Iowa Wolves in 2024-25.

Stop me if you’ve heard me say this before, but Leonard Miller is having another bangin’ Summer League. He’s averaging 17 points on 50 percent shooting and 8.8 rebounds for the 4-0 Timberwolves, including 22 points and 11 rebounds in their most recent win against the Phoenix Suns. Outside of TSJ, Miller has been Minnesota’s best player during much of the action in Vegas, but his future with the team is much murkier than the other young stars.

Shannon is the obvious breakout candidate to gobble up most of the backcourt minutes vacated by NAW’s departure. The soon-to-be 25-year-old is a big-bodied bulldozer with a mature offensive game who can hold his own offensively when the starters need a rest. Dillingham, the eighth pick in the 2024 draft, is the successor to Mike Conley to run the show. Clark is a defensive menace and will slot in nicely with Anthony Edwards and Jaden McDaniels to make Devin Booker’s life hell. And Beringer is the French connection and likely successor to Rudy Gobert.

So, where does that leave Miller?

Miller looks to be the odd man out in a deeply packed Wolves frontcourt. Gobert is ageing, but is still operating at 90 percent capacity. Julius Randle just re-upped for three years, $100 million. Naz Reid signed a five-year, $125 million contract. Jaden McDaniels isn’t going anywhere. And Beringer will get ample opportunity to show his potential.

Even with Luka Garza and Josh Minott in Boston, Miller is running in sixth place in Minnesota’s frontcourt. He’s still only 21 years old and entering his third season in the NBA, but it seems like the clock is ticking on Leonard Miller’s time in Minnesota.

Chris Finch kept a tight eight-man rotation for much of the 2024-25 season until injuries necessitated an expansion. Miller’s only path to real playing time (other than being really good) is bad injury luck. Even then, Finch might feel more comfortable sliding his starters into awkward roles over going deep into his bench.

Miller’s value may be shifting from unlimited potential to an intriguing trade piece as the Wolves transition from constantly building towards the future to building a contender this season. Miller has outgrown the G League but still hasn’t quite found his niche in the NBA.