For most of the season, the Minnesota Timberwolves have desperately searched for quality play from their bench. Aside from Sixth Man of the Year frontrunner Naz Reid, the Wolves had gotten incredibly little production from their reserves as they ranked 23rd in bench scoring per game from the start of the season through the trade deadline.
Coming into the year, the Wolves seemd well set up to deal with the offseason departure of Nickeil Alexander-Walker. Terrence Shannon Jr., Rob Dillingham, and Jaylen Clark all appeared to be ready to join the rotation, and Mike Conley, despite his age, still appeared to have enough left in the tank to still be a solid backup point guard.
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None of that came to fruition. Just a few weeks into the season, it was clear the Wolves’ bench was going to be shorthanded for a while with all three of the Wolves’ young trio struggling to find consistency on the court, and as father time finally caught up to Conley. The Wolves had a massive gap in their rotation, making it clear that if they wanted to make another deep playoff run this spring, they were going to need to add bench production from outside of the organization.
In February, the Wolves front office did exactly that. Minnesota added a new face by trading for Chicago Bulls guard Ayo Dosunmu at the trade deadline and then brought back a familiar one when they reunited with Kyle Anderson after he was bought out by the Memphis Grizzlies.
“We got options and depth and versatility,” Timberwolves Head Coach Chris Finch said about the team’s new-look bench. “Super blessed right now. Again, you know, our front office did a great job of rounding out this roster with exactly what it needed.”
Thursday night’s 155-107 win over the Toronto Raptors showcased what the pair of Dosunmu and Anderson can bring to the Wolves the rest of the season. Ayo finished with 13 points including multiple baskets in transition as he has added a new level of pace to the Wolves’ offense.
“Speed, I think that’s the main thing,” Anthony Edwards said about Dosumnu after the game. “The speed that he brings when he checks into the game is the main thing.”
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Ayo has also shown flashes on the defensive end of the floor. He finished Thursday’s game with three steals and provided physical defense while chasing around opposing players on the perimeter.
“I have a lot of trust,” Rudy Gobert stated about Dosumnu’s denfensive game. “I keep telling him and I keep telling everyone, when you guys are physical on the ball and disruptive, even if you get beat, I’m there. It’s much easier for them to get beat while being physical than letting guys get comfortable. I think tonight was a great example of that.”
Anderson put up four points, four rebounds, and three assists while filling in perfectly on the defensive end for Jaden McDaniels who had to go to the bench in the first half with foul trouble.
“He makes the game easy,” Finch said of Anderson’s performance against the Raptors. “You put the ball in his hands late in the shot clock you know you’re gonna find something. He kinda sees the floor and anticipates where the defense is going to be. It’s all the same things that we love about him when he was here before. You can put the ball in his hands and the game slows down so you know you’re going to get something good.”
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The pairing of Dosumnu and Anderson have also found a quick chemistry together on the court. Late in the third quarter Anderson found Dosunumu on a back cut for an easy layup, a play the two had drawn up over text a few days prior.
Just two games into his now second Timberwolves tenure, Slo-Mo is doing again all the same things that made him such a valuable signing for the Wolves back in the summer of 2022. His combination of defense, playmaking, and on-court leadership and accountability have already begun to show dividends just two games back with the organization.
Dosunmu has also quickly taken to a leadership on the floor for the Wolves. Edwards pointed to Dosunmu along with Slo-Mo, Conley, and himself as to who have been the connectors for the team during games.
With Dosunmu and Anderson quickly hitting their stride with the team, the Timberwolves have completely transformed their bench in the blink of an eye and they did so at little to no cost.
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Anderson was signed last week as a free agent, costing about half a million dollars the rest of the season and Dosumnu was acquired for second round draft capital, Leonard Miller, and Dillingham who, despite the large cost to acuire in the 2023 Draft, had largely fallen out of favor with the organization making a trade the best path forward for both parties.
While the starting lineup plus Naz Reid have been the workhorses so far this season for Minnesota, the bench is finally catching up as the Wolves look to close the regular season strong before the playoffs. With just 19 games remaining on the schedule and the Wolves now sitting as a top three seed for the first time in two seasons, the finish line is now finally in sight.