After an up-and-down first half of the season, viewers and fans chimed in to share their grades and vibes. The results are shockingly predictable.
Is this season over yet? It feels like the first 41 games of the season felt like 3 seasons in one. Yet in some weird ways, it feels like every game has just been the same game played in a loop. Regardless, we still had 29 voters input their votes at the half point mark of the season. Let’s see what kind of grades the Minnesota Timberwolves earned in…
Canis Pulsus Vol. 3 – Semester 1 Report Card (‘24-’25)
(Note: Canis Pulsus Vol. 39 data was collected through 1/17 before the game in New York)
Photo by Patrick Smith/Getty Images
Anthony Edwards
B+ (31%)
Previous grade: B+ (35.3)
Ant’s grades didn’t change much from the last progress report. He’s still sitting at a B+, though the A- and B grades have flip-flopped more favorably. The scoring explosions surely helped his case as he willed the Wolves to a number of December and January victories. Unfortunately, Edwards hasn’t been consistent enough to level up completely yet.
Full voting results:
Rudy Gobert
C+ (27.6%)
Previous grade: B+ / B
Did you know Rudy is a four-time Defensive Player of the Year? Just a reminder for those of you who may have forgotten since his play has been erratic from game to game. Gobert was once known as the ultimate floor raiser and this iteration of the Wolves is surely testing that. His overall grade has dipped from 20 games ago, but that falls in line with his inability to consistently clean up the defensive glass.
Full voting results:
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Julius Randle
C+ / C- (24.1%)
Previous grade: B- (24.2%)
Is the Julius Randle era coming to a close? We may know as soon as three weeks from now as the NBA trade deadline creeps nearer. Head Coach Chris Finch has surely vocalized his appreciation for the 30-year-old, but what happens on the court doesn’t quite sync up with that praise. Randle has started to lose crunch time minutes to Naz Reid and his overall clunky fit with the starters has yet to yield great results.
Full voting results:
Jaden McDaniels
C (27.6%)
Previous grade: D+ (21.2%)
Jaden’s play has certainly improved in the second quarter of the season. Not only is his shot starting to fall at a higher rate, but his energy and activity has also improved. McDaniels’ rebounding numbers have increased 3.7 in the first 20 games, to the 5.9 in the next 20. That’s a considerable jump from one of the starting forwards. If the Wolves are going to ever make “the leap,” then McDaniels will need to keep building on this.
Full voting results:
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Donte DiVincenzo
B+ (37.9%)
Previous grade: C-
DDV shot 33.3% on 6.8 three-point attempts in his first 20 games of the season. In the ensuing 20 games, he shot 40.3% on 7.2 three-point attempts. This was the player that most fans, and probably Minnesota’s front office, thought they were going to get back in October. There’s still meat on the bone for the sharpshooter, but he’s definitely proving that his reputation as a slow starter and fast finisher (SMUT) is accurate.
Full voting results:
Naz Reid
B (37.9%)
Previous grade: B- (34.4)
Naz has had a pretty consistent second quarter of the season. He’s been good, but not necessarily great most games. There’s been a lot of discussion about his future role on the team, and more importantly, his player-option which he surely will decline this summer. Is Naz Reid the future starting power forward of the Timberwolves? Does he want to be?
Full voting results:
Nickeil Alexander-Walker
A (27.6%)
Previous grade: A (28.1%)
Despite a slight tip in the box score in the past 20 games, NAW has continued to prove himself invaluable to the Wolves. The steady 40% three-point marksman from deep has solidified him as a legit 3&D threat in a league that still highly values them. Each passing game, it’s more and more apparent that the Wolves should make signing Naz Reid and NAW a priority this offseason lest they prefer larger roles, pay days, elsewhere.
Full voting results:
Mike Conley
B / B- / C- (20.7%)
Previous grade: B- / C- (21.9)
Mike’s grades were all over the place, split mostly between the B to C range. It’s been a harrowing season for the veteran guard who has seen his play tail off. His marksmanship has fallen considerably off from last season. His ability to get paint touches have become much fewer and far between. He’s gracefully accepted a bench role now, but the concern will not only be much he can help the team this season, but on the remaining years of his recent extension.
Full voting results:
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Josh Minott
C (27.6%)
Previous grade: N/A
Josh Minott was expected to have his first real role on the Timberwolves this season, but it took longer than expected. He played just 8 of the first 20 games of the season, and now 17 of the last 20. There’s been some flashes of brilliance, but mostly spattered with mistakes that you would expect from a young player. Any consistent meaningful contributions from him moving forward will be a pleasant surprise.
Full voting results:
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Rob Dillingham
Incomplete (82.8%)
Previous grade: B (24.2%)
A lot of the Wolves fanbase have been clamoring for more minutes for the rookie, but a lingering right ankle injury has kept him from even getting DNP-CDs. As a result, the “future point guard of the Timberwolves” hasn’t had much to show for quarter two of the season. Rob recently got a quick spell with the Iowa Wolves where he struggled with scoring and passing efficiency, but hopefully took that opportunity to clear off some of the injury cobwebs.
Full voting results:
Luka Garza, Leonard Miller, Terrence Shannon Jr., Jaylen Clark, Joe Ingles
Incomplete
Luka Garza now wears the crown as the bench mob leader, but still has had zero meaningful minutes. Leonard and TJ showed they’re probably too good for the G-League, but apparently not good enough for a real role. Jaylen Clark has had some flashes of promise with the Iowa Wolves, but isn’t quite ready yet. And Jingling Joe is just happy to be here.
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Coaching staff
C- (27.6%)
Previous grade: C (31.3%)
Finch deserves some credit for finally tweaking the starting lineup, but it may have taken him 15 games too long to make that call. Some of the late game rotations have been questionable too. He’s likely far from the hot seat right now, but not as far as he was 40 games ago.
Full voting results:
Front office
C+ / C- (24.1%)
Previous grade: B (25%)
Tim Connelly’s crew has cooked up a Daishen Nix for Tristen Newton swap, but everything else, if anything, is still in the oven for now. Will they make another big shakeup by moving Randle for… something? That’s the question that may not be answered until we figure out…
Full voting results:
Ownership
F (63%)
Previous grade: F (26.5%)
It’s mid-January and there hasn’t been a peep about the ownership arbitration. Last season, the Wolves were good enough so that fans could easily ignore what was going on with this. This season? Not so much. The result of this feels more important than ever before. The ownership decision may impact the president of basketball operations which will surely impact the coaching and player personnel decisions. Gulp.
Full voting results:
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Will the Wolves make the play-in tournament?
Yes (72.4%)
Previous answer: Yes (44.1%)
The play-in tournament looks more and more like a lock for the Wolves. If not for the way they’re playing, then the way the rest of the Western Conference is shaking out. Being in this would be extremely daunting, as it will likely be a tough out no matter which teams make it.
Full voting results:
Will the Wolves make the playoffs?
Yes (75.9%)
Previous answer: Yes (85.3%)
Confidence is beginning to wan for a team that made the Western Conference Finals a year ago. A lot will be told in this next quarter of the season, be it the Wolves record and/or their roster.
Full voting results:
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What do you hope the Timberwolves accomplish during the next quarter of the season the most?
Make a trade / Trade Julius Randle (25.7%)
Quarter 1: Play defense & find consistency (51.7%)
Though there were a number of comments about fixing turnover, rebounding, and offensive issues, the most common answer was in regards to making a trade. Mostly about one specific player. As mentioned earlier, the trade deadline is less than a month away so we’ll see if those hopes come to fruition. However, this simple answer was my favorite:
That they change their faces and be happy.
Amen.
With half of the regular season over, my feelings on the direction of the Timberwolves are…
Slightly pessimistic (62.1%)
Quarter 1: Slightly pessimistic (38.2%)
Nearly double the amount of voters feel more slightly pessimistic about the outlook of the team. Hard to argue with the 79.3% that have any sense of pessimism given the way team vacillates in quality from quarter-to-quarter, let alone game-to-game.
Full voting results:
The quarter one progress report finished as a 2.43 grade point average. What was the score when it was all said and done at the end of the first semester? 2.43. That’s right. For all the topsy-turvy play during the first half of the season, voters gave the Wolves the exact same grade as they earned exactly 20 games ago.
Funny.