Timberwolves coach Chris Finch has said it can be considered a "badge of honor" in the NBA when players rest for games.
Timberwolves' Jarred Vanderbilt, Patrick Beverley playing through pain
"With the way Vando plays, he's going to be probably banged up most of his career," coach Chris Finch said of forward Jarred Vanderbilt.
February 2, 2022 at 1:51AM
By that, Finch means the players have reached a certain status and their teams are in a secure enough position from a playoff perspective that players can take nights off without it affecting the trajectory of the season.
The Wolves don't quite have that luxury, given they are jockeying for playoff position in the lower seeds.
That has meant players playing through some lingering soreness and injuries, like when forward Jarred Vanderbilt played through a midfoot sprain on a back-to-back in Phoenix in Friday night after playing 30 minutes at Golden State the night before. That has meant players like Patrick Beverley trying to make their way back and returning to the lineup against Denver on Tuesday after a five-game absence because of an ankle sprain. His return provided a boost at point guard for the Wolves while D'Angelo Russell remained out for the third consecutive game because of a left shin contusion.
"It's kind of right in the dog days, as they refer to them," Finch said. "With the way Vando plays, he's going to be probably banged up most of his career. All credit to him. He continues to play hard through it and doesn't stop him from being out there. It's what you got to do."
Finch said the Wolves have tried to limit the 33-year-old Beverley's workload throughout the season but noted most of Beverley's injuries throughout his career have been more "acute" injuries that have had little to do with the volume of minutes Beverley plays.
Finch pointed to players such as Brooklyn's James Harden and Phoenix's Chris Paul as examples of stars who play a lot of games and their teams' records reflect the determination they have to be on the floor.
"These guys play. Like, they play all the time," Finch said. "That's one of the reasons their teams win all the time."
Finch has spoken to players this season about trying to play when they aren't 100%. For instance, after guard Jaylen Nowell was playing well but had a sprained ankle a few weeks ago, he only missed one game before he was back in the lineup — and continued to play well despite the sprain.
"You're never going to feel 100% at this point in the season and being able to play through that is big, and [I'm] also very proud of him," Finch said at the time.
Guard/forward Anthony Edwards said recently he has been battling through knee issues that caused him to leave a game early against Brooklyn. He said he mentioned to Finch his knees were bothering him in Sunday's 126-106 victory over Utah, but he continued to play. Guard Josh Okogie was out because of a right quad contusion.
Coaching them up
Finch said he had a conversation with forward Jaden McDaniels two or three weeks ago that boiled down to Finch telling McDaniels that he's a basketball player, not specifically a scorer. Don't worry about shooting: Play correctly and the shots will follow. "Don't define yourself on whether you miss or make shots," Finch said he told McDaniels, who went 9-for-9 against the Jazz on Sunday. "That resonated with him, because he is a basketball player."
Finch said he is learning what approaches to take in terms of coaching players differently and had a meeting on that subject with the team's sports psychology department Monday.
"They give us coaching tips on how we can approach these guys, and it's very, very helpful," Finch said. "Sometimes you don't always hit the mark, so you got to keep learning them."
Two for Rising Stars
Edwards and McDaniels made the NBA's Rising Stars roster for three games on Feb. 18 of All-Star weekend. Edwards' selection was a formality, given his emergence as one of the best young players in the league, but this is the first such leaguewide recognition for McDaniels, who regularly draws some of the toughest defensive assignments for the Wolves.
Edwards was averaging 22.7 points per game in his second season entering Tuesday. McDaniels was averaging 8.4.
Adjusted travel
The Wolves were supposed to leave for Detroit on Wednesday in advance of their game there Thursday, but the team changed their travel plans to leave Tuesday night because of an expected snowstorm hitting Detroit on Wednesday into Thursday.
Taylor, who also owns the Lynx, told season ticket holders he would “miss being there to cheer on the team.”
