If you’re reading this, you probably remember where you were the night of April 11, 2018.
That night, the Wolves defeated the Denver Nuggets 112-106 in an overtime win that did more than boost Minnesota’s regular season record. The win also ended the Wolves’ 14-season playoff drought.
It was a night of celebration in Minnesota, but former Nuggets and current Wolves players Malik Beasley and Juancho Hernangomez don’t remember the night as fondly.
“It was a tough, hard loss, but after that moment we went to the gym, worked really, really hard that summer and were ready next season to go,” Hernangomez said. “(There was) no more playing around right from the first game.”
After the April 11 loss, the Nuggets went on to finish the following regular season with the second-best record in the competitive Western Conference. And as his team improved and added more depth, Hernangomez saw his playing time begin to dwindle.
That hasn’t been the case since he was traded to Minnesota.
Before coming to Minnesota, the four-year forward had never averaged more than 19.4 minutes per game in a season, but he’s averaged 30 minutes a night on his new team. And so far, as his minutes increase, so do his shooting percentages.
Hernangomez averaged 12.4 minutes per game in the 34 games he played with Denver this season. In those games, he shot 34.5% from the field, just 25% from deep and recorded an effective field goal percentage of 41.4%. Since playing in a Wolves jersey, he’s improved to 42.9% from the field and 3-point range and has a 51.4% effective field goal percentage.
Hernangomez’s improvement doesn’t surprise Wolves head coach Ryan Saunders.
“I think that’s something that’s pretty normal with guys who have talent and guys who are hungry to compete and hungry to play a bigger role,” Saunders said. “We feel like Juancho is a player who can continue to get better and better.”
With a new team and new opportunity, Hernangomez shares Saunders’ belief.
“(Denver) let me go, but I’m thankful for what they did and thankful for the chance I’ve got right now,” Hernangomez said. “I just want to keep going and keep practicing to get my shots up and keep believing in me.”
And he’s carried the lessons of Denver’s April 11 loss with him to Minnesota.“Every game matters,” the Wolves forward said. “Like last game against Charlotte. We cannot lose a game like that after leading by 16 at halftime. So we have to learn from that and figure it out.”
“Figuring things out” and learning how to play with one another will be the reconstructed Wolves’ main focus for the final two months of the 2019-20 season. Forward Jake Layman returned to practice on Thursday to get acquainted with his new teammates, but the Wolves will have to continue to grow without center Karl-Anthony Towns, for the time being.
Of course, Towns’ absence isn’t ideal, but Hernangomez is optimistic knows his team’s only option is to move forward.
“I think it’s going to be short,” Hernangomez said when asked how long he thinks it’ll take his teammates to get used to playing with one another. “From the first game, we saw something special. Without KAT now, it’s going to be a little harder, but when he’s back, I think it’s going to be short.”
Saunders said post-All-Star break would be the ideal time for Hernangomez and Towns to build their on-court chemistry, but he, like Hernangomez, is optimistic of what Towns’ return will do for the duo.
“(Hernangomez’s) ability to cut is something that will help Karl in the future,” Saunders said. “It’ll help him in the post, but Karl will also be able to help Juancho.”
With or without Towns, Juancho’s goals for himself and his new team remain the same.
“Our goal is to compete, be a family, know each other,” Hernangomez said. “I think our goal is to compete every single game and be us. Enjoy the journey and just play hard.”