Glenn Robinson III

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Dane MizutaniWeb Editorial AssociateEmail / Twitter

It was an inconsequential shot in the grand scheme of things. 

Minnesota trailed 63-53 in the third quarter against the Indiana Pacers on Tuesday night when Andrew Wiggins nailed a 15-footer from the left side of the bucket. That shot, while insignificant as far as the game was concerned, was also very significant for the Wolves faithful.

It wasn’t just a routine 15-footer that Wiggins hit. He caught an entry pass from JJ Barea, palmed the ball away from his body, took two hard dribbles, spun off George Hill, rose up, and nailed the shot.

Wiggins resembled a young Kobe Bryant on that play. Is he the next Kobe Bryant?! No. It’s way to early to tell and Kobe Bryant is one of the greatest players in NBA history. It’d be ludicrous to compare the two players right now. That said the comparisons are undeniable when looking at just that shot.

Wiggins is already capable of things that most rookies couldn’t imagine. That much was evident in 32 minutes of his first preseason game as an NBA player. He’s already a world-class defender (just ask Solomon Hill) and showed he can definitely hold his own in the offensive end of the floor. Those skills, compounded with his absurd athleticism, and there’s a chance the Wolves win the Kevin Love breakup in the long run.

“He’s more than just an athlete,” Saunders said. “He’s pretty skilled. He can hit a shot when he wants and make a couple threes, he went to the basket, got to the free-throw line a lot, so the more he plays, the more he plays with veteran guys.”

Wiggins finished with 18 points, 4 rebounds, 3 assists, and 3 blocks in the loss to the Pacers. He was also 8-for-10 from the charity stripe — a good sign moving forward if he’s able to continue to get to the free-throw line in the future.

“I think the first game was good,” Wiggins said. “It was kind of good to get my feet wet with my first NBA game. I felt comfortable out there, let the game come to me. I played within myself and I thought I did pretty good.”

While he certainly didn’t disappoint in his first taste of NBA action, fellow rookies Zach LaVine and Glenn Robinson III left a bit to be desired.

That, however, is to be expected, especially for rookies, so early in the preseason.

LaVine admitted that he was a little jittery heading into the contest against the Pacers and those jitters reared its ugly head throughout the game. He was just 2-for-9 from the floor and just took some questionable shots to say the least. LaVine finished with 5 points, 5 boards, 4 assists, and an alarming 5 turnovers in 25 minutes of action.

Those kinks should be worked out over the course of the preseason and there’s a good chance that LaVine sees limited action through the first few weeks of the season. He’s undoubtedly one of the best athletes on the team, though he might benefit from sitting back and watching guys like Ricky Rubio and Mo Williams go to work.

Robinson III actually looked more comfortable than LaVine in his 12 minutes on the floor against Indiana. He finished with 6 points and was an efficient 3-for-4 from the floor. He also flashed his passing skills early in the fourth quarter with a nice lob pass to LaVine for a thunderous alley-oop.

“We’re still learning things, learning things from the vets, taking in as much as we can in practice,” Robinson III said. “I only see us getting better. I thought we played well and we need to come out with the same intensity every game.”

Wiggins, LaVine, and Robinson III, as well as the rest of the squad, will take on the Philadelphia 76ers on Friday night at Target Center. That will offer another chance to continue to grow before the season starts at the end of the month.

Though the other two rookies should garner a good amount of playing time, Wiggins will again be in the spotlight as this will be the first time he plays in front of a Twin Cities crowd.

“He’s a great player and the most important thing is he wants to learn and he’s willing to learn,” Ricky Rubio said of Wiggins. “He’s going to be great in this league.”

If Tuesday night was any indication, Rubio definitely won't be far off. 

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Rookie Report: Wiggins Shines In First Game

It’s that time again, basketball fans. The Timberwolves opened their doors to media members today after a few players on the new-look squad wrapped up a workout. 

While the entire roster wasn't in town yet, the energy around the facility could have fooled you. Attending Thursday’s practice was Zach LaVine, Andrew Wiggins, Robbie Hummel, Glenn Robinson III, Brady Heslip and Kyrylo Fesenko.

Minnesota’s General Manager Milt Newton confirmed at the end of practice that the team had signed Heslip and Fesenko to training camp contracts.

It wasn’t a traditional practice, but it was a good chance for the assistant coaches to get some drills done with some of the younger players.

The newest member of the Wolves, Robinson, looked a bit tentative, but then again, it was only his second official day after signing his contract with the Wolves. Robinson was plenty relieved to be in camp with the team that drafted him with the No. 40 pick in this year’s draft.

“It was a big relief off my shoulders. I was just glad that the deal happened after talking back and forth with Milt, Flip (Saunders) and my agent,” Robinson said. “I’m just glad everything got settled and I’m back and ready to get in shape and ready to start playing again and getting to know my teammates a little better.”

One of Robinson’s teammates also had some contract uncertainty go in the right direction this offseason. Hummel was given a guaranteed contract from the team this offseason after proving in 2013-14 that he indeed belongs in the NBA. 

Hummel hopes this season that he can fit the roll of a stretch-4 after the departure of Kevin Love.

“I think that's a good thing for me to reach for. At 6-8, you're a little undersized, but at the stretch-four position, there's a lot more of those guys now,” Hummel said. “It's all based on matchups. Obviously, if Zach Randolph's playing the four, I'm probably not the guy who could guard him, but you talk about like Channing Frye, guys that like to shoot 3s and play within the basket, my height doesn't really matter as much in that situation.”

The Wolves announced earlier this week that the team will open their 2014-15 Training Camp, with a “Dunks After Dark” event at Bresnan Arena in the Taylor Center on the campus of Minnesota State University, Mankato.

Wiggins and LaVine are expected to take part in a dunk contest against each other. Throughout the summer, we’ve seen plenty of dunks via social media from the two coveted rookies.

Mankato, get ready. It should be a good time.

“Dang, man. That’s going to be a good one. I can’t show everyone everything,” LaVine said. “I’m trying to get in the Sprite Slam Dunk contest this year. Hopefully I can do a little something something.” 

LaVine said in an exclusive interview with Timberwolves.com how much he enjoys putting on a show. We have a feeling he and Wiggins will do just that in the early hours on Sept. 30.

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Practice Report: Thursday, Sept. 18

KR: After waiting for a deal to get done, finally, here you are. I'd imagine you're pretty relieved right now. What were you feeling after you signed the deal?

GRIII: I mean, it was a big relief. A lot of things off my plate, off my shoulders and now it’s just about me playing basketball. Getting back to doing what I do. Not focusing on any of that (other) stuff – talking back and forth to my agents, Milt and Flip. I’m just glad all of that is settled and I can start working with the team.

KR: When you’re working out not having that guaranteed deal, are there certain things you’re doing or not doing? Making sure you’re in shape but making sure you don’t hurt yourself in the process?

GRIII: That was something with me, I went back home, worked out at Michigan a bit. Just worked with my guys, go full speed, go 100 percent, even though most of the time it was just me in the gym. I was just trying to stay in shape, stay in condition to be ready for when I came back.

KR: You probably saw the “Eyes On The Rise” and the “New Age Wolves” ads when the big trade went down. Were you kind of sitting back watching that and thinking that you were part of that too?

GRIII: Yeah, that’s how I did look at it. I’m happy for those guys, especially for Andrew Wiggins. He’s a great guy, I knew him before this and getting to know him a little bit better now that I’m here. He’s a great guy and the whole team we have with the “Eyes On The Rise” thing, I think that’s a great motto for us. I think we’re an up-and-coming team. We’re a young team and we just have to prove our talent throughout the season.

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Three Questions With Glenn Robinson III

Minneapolis/St. Paul – TheMinnesota Timberwolves today announced the team has signed 2014 second round draft pick Glenn Robinson III. Robinson III, a 6-6 forward from Michigan, was selected 40th overall in this year's draft. Per team policy, terms of the deals were not released.

Robinson III played for the Wolves entry in the 2014 NBA Summer League in Las Vegas, averaging 7.7 points and 3.0 rebounds per game in six games (four starts). His best performance came in the summer league finale, totaling 17 points on 6-of-13 shooting (2-of-6 from three-point range).

Robinson III started all 76 games in his Michigan career, averaging 12.0 points on 52.5% shooting and 4.9 rebounds per game in his two-year career. He was a two-time honorable mention All-Big Ten selection by the media, leading the Wolverines to appearances in the National Title game and Elite Eight in his two season at Michigan. Robinson III is the son of former NBA forward Glenn Robinson Jr., who was the first overall pick in the 1994 NBA Draft by the Milwaukee Bucks.

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Wolves Sign Second Round Pick Glenn Robinson III

Megan SchusterWeb Editorial AssistantEmail / Twitter

[Related content: Rookie Photoshoot Dunk Videos]

We've chosen some of the best dunks that were submitted for your viewing pleasure. It's safe to say while the Wolves have some of the most athletic rookies in the NBA, the team also has some of the most athletic fans. Take a look: 

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#WolvesDunkCam Contest Winners

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2014 NBA Rookie Photo Shoot: Zach LaVine and Glenn Robinson III

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The 2014 NBA rookies had their inaugural photoshoot this past weekend. And what happens when you get the most talented young crop of future basketball stars together in one venue? Well naturally, it turns into a dunk contest. 

The rookies wanted a chance to show off their stuff not only for their new fans and teammates, but also to prove to their rookie classmates just who has the most hops. Wolves second-round draft pick Glenn Robinson III started things off for Minnesota, challenging teammate Zach LaVine to beat his high-flying dunk.

LaVine responded as only he can, doing a circus off-the-wall pass to himself and finishing with the throwdown. 

Robinson III also had a nice moment with former Michigan Wolverine teammates Mitch McGary and Nik Stauskas, as the three combined for a dunk dedicated to all their fans in blue.

If this photoshoot was any indication, we've got some future dunk-contest stars in the making with this rookie class.

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Rookie Photoshoot Turns Dunk Contest

Dane MizutaniWeb Editorial AssistantEmail / Twitter

The Wolves roster could look a lot different when the NBA regular season opens up in about three months, but that’s all speculation at this point in the offseason. A guarantee about next year’s Wolves squad is that it will take a different identity on the court with Flip Saunders at the helm.

Saunders, who took over for the retiring Rick Adelman, has made it clear that he intends to employ an up-and-down style on the offensive end next year, with a hard-nosed style to match on the defensive end.  

That much has been apparent throughout the four days of Summer League practice that started Monday night and wrapped up on Thursday afternoon. In that brief span players have grown accustom to intense workouts featuring tons of running, fast-paced offensive sets, and a defensive style that was a bit of a wakeup call for even some veterans on the team.

It’s definitely going to be different this season with Saunders as the leader of the Wolves.

“He likes when everybody works hard, more than 100 percent,” Alexey Shved said Thursday afternoon. “I know everybody here wants to play in Summer League and everybody wants to play here. We have twice-a-day practices and a lot of running. … It’s hard but we need this."

They need it because of the way Saunders wants his team to play next year. Wolves’ fans got a sneak peek of that style at a Summer League scrimmage Wednesday night. Players seemed to favor pushing the pace on offense and intensely pressuring the ball handler on defense. That same tenacity on both ends of the floor was present in each and every practice this week.

Saunders appeared increasingly pleased with the effort of his players over the four-day mini camp.

“We’re able to see where they’re at and see they’re ability to pick things up because we throw a lot of things at them in a short amount of time,” he said. “There are some that drown when we throw a lot of things at them and some guys rise to the top. I’d say most of the guys are floating right now.”

A few faces have really stood out during the four practices. Zach LaVine’s speed and athleticism is unmistakable. Shabazz Muhammad’s effort on both ends of the court has provided a good example for everyone on the roster. And Glenn Robinson III seems to be adjusting well to the pace of the NBA.

Saunders, who said he’s enjoying his first stint as a coach since 2012, said the youth on his roster provides the team with a plethora of options as it heads to Las Vegas for Summer League competition.

“They give us excitement … and they also give us enthusiasm,” Saunders said. “And I think the biggest thing with youths is the way we mix that in with the veteran guys.”

Saunders won’t really have to worry about mixing his young talent with his veterans until the team opens training camp in a few months, but right now the main focus is on Summer League in Las Vegas. The Wolves leave for Las Vegas on Friday and will compete in the circuit from July 11-21.

“We have a lot of talent on this team,” Shabazz Muhammad said, “so it’s going to be really fun to watch.”

These last four days have been tough on the players, but their efforts culminate this weekend. Wolves players seem excited for the chance to get on the court in a game-like atmosphere and some players seem to think the Wolves style of play could bode well in the Summer League circuit.

“We have a great shot to win this thing,” Glenn Robinson III said. “We like to get out and run. … We want to take it all.”

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Wolves Flash New Style In Preparation For Summer League

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