MINNEAPOLIS — The Timberwolves are currently enjoying one of their best seasons in franchise history and a couple members of the squad could end up with some of the NBA's most prestigious awards.
Naz Reid, the Wolves x-factor off the bench is a finalist for the league's Sixth Man of the Year award, the team's defensive backbone, Rudy Gobert is a finalist for Defensive Player of the Year and the team's head coach, Chris Finch has named a finalist for Coach of the Year.
Naz Reid (Naz Reid)
The wolves backup big stepped up in a major way for his team this year when starting forward Karl-Anthony Towns went down with a meniscus injury in early March. The undrafted former LSU center averaged 13.5 points per game with 5.2 rebounds over the course of the regular season. Reid's competition for the award is Malik Monk from the Sacramento Kings and Bobby Portis Jr. from the Milwaukee Bucks.
Rudy Gobert
The Timberwolves center returned to his dominant defensive form this year. Gobert averaged 14 points and 12.9 board per game this year. His 12.9 rebounds per game were the second-highest in the league this year as was efficient 66.1% field foal percentage. Gobert has already earned three Defensive Player of the Year awards, a fourth win would tie him with Dikembe Mutombo and Ben Wallace for the most in NBA history. Gobert is up against Bam Adebayo of the Miami Heat and Spurs rookie sensation Victor Wembanyama.
Chris Finch
The mastermind behind the Timberwolves recent success became the team's head coach in February 2021. The team is in the playoffs for the third-consecutive season after Finch's two predecessors were fired mid-season. Tied to the team's success has also been the development of All-Star shooting guard Anthony Edwards, who has flourished under Finch's leadership. The award will come down to either Finch, Orlando Magic coach Jamahl Mosley or Oklahoma City Thunder coach Mark Daigneault.
The awards are voted on by a panel of reporters and broadcasters who cover the league, and are based on regular season games only. Ballots were due last week before the start of the play-in tournament, and the league is expected to begin announcing winners periodically over the coming days.
The Wolves are currently holding a 1-0 lead in the first round of the playoffs against the Phoenix Suns with Game 2 scheduled for Tuesday, April 23.
Watch more coverage of Minnesota sports:
Watch the latest reports from the KARE 11 sports team in our YouTube playlist: