31 December 2023
The Timberwolves had the Los Angeles Lakers beat Saturday night at Target Center.
A Mike Conley 3-pointer to put Minnesota up by seven points with 35 seconds to play should have been the official slamming of the door, directly in the Lakers’ faces.
But then Jaden McDaniels stopped, turned around and not-so-politely opened it back up for Minnesota’s counterparts. McDaniels was tasked with the unenviable job of defending LeBron James on the ensuing possession. But, in that spot, you know that even if James scores two points, that doesn’t really hurt you.
So when James drove at McDaniels, all the Wolves’ premier perimeter defender had to do was contest straight up and wait to find out if James made the shot. If he did, so be it. Minnesota was still well on its way to victory.
But, instead, McDaniels lowered his hand at the peak of James’ shot, which led the official to blow the whistle as James hit the runner. And-1. Minnesota’s lead could potentially be trimmed to four. Still, not a big deal. But that call fouled McDaniels out and, in an apparent frustration, McDaniels did something to warrant a technical foul as a parting gift.
It was an unconscionable mistake given the score and situation. The Lakers made both free throws — the technical and the and-1 — and suddenly were within three points. They didn’t even have to foul the Timberwolves on the ensuing possession. Had it not been for James’ large shoe size that turned a jumper moments later from a three into a two, that game would have gone to overtime.
And McDaniels truly would have been the only person to blame.
After the game, Timberwolves coach Chris Finch, who was clearly agitated by his wing’s actions, said he “would sure hope” McDaniels would use Saturday as a learning experience.
“He has been good for the bulk of the season with his emotional control,” Finch said, “but this is an inexcusable one, for sure.”
McDaniels is still just eight months removed from missing the playoffs because he punched a concrete wall in frustration after getting into foul trouble in the first half of the Wolves’ 2022-23 regular-season finale against New Orleans.
This season he was ejected a minute into a game after scuffling with Golden State’s Klay Thompson, and also had a flagrant foul for delivering a two-handed push to the back of the Nuggets’ Jamal Murray in a game against Denver. Yes, it takes two to tango, but McDaniels is proving to be too willing of a dance partner.
And now he has fouled out four times. That’s a lengthy laundry list for a guy who has played only 21 games this season.
Maturity was a major talking point from Finch and Wolves basketball boss Tim Connelly after last season. The Wolves, as a team, have grown some in that department. That’s certainly true in their night-to-night approach. They do not lose to teams against which they should not.
Still, there is room for improvement. Karl-Anthony Towns’ decision-making wanes. Anthony Edwards will take bad shots or receive a bad technical foul — and even showed up Finch by refusing to sub out at the end of the first half of Saturday’s game.
But McDaniels still feels like the largest liability in that department. In key moments, his temper can flare, and mistakes that can prove detrimental to the team are made.
Anyone who points to injuries as to why Minnesota fell short in the first round of the playoffs against Denver last season must also recognize that one of the biggest ones was entirely self-inflicted.
And it’s not always entirely clear McDaniels is growing and evolving. After the flagrant foul against Denver in early November, Finch noted that was still part of McDaniels’ growth process.
“I know he got two-hand shoved (by Murray), it was clearly a missed call there, but you can’t retaliate that way,” Finch said. “That could’ve been a five-point swing, I think it was a four-point swing. Could’ve given them a ton of momentum. … So a lot of things there, but we’ve got to continue to mature through these things.”
McDaniels didn’t seem nearly as concerned that same day.
“It is what it is. They ain’t take my money I don’t think, so I don’t care,” he said. “I wasn’t even mad. I just pushed him back. I don’t know.”
Minnesota signed McDaniels to a massive contract extension in the offseason. His age, defensive dominance and growing offensive skillset make him an alluring young player. But an inability to control and channel emotions is a surefire way to derail yourself and your team from reaching the max potential.
The last thing McDaniels should want is to become a Dillon Brooks-like caricature who is known more for what he does around the game than in it.
The time to change is now, both for his sake, and the team’s.
Related Articles
A game of millimeters: Timberwolves top Lakers in thriller after LeBron James’ late shot ruled a two
Lakers are flush with Timberwolves of old
How can the Timberwolves’ offense improve? It starts with the decision-making of their two top scorers
Timberwolves fend off shorthanded Mavericks
Report: Marc Lore, Alex Rodriguez set to exercise option to become controlling owners of Timberwolves, Lynx