Rob Dillingham, Terrence Shannon Jr. Hold Ample Opportunities for Timberwolves

Each of Minnesota's two draftees bring a particular play style and skill set, and that can transfer onto the floor this season for the Timberwolves.

Mar 30, 2024; Boston, MA, USA; Illinois Fighting Illini guard Terrence Shannon Jr. (0) dribbles the ball against Connecticut Huskies guard Hassan Diarra (10) in the finals of the East Regional of the 2024 NCAA Tournament at TD Garden. Mandatory Credit: Brian Fluharty-USA TODAY Sports / Brian Fluharty-USA TODAY Sports

The Minnesota Timberwolves had a stellar season a year ago, making a 14-win the leap from the season prior and reaching the Western Conference Finals as the third seed.

Anthony Edwards blossomed and solidified himself as a bonafide superstar across the league, marking several moments that displayed the dominant instinct he holds on the floor night in and night out. They'd fall before advancing to the NBA Finals, though, being edged out in five games by a rolling Dallas Mavericks team.

That led them into the draft in late June, where the front office elected in picking up Kentucky's Rob Dillingham in the No. 8 slot and Illinois' Terrence Shannon Jr. with the 27th overall pick. Minnesota bit the bullet and traded an unprotected 2031 first-round pick and a top-one protected 2030 pick swap for Dillingham, while taking Shannon Jr. outright with their established pick at No. 27.

Each of these guards provide something unique to the table. Dillingham brings a self-creating scoring outlet and an ability to playmake on the offensive end, while Shannon Jr. offers scoring production in transition and in the half-court setting as a slashing guard, but is beginning to hone in on his defensive mindset.

Through four Summer League contests, Shannon Jr. amassed 13.3 points on 56% shooting, nearly a steal and 1.3 blocks per game, illustrating his promise on each end of the floor. In five Summer League games for Dillingham, he offered up 13.6 points a night on 36% from the field, also averaging 7.6 assists and 1.0 steal per game despite giving up 3.4 turnovers on average.

The Summer League, by any means, isn't supposed to foster outings of perfection, rather than outings of promise and fit into that current team's groove -- both of these players appear like quality fits in their own right.

Off the bench, Dillingham will have bountiful opportunities to prove his worth as a guard full of creation and playmaking projection, something that will come in bits and pieces rather than the whole bite. Shannon Jr. will likely be the same, except he'll focus plenty on his defensive output, as his play time can be elevated if he performs well on that end of the floor.

The Timberwolves were already set up very well as championship contenders. Now with these two additional pieces, they've found some help that could bolster their reserves.

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