The playoffs are often about who is peaking at the right time. Boy, are the Wolves peaking at the right time.
This is it. The one thing that will affect the entire Minnesota Timberwolves franchise before they head into their quest for their first Larry O’Brien trophy:
Their final report cards.
For our final regular season edition of Canis Pulsus this year, 44 of you submitted your grades. Let’s see what type of grade point average they’ll have to show their parents with…
Canis Pulsus Vol. 41 – Semester 2 Report Card
(Note: Canis Pulsus Vol. 41 data was collected through 4/16)
Kyle Ross-Imagn Images
Anthony Edwards
A- (36.4%)
Quarter 1: B+ (35.3%)
Semester 1: B+ (31%)
Quarter 3: B+ (39.6%)
After carrying a B+ grade all semester, Ant has hit his stride at the right time. Over two-thirds of the vote landed within the A range. If the Wolves want to have any chance going deep in the postseason again, it will start and end with Ant.
Full voting results:
Kyle Ross-Imagn Images
Rudy Gobert
A (27.3%)
Quarter 1: B+ / B (24.2%)
Semester 1: C+ (27.6%)
Quarter 3: C (29.2%)
Similar to Ant, Rudy finished off the regular season with a bang. He dominated the games against tanking teams when the Wolves needed it the most. That earned just one C grade while over 50% gave him a grade in the A range.
Full voting results:
Julius Randle
B (50.0%)
Quarter 1: B- (24.2%)
Semester 1: C+ / C- (24.1%)
Quarter 3: B- (23.4%)
Well over 75% of voters gave Randle a B grade or better. That’s a solid score for Julius, considering the fan and national narrative about him for most of the season. He certainly found his groove in 2025 and hopefully that trend continues.
Full voting results:
Photo by Justin Ford/Getty Images
Jaden McDaniels
B (45.5%)
Quarter 1: D+ (21.1%)
Semester 1: C (27.6%)
Quarter 3: B (33.3%)
Jaden’s performance skyrocketed to new heights throughout this season. For the first few months of the calendar year, particularly amid the Wolves injury woes, Slim looked like the best version of him we’d ever seen. Unfortunately, he hasn’t just plateaued there, but began to revert into the previous form that we’ve come to know.
Full voting results:
Naz Reid
B (47.7%)
Quarter 1: B- (34.4%)
Semester 1: B (37.9%)
Quarter 3: B+ (38.3)
Similar to Jaden, Naz has hit a bit of a slump lately. It’s most evident with his three ball. That said, he had an incredible stretch filling in as the starting power forward and/or center. It’s a huge year for Naz as he’s up for a big contract extension this offseason. How he performs in the next weeks will be crucial the the dollar amount he commands.
Full voting results:
Brad Rempel-Imagn Images
Donte DiVincenzo
B+ (44.2%)
Quarter 1: C- (30.3%)
Semester 1: B+ (37.9%)
Quarter 3: B+ (40.4%)
Donte has continued to springboard up after a slow start to the season, proving as one of the Wolves top performers. He’s fourth on the team in Value Over Replacement Player (VORP) and third in Box Plus/Minus (BPM). He was slowed by a toe injury, but has continued to show his strength on both ends of the court upon his return.
Full voting results:
Photo by AAron Ontiveroz/The Denver Post
Nickeil Alexander-Walker
A- (43.2%)
Quarter 1: A (28.1%)
Semester 1: A (27.6%)
Quarter 3: A- (27.1%)
NAW has continued to earn the highest overall scores by voters, as he has done so all season. He scored over 86% of grades in A range. Nickeil has been a consistent force both on offense and defense too, especially showing growth in the former. Like Naz Reid, NAW will be up for a big summer in terms of his contract.
Full voting results:
Mike Conley
B (22.7%)
Quarter 1: B- / C- (21.9%)
Semester 1: B / B- / C- (20.7%)
Quarter 3: C- (33.3)
We were all very worried about 37-year-old Mike Conley early in the season. He lacked explosion and touch from both the interior and perimeter. Thankfully, he has trended in the right direction and is now playing the best ball of the season. Perhaps it has to do with his lightened minutes load, or it could just be his gradual recovery from injury. Either way, it’s good to have Minnesota Mike back.
Full voting results:
Jaylen Clark
B (36.4%)
Quarter 1: Incomplete
Semester 1: Incomplete
Quarter 3: B (25.5%)
After much debate on who was going to emerge as the ninth man in the rotation, it looks like rookie Jaylen Clark has snatched that spot. His defensive intensity and effort has quickly made him a fan favorite. He started to earn Finch’s trust, but still has to make smarter and more consistent offensive contributions to carve out a larger role.
Full voting results:
Photo by David Sherman/NBAE via Getty Images
Rob Dillingham
Incomplete (25.0%)
Quarter 1: Incomplete
Semester 1: Incomplete
Quarter 3: B (22.9%)
Young Rob had a few moments earlier in the season, but unfortunately the Wolves just weren’t in a position to prioritize his development. The injuries impacting opportunities for the starters to mesh plus the tight playoff race meant Dillingham had to ride the pine more than many had hoped. No matter what happens after this season, his role is likely to expand next season.
Full voting results:
Terrence Shannon Jr.
Incomplete (32.6%)
Quarter 1: Incomplete
Semester 1: Incomplete
Quarter 3: B (27.1%)
Like his fellow 2024 draftee, TJ had some really promising moments while the Wolves were down rotation players due to injury. Those took place during the third quarter of the season, but once the others returned, he’s also been regulated back to mop up duty. It’s still been a rather promising rookie campaign for the 24, soon to be 25, year old though.
Full voting results:
Josh Minott
Incomplete (23.3%)
Quarter 1: Incomplete
Semester 1: C (27.6%)
Quarter 3: D+ (16.7%)
Many had larger expectations for Minott’s season, but unfortunately he has fallen short of meeting them. He had previously fumbled away his chances at a meaningful role due to mental mistakes on the court, and is now back to dominating garbage time minutes.
Full voting results:
Photo by Stephen Maturen/Getty Images
Joe Ingles
Incomplete (54.5%)
Quarter 1: Incomplete
Semester 1: Incomplete
Quarter 3: Incomplete (32.6%)
Joe may have had the best feel-good story of the season. Outside of that, he has hardly seen the court outside of being our SLOB QB1. He’s been a fun presence to have around and according to both players and coaches, he’s had a positive effect on them.
Full voting results:
Luka Garza
C (36.4%)
Quarter 1: Incomplete
Semester 1: Incomplete
Quarter 3: C (27.1%)
Was Luka Garza’s biggest moment of the year the game where the Detroit Pistons coaching staff selected him to shoot two technical fouls after the brawl? Maybe. Regardless, he came in and did his job. Much of what his career has been so far. Doing the job that’s asked of him. Finch remains very complimentary of him despite being buried on the depth chart.
Full voting results:
Photo by Stephen Maturen/Getty Images
Coaching staff
B (23.3%)
Quarter 1: C (31.3%)
Semester 1: C- (27.6%)
Quarter 3: C (22.9%)
It seems like their message is starting to get across to their team. Stop letting go of the rope in the first quarter. Stop turning the ball over. The Wolves have tried to do their best as the results have shown, but they still have the elephant in the room: Clutch time execution.
Full voting results:
Front office
B (36.4%)
Quarter 1: B (25%)
Semester 1: C+ / C- (24.1%)
Quarter 3: B (28.3%)
Minnesota has started to settle into an identity which usually yields points for the front office. The winner of the Randle-Towns trade was never going to be decided in just one season, but there seems to be a fairly clear path forward. Additionally, other front office blunders have surely made the Wolves team look like geniuses.
Full voting results:
Photo by Stephen Maturen/Getty Images
Ownership
C (21.4%)
Quarter 1: F (26.5%)
Semester 1: F (63%)
Quarter 3: F (20%)
Marc Lore and Alex Rodriguez are here, and here to stay. Has the board of governors voted on approval of the sale yet? Who knows. But Glen Taylor seems to have given up and that is (hopefully) a good thing.
Full voting results:
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What’s your prediction for the 1st round playoff series between the Wolves and Lakers?
Wolves in 6 (41.9%)
Last year, the Wolves faithful believed in them despite being the betting underdogs versus the Phoenix Suns. This year, we see more of the same. Nearly 70% of voters have the Wolves taking this series, so I’d say that bodes well.
Full voting results:
What do you hope the Timberwolves realistically accomplish during the postseason?
Competitive 2nd round exit (34.1%)
If When the Wolves defeat the Lakers, they’ll face the winner of Rockets versus Warriors. Minnesota should be able to put up a fight, if not outright win that next series as well.
Full voting results:
Photo by Stephen Maturen/Getty Images
With the regular season over, my feelings on the direction of the Timberwolves are…
Slightly optimistic (68.2%)
Preseason: Very optimistic (56.9)
Quarter 1: Slightly pessimistic (38.1%)
Semester 1: Slightly pessimistic (62.1%)
Quarter 3: Slightly optimistic (40.4%)
We started at the very top during preseason, to fairly pessimistic in the middle of the season, to back to some guarded optimism. It’s all about who’s peaking at the right time and it looks like the Wolves are doing just that.
Full voting results:
From 2.50 to 3.05, I’m smelling a honor roll bumper sticker for your Timberwolves! They began with a 2.43 after 20 games, stayed the course after 41 games, finally improved to a 2.50 before they became a 3.0 student. The topsy turvy regular season is over and we can finally take a look back and witness just how wild the progress of this team.