5 things that stood out from Timberwolves' Summer League opener

Beringer was fairly quiet in the second half, adding just a few rebounds and two more blocks (he finished with 11-8-7), but the first impression was an extremely strong one nonetheless for this year's 17th overall pick. It'll be fun to watch him play over the remainder of the Wolves' stay in Vegas.

Shannon leads the way

The expectation coming into this year's Summer League for Shannon was dominance. He was way too good for the G League last year and had some big-time performances when the Timberwolves gave him opportunities, including in the Western Conference Finals against the Thunder. Shannon's shot wasn't really falling on Thursday, but he still looked the part as Minnesota's No. 1 option. He finished just shy of a double-double, recording 20 points, 9 assists, 6 rebounds, and a couple steals. Shannon punctuated his day with an emphatic throwdown in the game's final minute.

Nine of Shannon's 14 shot attempts were three-pointers, though only two of them went down. Between that and the assists, it felt like this was perhaps a concerted effort to work on his jumper and playmaking in this summer setting. Even bigger scoring days should lie ahead for the ultra-aggressive Shannon this month.

Dillingham has up-and-down day

Rob Dillingham's first game of his second Summer League was a mixed bag. The second-year point guard hit three three-pointers and four total jumpers, two of which were and-ones. He also dished out six assists and generally looked like his shifty self on the offensive end of the floor. But it wasn't all positive. Dillingham's 15 points came on 4-of-14 shooting, and he had seven turnovers to go with the six assists. He'll look to be a little more efficient and take care of the ball in the Wolves' next outing.

Finch vows longer rotation

Timberwolves head coach Chris Finch was courtside watching this one and even made a brief appearance on the ESPN broadcast in the third quarter. The main thing that stood out from that interview was Finch saying he's definitely going to run a "longer rotation" of "9, 10 guys" next season. For almost of last season, the Wolves stuck with a true eight-man rotation. But this year, it could make plenty of sense to expand that group. Nickeil Alexander-Walker is gone, and all three of Shannon, Dillingham, and Jaylen Clark have strong cases to join the rotation in their second years. And that's not to mention Beringer, who might just play his way onto the floor as well.

Sloppiness and defense

Predictably, this wasn't the prettiest basketball game. Not only was it a Summer League game, but it was the first of the summer for both teams. The Wolves shot 24 percent from three and committed 19 turnovers. At the same time, they were very disruptive on the defensive end of the floor, taking advantage of some sloppiness from the Pelicans' offense. New Orleans shot below 44 percent from the floor and committed a whopping 25 turnovers. Minnesota had 14 steals and 12 blocked shots as a team. Beringer had nine of those "stocks" and Miller had five to go with his 20 points and nine rebounds.

The game also featured 56 combined fouls. It was a reminder that Summer League basketball is not for the faint of heart.

Next up: Wolves vs. Nuggets at 9 p.m. CT on Saturday night (NBATV).

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