Thunder matchup has exposed Wolves' need for another point guard

The numbers are staggering — and informative.

In the 51 minutes veteran point guard Mike Conley has been on the floor during this Western Conference Finals series, the Timberwolves are a +19. In the 45 minutes with him off the floor, the Wolves are a -60.

Conley hasn't exactly played well during the series, which the Wolves trail 2-0 after a pair of blowout losses in Oklahoma City. He's made 3 of his 14 shot attempts, including 2 of 9 threes, for 10 total points. He also has six assists and six rebounds. At times, he's gotten hunted by bigger, stronger, quicker Thunder players on the other end of the floor.

But what Conley brings on the offensive end is poise and intelligence, which are absolutely essential traits against the league's best defense. He's only committed one of Minnesota's 33 turnovers. Even though he hasn't been producing much in the box score, he's able to keep things organized and get the Wolves into their attack. He's a rare source of calm in the chaos that comes with playing against this aggressive, physical, handsy, finely-tuned Thunder defense.

This series has exposed the fact that right now, the Wolves don't have another true point guard in their rotation. That will likely have to change if they want to get past the Thunder in future years.

Donte DiVincenzo, Minnesota's de facto backup PG, is really a shooting guard — and he's having a nightmarish series. DiVincenzo has scored 17 points in the two games on 6 of 22 shooting, making 5 of his 18 three-point attempts. He has as many turnovers (five) as assists. The Wolves have lost his 52 minutes by a whopping 47 points.

To be clear, DiVincenzo is not alone in deserving blame. All eight members of the rotation share some portion of the fault for this 2-0 deficit. Julius Randle put up a stinker in Game 2 and leads Minnesota with nine turnovers in the series. Naz Reid has been awful (4 for 19, 0 for 12 from deep, five turnovers). Rudy Gobert has been a complete non-factor. Anthony Edwards was better in Game 2 but still hasn't found his shot and has been thoroughly outplayed by Shai Gilgeous-Alexander.

But one of the glaring takeaways from the first two games of the series is that the Wolves need another primary ballhandler that Chris Finch trusts. They need someone, other than Conley, who can operate the offense without turning the ball over — someone who can get downhill and score or create for others, while allowing Edwards to operate off of the ball.

That naturally leads us to the eighth overall pick in last year's NBA draft, Rob Dillingham. This exact issue is why Timberwolves president of basketball operations Tim Connelly traded future assets to get into the top ten and take Dillingham. But although the 20-year-old from Kentucky showed some flashes in his rookie season when injuries opened up a path to playing time, he was never a significant part of the rotation when everyone was healthy. Partially due to the players in front of him, Finch and the Wolves' coaching staff haven't view him as deserving of a real role on a contending team just yet.

This series has emphasized the importance of Dillingham's development to Minnesota's short- and long-term future. It would be huge if he becomes a playable backup PG next year behind Conley, who may only have another season or two left in him. That would allow DiVincenzo to play in a more natural off-ball role whenever he's on the floor. It would also take some of the creation load off of Edwards' shoulders. Of course, the long-term hope is that Dillingham can replace Conley in the starting lineup and grow alongside Edwards and Jaden McDaniels.

With Conley's career winding down and Dillingham not being a sure thing, it might not be a bad idea for the Wolves to use one of their two picks in next month's draft on another developmental option at point guard, even if they think one of their other reserve guards — Bones Hyland and Tristen Newton — has a chance to be useful.

This series isn't over. The Wolves are coming back to Target Center knowing they just need to take things one game at a time and defend their home court. With that said, the series betting odds reflect the reality that beating this Thunder team four times in the next five games is a massive task.

Finch likely isn't going to make drastic changes to his rotation in the middle of this series. But if the Wolves can't find a way to rally and advance to the NBA Finals, their need for another reliable ball-handler will be an obvious focus heading into the offseason.

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