Why Terrence Shannon Jr. Could Tilt the Western Conference This Season

Following two consecutive seasons in which the Minnesota Timberwolves have been eliminated in the Western Conference Finals, a breakthrough season is the hope for the franchise. While the team did lose some key contributors this offseason, notably Nickeil Alexander-Walker, there’s still plenty of reason to believe that this team could ascend to that stage once again for the third consecutive season. 

Of course, Anthony Edwards is the focal point of this team, and his development, growth and rise to superstardom will be the ultimate catalyst of Minnesota’s success, it will take much more than just him to not only make the conference finals again, but to finally get over the hump and earn a trip to the NBA Finals. 

With that in mind, Terrence Shannon Jr. is poised to be one of the complementary pieces to help the Timberwolves have a new level of success in the upcoming season. He had some impressive moments in the regular season of his rookie year, but he really started to pop in the playoffs. While these moments were brief at times, they were extremely important. These moments also foreshadowed what he could be in the near future as well.

After a phenomenal NBA Summer League performance over the past week, the idea that Shannon Jr. will be a key contributor in year two now feels like a reality, rather than an idea.

This is especially true with Alexander-Walker no longer being on the roster. Someone will have to step up, and Shannon Jr. has the upside as not only a scorer, but also a versatile defender with the size and strength to do a little bit of everything within the team’s system.  

In fact, it wouldn’t be all that surprising if he ended up being a legitimate rotation piece in the 2025-26 campaign. But what’s most important is how quickly he can continue to develop and emerge as even more of an important piece. Nothing rides solely on Shannon Jr.’s shoulders, but Minnesota is really going to rely on him to have success in the upcoming season, and he will be an integral part of a third consecutive Western Conference Finals appearance if that does happen. 

With that being the situation, Shannon Jr. could legitimately tilt the outcome of the Western Conference this season. He could be one of the driving forces toward Minnesota making noise, instead of falling flat.