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In the weeks leading up to Minnesota Timberwolves training camp, Josh Minott received rave reviews. He played just 187 minutes in his first two seasons in the league, failed to impress in July's Summer League and seemed in danger of slipping to one of the Western Conference's best teams.

With so much travel in his third summer of prep, Minott took an unusual approach to turn things around. He just stopped caring as much.

“I'm actually getting better at basketball because I don't worry about stress as much anymore,” Minott said at media day last week.

In the Timberwolves' first preseason game Friday night, Minott flew through the air as if a weight had been lifted from his shoulders. He scored 22 points and grabbed eight rebounds in Minnesota's 124-107 win over the Los Angeles Lakers, an eye-opening performance from a player who is eager to have his name considered when considering the Timberwolves' promising junior group.

It was an impressive performance full of high-flying dunks, blocked shots and big rebounds, the kind of attention-grabbing performance Minott desperately needs to find a way on the floor this season. The only way Minott has any chance of feeling that is by dominating these preseason minutes. He's off to a good start.

Minott was 9 of 11 from the field, including 4 of 6 on 3-pointers. Working on his shot has been a major focus for Minott lately, but as he will tell you, it all starts with taking all the pressure off his mind.

“In my 21 years on this planet – soon to be 22 – this is probably the most confident I've ever felt with my jump shot,” Minott said. “I feel like every time the ball leaves my hands outside the arc, it goes in.”

Coach Chris Finch and veteran point guard Mike Conley publicly praised Minott during the first few days of training camp, highlighting his increased strength and focused approach.

“All the young guys played really well. They had a great offseason,” Conley said. “Josh Minott is the one who caught my eye when I came back a week ago.”

Minott doesn't turn 22 until November. He was a 2022 second-round pick but spent much of his time in the G League as the Timberwolves pushed to the top of the West. In his first two seasons, Minott said his main goal was to impress Finch and the coaching staff.

“When I came into the league, I was afraid of messing up, afraid of making mistakes,” Minott said. “I wanted to be the perfect player. I wanted to impress the coach and all these other things.”

He found a way to calm his mind and not stress it so much. He had three steals and two blocks on Friday, including one from Bronny James at the rim as the Wolves clung to a 6-point lead. He came to the ground and hit a 3 at the other end for a 108-99 lead that essentially nullified the Lakers' comeback attempt.

“I used to be afraid, 'Oh, if I miss this shot, this domino effect will happen,'” Minott said. “Or, 'Oh, I'm going to hurt the team.' Now every time I shoot the ball it's one of two things: I make it or I miss it. I don't actually care. And when I stop caring, it goes in.”

Los Angeles played without LeBron James and Anthony Davis, and the Timberwolves rested Anthony Edwards and Julius Randle, who only joined the team on Thursday after the trade that sent Karl-Anthony Towns to the New York Knicks was officially announced . Donte DiVincenzo, who came to the Wolves with Randle, played and was a perfect 4-for-4 for 11 points in a quarter of work.

DiVincenzo picked up right where he left off last season in New York: blocking open shots, becoming disruptive in the half-court defense and, most importantly, giving Coach Finch a player capable of shooting threes of movement on the half court, an antidote to stagnation.

Finch dedicated the majority of his minutes to his young players, preferring not to burden Conley, Rudy Gobert and others from the established core.

With many of the veterans playing sparingly, it opened the door for the Timberwolves to showcase their depth, which is expected to be a major strength this season. Rookie Rob Dillingham needed 20 shots to score 21 points and seemed to be bothered at times by the size at the rim, but the creativity and instinct to get the bucket was there all night. From the floaters to the 3s, of which he had three, Dillingham looked much more confident against the Lakers than he did during most of Summer League.

Luka Garza had 20 points and nine rebounds and appears ready to play in case of injury. Nickeil Alexander-Walker showed a more advanced style of play as he looks to take some of the quarterback load off Conley, and rookie Terrence Shannon Jr. scored 14 points, dished out five assists and grabbed four rebounds.

This will be a strong season for the Wolves in terms of numbers. Some of the younger players will likely move into the rotation and use their strength to try to get them to the NBA Finals.

Minott wants to be in that mix. He was on the outside in his first two seasons in the league. The success he had against the Lakers won't convince Finch to push him into the rotation right away. After all, that was just preseason. The teams are dormant stars and the intensity is nowhere near as high as in real life.

“We will have opportunities with the departure of some older players in the squad,” said Finch. “Hopefully they stay healthy. We have to manage their minutes and so on. We feel like we could end up being one of the stronger teams in the league.”

(Photo of Josh Minott and Bronny James: Jonathan Hui / Imagn Images)

On By John Fenwick

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