Minnesota’s point guard position is its biggest question mark this season.
Minnesota Timberwolves guard Donte Divincenzo (0) and Portland Trail Blazers guard Blake Wesley (1) during the first half of an NBA basketball game on Wednesday, Oct. 22, 2025, in Portland, Ore. (AP Photo/Molly J. Smith)
Which means Timberwolves coach Chris Finch may have decisions to make at that spot on a nightly basis.
He showed his first cards in a 116-112 victory Wednesday in Minnesota’s season opener in Portland, both with who started at the spot, and who came in late.
Donte DiVincenzo was Minnesota’s starting point guard in a bit of a surprising move. Mike Conley was the Timberwolves starting floor general for most of last season and throughout the playoffs. In both preseason games he played, Conley was on the floor for tip off.
Finch said he’d been thinking about the lineup change “for a little while,” adding the move was made “in consultation with everybody, Mike included.”
“Mike was all for it, as you’d expect him to be,” Finch told reporters. “He’s a team-first guy.”
That’s exactly how Conley handled the same move when Finch made it in the middle of last season for a six-game stretch before DiVincenzo went down with a toe injury.
Included in that stint was a game against Memphis in which DiVincenzo tallied 27 points, 10 rebounds and seven assists and a game against Golden State where DiVincenzo finished with 28 points, nine assists and six rebounds.
That, Finch felt, was DiVincenzo’s best basketball of the season.
“We’re fortunate to have a guy of Donte’s caliber to be able to slot into the starting lineup. Certainly a starting-caliber player,” Finch said.
DiVincenzo is Minnesota’s most prolific 3-point shooter outside of Anthony Edwards. And Finch said he also injects pace into the game.
Finch said the move was in no way an indicator of Conley’s training camp or who the Wolves think the 38-year-old is as a player at this point in his career. Finch said bringing Conley in off the bench is “the best way to maximize his minutes.”
Finch said it’s now easier to play Conley for longer stints, have him finish quarters and even get him more time on the floor alongside DiVincenzo.
“It’s a lot easier to manage Mike’s impact and minutes of the game over a 36-minute span than it is over a 48-minute span,” Finch said. “It allows us to get to different lineup combinations, maybe maximize things around him and Rudy (Gobert) and other lineups.”
Both DiVincenzo and Conley struggled with Portland’s high-pressure defense in Wednesday’s opener. Minnesota finished with 19 turnovers, six of which belonged to DiVincenzo.
So, to open the finale frame, Finch went to another reserve guard. No, not second-year point guard Rob Dillingham. It was Bones Hyland who checked into the contest.
Hyland, who re-signed with Minnesota in September, played eight minutes in the fourth quarter, tallying two points, two rebounds and an assist while aiding in the Wolves’ comeback.
Finch called Hyland’s number because “that’s someone I felt could handle (the ball) out there and could stand up to some of the (Blazers) drives.”
Asked if the decision to not turn to Dillingham — the No. 8 overall pick in the 2024 NBA Draft who played ahead of Hyland throughout the preseason — was matchup related, Finch merely cited his flexibility of rotations and substitutions.
“It’s early on still. As you see, I’m going to leave myself the license to go anywhere I want with the guys,” Finch told reporters. “That includes who we might start, who we might finish with, who we play along the way. Everybody has to stay ready. Everyone is going to contribute to winning here. We’re not going to single anyone out … individually for reasons that they didn’t play.”
Related Articles
Jace Frederick: One game in, Anthony Edwards looks unguardable, and everything seems possible
Comfortable, confident Naz Reid takes on leadership role off Timberwolves bench
How the Timberwolves are taking aim at the Thunder
Anthony Edwards questionable for Timberwolves season opener
Watch: Talking Timberwolves questions and predictions ahead of Wednesday’s season opener
Leave a Reply