RandBall: With Naz, Donte and NAW, Wolves have 6th, 7th, 8th Men of the Year

RandBall: With Naz, Donte and NAW, Wolves have 6th, 7th, 8th Men of the Year

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The versatile Wolves big man won the NBA’s Sixth Man of the Year Award a season ago after being a bench catalyst (and starting lineup fill-in at times) for a team that reached the Western Conference Finals.

Reid is again doing “Two Words” things, but he has company. With Reid, Nickeil Alexander-Walker and Donte DiVincenzo, the Wolves might have the Sixth, Seventh and Eighth Men of the Year on their roster. Their impact was on display again in a rout of Charlotte on Monday, and their collective presence stands as a sturdy guardrail against slippage for a starting lineup still retooling after the Karl-Anthony Towns trade.

Reid had 25 points and nine rebounds in just 26 minutes, posting an absurd plus-33 for the game (meaning the Wolves outscored Charlotte by 33 points when he was on the court).

DiVincenzo, also a plus-33 in the 114-93 victory, filled up the stat sheet as he continues to thrive in a combo guard role: 14 points, five rebounds, three assists, two steals and two blocks.

NAW is an almost absurd plus-73 for the season now in just seven games off the bench, continuing his invaluable role from a year ago.

DiVincenzo and Alexander-Walker are the types of versatile wing players that are extremely valuable in the modern NBA. They also give the Wolves a certain amount of insurance against a slow start from Jaden McDaniels.



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