Timberwolves leader Tim Connelly knew what he needed to do and what he shouldn’t do

Tim Connelly began his tenure in Minnesota by telling fans that he hopes he doesn’t screw up the Timberwolves, which sounded like a billionaire worrying about the cost of groceries.

Connelly’s comment was humble but unnecessary. Mess up the Wolves?

If you listened closely that day, the new president of basketball operations also dropped some hints about his vision, or at least his philosophical approach in roster construction and the identity he intended to create as the Wolves’ frontman.

“We have to be very realistic on what our path looks like and not be scared to forge our own path,” Connelly said. “And not look around and kind of copycat some of the other ways teams might have been successful.”

That Day 1 declaration makes much more sense now. Connelly was thinking big — in a literal sense — and the Wolves are reaping the rewards of his ambitious plan to build a championship contender.

A deep, well-rounded, versatile roster is a credit to Connelly’s handiwork. He zigged while the rest of the league zagged.

He inherited Karl-Anthony Towns, Anthony Edwards and Jaden McDaniels, but Connelly took something with promising upside and made it more professional and more credible with moves that accelerated the Wolves’ window for winning.

He traded for the NBA’s best defensive player, Rudy Gobert.

He unloaded unreliable point guard D’Angelo Russell in a trade that brought in Mike Conley and Nickeil Alexander-Walker. The Wolves have been on the wrong side of personnel moves throughout their existence. That one was a blowout in their favor. Removing Russell and replacing him with Conley and NAW can never be highlighted enough in team lore.

Connelly also re-signed Edwards, McDaniels and Naz Reid to extensions.

The unconventional plan of pairing Gobert with Towns caused outside observers to wonder whether that strategy was destined to fail, but the organization needed someone to shake the tree.

“We can’t be governed by fear,” Connelly said at his introductory news conference. “We have to be aggressive.”

Looking back, it’s fair to assume Connelly had his previous employer in mind as he went about remaking his new team.

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Connelly built the Denver Nuggets into a championship team as their basketball boss. He drafted two-time MVP Nikola Jokic in the second round and surrounded him with foundational pieces Jamal Murray and Michael Porter Jr. in subsequent drafts.

The man who put the puzzle together knows better than anyone what type of roster makeup has the best chance at success against the Jokic-led Nuggets.

That Connelly’s past and present are colliding in the Western Conference semifinals is a testament to his ability to identify talent and act bold in his decisionmaking.

The blockbuster trade for Gobert cost the organization a trove of assets. Even though his clunky acclimation last season was concerning, the impact of that deal cannot be overstated now. Gobert’s defensive brilliance has raised the level of those around him and transformed the Wolves into the NBA’s best defensive team.

The Wolves swept the Phoenix Suns in Round 1 because their defense made life hell on the Suns’ shooters. That outcome confirmed Connelly’s belief that a two-big lineup can be successful against smaller lineups in the playoffs if smothering defense serves as the foundation.

Connelly doubled down on his plan by re-signing Reid to be the No. 3 big man. That foresight was rewarded with Reid being named the league’s Sixth Man of the Year.

I applauded Connelly the day he traded Russell but also foolishly described Conley as a “stopgap” point guard in that same column. I underestimated how much Conley had left physically while overlooking the leadership and professionalism he brings to a team. Those invaluable qualities were reaffirmed Wednesday when Conley was named the NBA’s Teammate of the Year in a vote of players leaguewide.

Where would the Wolves be without Conley? Or Gobert?

Connelly used the term “informed mistakes” at his introduction two years ago, an acknowledgment that mistakes in personnel are inevitable but that every decision will receive thoughtful deliberation and research.

His calculations in remaking the roster were aggressive, done with conviction. Connelly hasn’t messed up the Wolves. Just the opposite. He has assembled one of the league’s toughest teams.