Terrence Shannon Jr. impresses and other observations from Timberwolves summer league

LAS VEGAS – The Timberwolves drafted two players in the first round of last month’s NBA draft who made their names on their ability to get buckets.

In the team’s first summer league contest, an 81-74 victory over the Pelicans on Friday, one player struggled with his shot while the other was the best player on the floor.

Terrence Shannon Jr., who led Illinois to the Elite Eight as one of the best players in college basketball last season, looked NBA-ready in his debut. Shannon had 25 points, shot 9-for-14 while his speed and physicality stood out Friday at both ends of the floor.

“His tenacity is infectious,” Wolves summer league coach Chris Hines said. “He’s super aggressive off the ball. I think one of the things that he has to figure out is finding his spots on the floor and then understanding the defense behind him once he drives. That takes time. ... In terms of just his offensive aggression, that’s who he is. The kid is hungry. He wants to win. He’s really coachable.”

Shannon plays fast and hard and isn’t afraid to throw his 6-foot-6 frame around. Shannon also displayed an ability to slow himself down and put a soft touch on his shot around the basket. He was active defensively and finished with two blocks and a steal.

“I feel like that’s the first thing I bring to an NBA team is my defense on the ball and like you said, blowing up screens,” Shannon said. “That’s what I rely on. I come in the game defensive-minded, and the offense just translates over.”

Shannon put the game away with a hard drive to the rim for a layup with 44.3 seconds remaining. He also began the game with an impressive dunk through contact that also earned him a trip to the free-throw line.

Shannon will be among the oldest players at summer league at 23, and that will help him physically dominate younger opponents, but it was a promising start for the 27th overall pick.

The shot weren’t falling for the No. 8 pick, Rob Dillingham, who finished with four points on 2-for-12 shooting. Dillingham had an ankle injury through the pre-draft process and was ramping up in workouts and practices over the last month.

He was handling point guard duties for most of the time he was on the floor and said, “My legs, they’re just not under me yet, I guess.”

He added he wasn’t quite so worried about his shot falling. Instead, he’s more focused on trying to master the offense and improve on the defensive end of the floor.

“I ain’t gonna lie, usually I be mad at myself,” Dillingham said. “But it’s a new game and I’m known as a scorer, so I’m not worrying about scoring. I feel like all the other things is what I need to be getting good at.”

Dillingham was more concerned with setting teammates up, even one point at the expense of his own stats. During a two-on-zero breakaway in the second half, Dillingham could have taken an easy layup but instead passed the ball to Jaylen Clark, who hadn’t hit a shot yet, for the layup.

Dillingham’s defense was one of the red flags on him in the draft process, but he had some good moments on that end of the floor in the second half, including a steal and block on consecutive possessions, along with forcing a backcourt violation.

“It’s not about him scoring,” Hines said. “He’ll figure that out in his long journey in the NBA. How to score, how to pick his spots. He’s super talented. We just have to figure out how to hone that talent in. … [The backcourt violation], that’s buying in. That’s what we need.”

Second-year player Leonard Miller was making an impact with his defense and rebounding through the first half, but he missed most of the second half because of an eye injury. Miller was battling for a loose ball in the third quarter when he got poked in the eye.

He stayed down for several moments before attempting to play through it. He eventually returned to the bench and remained out the rest of the game. Miller’s hustle, rebounding and defense were filling the stat sheet before his exit. He had 10 points, six rebounds and three steals in nearly 16 minutes. Miller did stay on the bench for the rest of the game, and Hines said Miller should be OK for Sunday’s game.