yahoo - 1/29/2026 5:36:11 PM - GMT (+2 )
On Thursday, the Minnesota Timberwolves, fresh off a two-game winning streak, will welcome the Oklahoma City Thunder in a rematch of last season’s Western Conference finals. As a primetime nationally televised game, Anthony Edwards and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander will be the draw, a clash of two of the most talented young superstars the game has to offer. A marketing dream.
But from a tactical perspective, so much of this game is centered around Wolves forward Jaden McDaniels’ defensive versatility and responsibility against a historically lethal offensive juggernaut.
Meetings with the reigning champs are always a progress marker — especially for title-chasing teams. A little over a week ago, the Wolves were sitting comfortably in fourth place in the West with all the makings of a legitimate contender before enduring a five-game losing streak.
In times when the Wolves have struggled — their offense has come to a screeching halt over the last two weeks, scoring at the fourth-worst rate in the NBA, according to Cleaning the Glass — they’ve hung their collective hats at the other end of the floor, with McDaniels (and center Rudy Gobert, his partner in crime) as the bedrock of the league’s fifth-most efficient defense.
“His defense has been there for a while,” head coach Chris Finch said. “What he’s really been able to do defensively is add nuance to his game as he’s learned to play these guys multiple times a year. Having him as a point-of-attack defender with that length is a luxury. And we’ve actually moved him off the ball a bit more this year and put him at the bottom of the floor where he can be in help and be at the rim — and that’s been massive for us.”
Standing at 6-foot-9 with a seven-foot wingspan, McDaniels’ sheer length puts him in a class above the average wing defender, affording him the reach to be a deterrent against pesky, smaller guards as well as hold his own against bigs. But it’s the combination of his intangibles — his motor, screen navigation, defensive IQ and processing speed — that separates him from the pack. Need McDaniels to blow up a pick-and-roll and wall off an entry post pass? No problem. Having issues around the rim and need some assistance? Check.
The advanced metrics paint McDaniels as quite the productive player, too. Estimated Plus-Minus grades McDaniels as a 96th percentile defender. According to Cleaning the Glass, Minnesota’s defense is 3.5 points per 100 possessions better with McDaniels on the floor, which puts him in the 77th percentile in on/off impact. Bball-Index gives McDaniels high marks in perimeter isolation defense, ball screen navigation, rim protection, post defense, rim disruption and off-ball chase defense.
So how does he do it?
McDaniels sat down with Yahoo Sports to rewatch some of his impressive game film, breaking down exactly what goes on in his mind in real time.
In the clip below, McDaniels is tasked with defending a James Harden/Ivica Zubac pick-and-roll, one of the Clippers’ offensive staples. McDaniels not only is able to avoid Zubac’s screen and contain Harden, he’s able to dart toward the rim and break up what would have been an easy lob to Zubac.
McDaniels: “This is just Rudy and I having a good connection and always communicating. Earlier, you see Harden trying to go down the floor. Because I guard the best players, I know that anytime you see the best player try to go down to the bottom of the floor, he always comes back for an action.
“So seeing how he’s coming down and knowing he’s coming back, knowing I can’t get back in front and talking to Rudy, telling him to break off and using my length to get the deflection. That’s just something we do often, me and Rudy.”
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Rudy plays a lot in drop coverage to protect the rim, and your job navigating screens is to direct traffic. How do you find the balance to help each other out, especially if he’s caught out?
McDaniels: “I just try to pursue as much as I can. There’s a mark — the hash after the free-throw line — where we know if I’m not in front by that time, it’s time to break off and I’ll go to the big man. But most of the time, because he plays in a high drop, I just try to defeat screens on my own or make sure that the defender knows I’m pursuing. I’ll be there regardless.”
After a wild offensive rebound leading to a second opportunity for Sacramento, McDaniels maintains pressure on Keon Ellis, the initial ball-handler, before switching onto DeMar DeRozan at the top of the key. McDaniels avoids the screen, staying with DeRozan on the drive all the way to the rim before swatting the shot attempt.
McDaniels: DeMar usually likes to go left. And he rejected the screen. That’s just me timing everything up at the rim. I be telling (Anthony Edwards) stay home cause I know I’ll be able to get a good contest. I’m able to block it most of the time — I’m taller and longer than everybody so that’s my advantage.
A good chunk of advanced metrics place your rim protection in the upper percentiles. What’s the secret to being efficient in that aspect of defense? Typically you’re chasing guards around the floor — what is the mental shift from perimeter to paint?
McDaniels: “I lowkey like being off the ball too! Being like a cornerback. I like being the low man because I know that I’m always going to contest. Even when I’m on the perimeter guarding, it’s something I always say to myself. Even if I get shaken, I have to contest. Being the low man or help guy, it’s fun for me trying to go block people. The switch from perimeter to bottom of the floor is pretty easy for me.”
Against Jamal Murray and Nikola Jokić, arguably the most lethal duo in the NBA, McDaniels picks up the Nuggets guard well beyond the 3-point line, delaying any pick-and-roll action, and crowds Murray’s vision, causing an errant late-game pass.
McDaniels: “I think Rudy was in foul trouble, so we had to just try to switch the screens. I know people have certain tendencies and moves. I try to know which way they like to go. Here, I already know where Jokić is and I’m playing the bottom hand. Really just pressuring (Murray) and containing him without reaching. Not doing anything to where I get a foul and overpressure, and he ended up turning it over himself. That’s what I mean by plays that don’t show up on the stat sheet. I don’t get the steal, but I made most of that stuff happen.”
Where did you develop your stance from? The wingspan takes up so much space naturally, but how did the rest come about?
McDaniels: “Probably in high school. We used to go hard on defensive drills. There were days where we didn’t touch a basketball. That’s what really made me believe in defense.”
After successfully sending Gilgeous-Alexander toward Gobert’s orbit, McDaniels switches back onto Chet Holmgren on the wing. From there, McDaniels is expected to generate a quality defensive stop on Holmgren as he works his way to the post.
McDaniels: “That’s just me being patient. I always tell the younger guys on my team like Jaylen Clark — ‘cause he says he can guard — be patient and be the second jumper. That’s something I learned early. People have game! (Holmgren) got a lot of fakes and pivot moves, it’s just being the last jumper and always getting a contest. That’s just one of the rules I go by to make sure I contest everything.”
With all of that in mind, it would be one thing if McDaniels was an elite defender that was a liability at the other end of the floor. In recent years, that specialist role has diminished in value, as defenses have gotten smarter at scheming and exploiting weaknesses.
McDaniels has developed consistently as a shooter, connective playmaker and overall scoring threat. According to Stathead, there are only three players in the NBA averaging at least 1 block, 1 steal, 4.5 rebounds and 1.5 defensive win shares per game, while shooting 40% from 3 and averaging at least 14 points per game: Kevin Durant, Edwards and McDaniels.
McDaniels is shooting a career-high 42.3% from beyond the arc, nearly a 10% jump from last season — all while essentially maintaining the same volume. In the play below, once McDaniels notices Bones Hyland moving toward the rim, he relocates from the corner to the wing, allowing Julius Randle to drive knowing he’ll be there for a release.
McDaniels: “I’m already knowing they’re going to help on Julius and I’m ready to play up and shoot. By that time, I already hit like two or three (3s) so I was feeling good and let it go. Extreme confidence playing.”
What about your relocation has improved recently? Defenses will naturally be somewhat compact when Randle or Edwards has the ball.
McDaniels: “Knowing teams put two on Ant or Julius, I used to just stand in the corner and that wasn’t a good outlet. Really just wanting other opportunities and getting the ball, so just coming up in space. Whatever I do from there, just being confident and attacking.”
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