June 20th 2019. All 60 picks of the NBA Draft were named, and LSU bigman Naz Reid, was not one of those 60 picks. The 6’9 forward had come off of a Freshman season for the Tigers where he averaged a solid 13.6 points, 7.2 rebounds and an assist per game, as the squad from Baton Rouge were eliminated in the Sweet Sixteen of the NCAA Tournament, after suffering a 80-63 loss against the Michigan State Spartans. Shortly after the loss, Naz declared for the draft, forgoing his final years of college eligibility, in an attempt to go to the pros.
A couple of weeks later, on July 5th, Reid was signed to a two-way contract with the Minnesota Timberwolves, who had just come off of a tumultuous season, rocked by the trade request of star wing Jimmy Butler, and the eventual deal that sent him to the Philadelphia 76ers, with Dario Saric, Robert Covington, Jerryd Bayless and a 2022 second, which eventually became Matteo Spagnolo. The trade was a failure for the Wolves, as Bayless became a free agent and never returned to the NBA after the 2019 season, and Saric was flipped to the Suns, in a trade that scored Minnesota the 6th pick, Jarrett Culver. Minnesota’s original 11th pick became Cameron Johnson, who has emerged as a key contributor on a Phoenix squad who took a trip to the NBA finals, and, as a gritty scorer and defender, on a retooled Brooklyn Nets. Culver hasn’t had a permanent roster spot since the Wolves traded him to the Grizzlies prior to the 2021-22 season. Yikes.
Reid played through the Las Vegas Summer League and was arguably the Wolves’ top player in the competition, as they came runners up behind the Memphis Grizzlies, which rewarded him with a 4 year, $6 million deal with Minnesota. It showed the trust that the organisation had in him, as a contract for that long was almost unheard of for an undrafted player. Reid immediately got to work on becoming as good as he can be, and to carve a role out for himself, as a member of the Minnesota Timberwolves.
Unfortunately, that would not happen in his first season with the team. The New Jersey native played in 30 games for the Timberwolves, and averaged 8 points, 4 rebounds and an assist, as the Wolves succumbed to a dismal 19-45 record, the 2nd worst record in the NBA, with only the crippled Golden State Warriors winning less games over the season, before their seasons were curtailed by the COVID-19 Pandemic. Reid, who was 280lbs for most of the season, was undersized, slow and a poor rebounder for his position, meaning his ability to play meaningul minutes was severely handicapped, resulting in him spending significant time with the team’s G League affiliate in Iowa. But over the 2020 offseason, Naz worked hard, utilising the empty team facilities to work on his craft, and, focused on slimming down and honing his ball skills. He did just that.
The 2020-21 Season was cut to 72 games, and Naz played in 70 of them, averaging more minutes points and rebounds, as the Wolves won 23 games, in a season where key contributors missed serious amounts of time. Malik Beasley, missed 12 games due to a league issued suspension, whilst he was averaging over 20 points per contsest, D’Angelo Russell missed significant time due to a knee injury, and Karl Anthony Towns missed 32 games. In a season that ended in a 3rd consecutive missed post season, few bright spots existed, but Naz, along with rookies Jaden McDaniels and the electrifying Anthony Edwards, the Wolves had a bright future, and the squad was definitely heading in the right direction.
2021-22 was a similar story, except Minnesota had their first winning season in 3 attempts, as they made a return to the NBA Playoffs. The Timberwolves finished with a 46-36 record, with Reid averaging similar numbers to the prior year, but being much improved on defence, and coming up big when others faltered. For example, in the Play-In game against the Los Angeles Clippers, Naz posted up a crucial 8 points and 4 rebounds, in a game where his All NBA teammate Towns struggled badly. He grabbed two crucial rebounds down the stretch, as the Wolves pulled away as 109-104 winners. The Wolves, ultimately fell in 6 to Memphis, but, the signs of a breakout were there.
In the 2022 off season, the last with Naz under contract, the Wolves pulled the trigger on an explosive trade, sending 5 players, Patrick Beverley and Jarred Vanderbilt, chief amongst them, and 4 first round picks, to the Utah Jazz, for All Defense and 3 time DPOY winner Rudy Gobert. It produced a funny situation, where Naz was forced to either play alongside the Frenchman, in a strange, clunky duo, or, alongside Towns, which was, to put it bluntly, an awkward fit. Naz seemed to be out of the picture a little bit, as Taurean Prince emerged to take some of his backup 4 minutes. Until…..
The 28th November 2022. In the third quarter of the game against the Washington Wizards, Towns pulled up in a non-contact injury, as he ran back to defend a possession. The 3 time All Star had to be helped to the locker room and, his injury was initially thought to have been an Achilles injury, which would have ended the 7 footers season and more. However, Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN accounced a calf strain ruling the centre out until the New Year. This was Naz’s chance to cement himself, and prove he could step up big, just like he had back in April, when the Wolves had emerged victorious against the Clippers.
And cement himself he did. After Towns’ injury, the 6’9 big man averaged a career best 14ppg and 6rpg, as he helped to keep the Timberwolves’ playoff hopes alive, as he and teammate Edwards’ kept the Wolves afloat. AntMan had become an All Star. The future of the franchise. But what about Reid?
He had shown his elite skills all over the floor. Hustle plays like this, in a crucial win over the defending champion Golden State Warriors, to keep the Timberwolves’ hopes of a top 6 finish alive. Naz took the three, grabbed his own rebound, slipped through 3 Dubs defenders to secure the win in front of the Chase Centre crowd. Or moves like this, to slip away from both Trey Lyles and Harrison Barnes, before an emphatic slam to increase the lead to 12 points. This is what Naz Reid was capable of. We were just seeing it for the first time.
However, Naz was set to be an unrestricted free agent in the summer, and, with two Super Max contracts given to the centre position already, could Minnesota even afford to keep Reid in town? He had emerged as a fan favourite, but would his future lie elsewhere? He had certainly picked up a lot of suitors, including Los Angeles Lakers superstar, LeBron James who tweeted, his admiration for Naiz’s game. Sorry. Naz. It wasn’t just the King who had spotted Naz’s talents though. Teams from all across the association were taking looks at Naz, and, in a fairly lacklustre free agent class, Reid was seen as one of the best players available. Would Naz jump ship, or would the New Jersey native remain in Minnesota, where his role was unclear?
On the 25th June 2023, the Timberwolves and Naz Reid agreed to a 3 year, $42 million contract for him to remain in the North Star State. The tale of the undrafted centre continues in Minnesota, and the man from New Jersey will look to prove that the Timberwolves made the right choice. The growth of Naz from an undrafted, undersized, slow big man, into one of the most electric bench pieces in the league has been one that all Timberwolves fans, myself included have loved seeing. And the fan favourite sticking around for another 3 years, is certainly welcome news.
Matty Writes Sports 
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