Wolves look-ahead profile: Jake Layman

With the announcement of the NBA’s 22-team plan to close out the rest of the season, the Minnesota Timberwolves are now in offseason mode. The franchise will have to make plenty of tough decisions in the coming months, including an array of personnel moves.

As Gersson Rosas and Ryan Saunders navigate the NBA offseason, FOX Sports North will analyze each player on the Timberwolves and how they might fit in with the team in the future.

This edition: Jake Layman

Previously: Malik Beasley | Josh Okogie | Jarett Culver

BACKGROUND

A second-round pick out of Maryland in 2016, Layman was traded on draft day by Orlando to Portland. He played sparingly in his first two seasons with the Blazers but in his third year averaged 18.7 minutes while appearing in 71 games with 33 starts. The 6-foot-8 Layman showed some ability to score from all parts of the court as well as be a decent rebounder. Last offseason Minnesota acquired Layman in a sign-and-trade deal.

SEASON REVIEW

Layman figured to be an important part of the new-look Wolves and he was off to a decent start with the team. In his first 13 games, Layman averaged 10.8 points and 3.1 rebounds over 27.3 minutes per game while shooting 36.5% from 3-point territory.

However, Layman hurt his toe in his 14th game and missed over 40 games until returning Feb. 24. He was slowly brought back into the rotation, although in the nine games he appeared in before the NBA shutdown, he never reached 20 minutes in any. In his last three games Layman scored 14, 11 and nine points.

STATS

GAME TO REMEMBER

While Layman’s return in February was momentous, his best performance came on Nov. 16 vs. Houston. Starting and playing 36 minutes, Layman had a second-high 21 points on 9-of-14 shooting (3-of-4 from 3) with five rebounds, two assists, a steal and a block.

WHAT TO EXPECT NEXT SEASON

There’s a reason the Wolves went out and acquired Layman, who has two years left on the deal he signed before being traded. They figure him to have a big role in the franchise’s turnaround and is a good fit in a transition offense with his ability to make 2s and 3s. The toe injury is behind him now but he played very little this past year. It’s hard to say for anyone how a long layoff will affect them with the 2020-21 season expected to start late, likely sometime in December, but for Layman staying active and keeping the rust off these next six months might be a little more paramount than for others.