Jeff Teague, who spent parts of two seasons in Minnesota, says it’s “too much basketball” with Jonathan Kuminga now in the Timberwolves’ starting lineup alongside LaMelo Ball, Anthony Edwards, Jaden McDaniels and Rudy Gobert.
“That’s too much basketball. Kuminga’s a scorer — wanna be a scorer,” Teague said on the Club 520 Podcast. “I thought Jaden McDaniels was going to take another leap, being like a 20-point scorer. He still can, but I feel like Kuminga, the only thing that he tries to do is score. He plays defense a little bit, but he’s trying to get buckets.”
It’s his opinion, so whatever. But the reality is that Kuminga solves the biggest problem Minnesota’s roster actually had — and, no, we’re not talking about simply filling the void at power forward.
Teague is right that Kuminga cannot be the scorer he wants to be when he’s on the floor with the starting five. That responsibility goes first to Edwards, and then to Ball. He has to become a slasher and a catch-and-shoot guy, not the guy with the ball in his hands trying to create his own shots. With the starters, Kuminga is the third or fourth option.
- PG: LaMelo Ball (2nd option)
- SG: Anthony Edwards (1st option)
- SF: Jaden McDaniels (3rd or 4th option)
- PF: Jonathan Kuminga (3rd or 4th option)
- C: Rudy Gobert (5th option)
Ball is still arguably the number two scorer, even though he’s a facilitator first. That leaves the third and fourth options as a toss-up. Before Kuminga arrived, that was clearly McDaniels’ job. Now it’s McDaniels or Kuminga.
What Teague is missing is that it’s not about what Kuminga brings to the starting five; it’s about what he can do when paired with some backups.
Before Kuminga signed, Minnesota probably wouldn’t be comfortable resting Edwards and Ball at the same time very often. If both were on the bench pre-Kuminga, the Wolves would’ve been left with McDaniels, Ayo Dosunmu, TJ Shannon, and Bones Hyland as the best scoring options. This just in: That ain’t great.
Now it is, because Kuminga can pair with Shannon, who can be the backup point guard while operating as a mini Zion Williamson with the ball in his hands: attacking, scoring, getting to the line, or kicking out to Kuminga and others.
With Ant and Ball on the bench for 5- to 6-minute stretches, Kuminga can legitimately work as the offensive player that he wants to be. He could easily score close to 15-plus points per game when most of his touches are coming with the second unit — and that could lead to a big payday next summer.
Imagine this lineup combination when Edwards and Ball are getting a breather:
- PG: TJ Shannon
- SG: Ayo Dosunmu
- SF: Jaden McDaniels or Josh Green or Jaylen Clark
- PF: Jonathan Kuminga
- C: Joan Beringer
Minnesota could literally always guarantee to have three quality scorers on the floor at the same time. They have four good options in the starting five, and two or three with the second unit listed above.
That’s tremendous for Minnesota. Kuminga gives them a true starting power forward, but it also makes them deeper and more versatile the moment their two alphas sit down.
The Wolves are more dynamic than ever with Kuminga, which certainly isn’t “too much.”
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This story was originally published by Bring Me The Sports on Aug 27, 2026, where it first appeared in the MN Timberwolves section. Add Bring Me The Sports as a Preferred Source by clicking here.