Minnesota’s Wembanyama Problem Starts With Its Rotation

By Felix Navarro May 1, 2026

Minnesota's first Spurs problem is the usable rotation around Anthony Edwards: who handles pressure, who spaces around Rudy Gobert, and who keeps possessions alive when Victor Wembanyama bends the floor.

Fan question

What should fans track first as injury-depleted Minnesota turns from beating Denver to facing Victor Wembanyama and the Spurs?

Track the usable bodies around Anthony Edwards before the Gobert-Wembanyama headline: Terrence Shannon Jr.’s surprise-start scoring, Jaden McDaniels’ two-way load, and the statuses of Ayo Dosunmu, Kyle Anderson, and Donte DiVincenzo decide how much pressure Minnesota can actually apply.

Minnesota beat Denver 110-98, but the first Spurs question is not just Rudy Gobert staring across at Victor Wembanyama.

It is what the floor looks like around Anthony Edwards. When San Antonio pressures the first action, who brings the ball to the second side? When Wembanyama sits near the rim, who pulls help away from the paint? When the bench tightens, who can guard without fouling and still make the next pass?

Start With Edwards' First Step

Edwards missed Game 4 with a left knee bone bruise, so the first thing to watch is not only his scoring. It is whether he can turn the corner. If he gets two feet in the paint, Minnesota can play normal basketball: kickouts, rotations, cuts behind the help, Gobert with structure around him.

If Edwards is mostly moving sideways or settling early, every other role gets heavier. The Wolves can still win possessions that way, but the series starts to feel like work on every catch.

The Replacement Minutes Have To Travel

Terrence Shannon Jr.'s 24 points in a surprise start were the cleanest sign from the Denver clincher that Minnesota might have another usable piece. Now the question changes. Can he hold those minutes when the game slows down, the closeouts are more calculated, and one shaky decision gives San Antonio a runout or lets Wembanyama stay planted near the rim?

Jaden McDaniels' 32 points and 10 rebounds matter even more because they came with the kind of two-way burden Minnesota may need again. If McDaniels can score in bursts while still taking a hard defensive job, the Wolves have a bridge through the injury stress. If his legs fade because he has to solve too many problems at once, the rotation gets thin quickly.

Separate The Injuries

Donte DiVincenzo's ruptured Achilles and surgery are not the same kind of series question as Kyle Anderson being out ill or Ayo Dosunmu being scratched with a sore right calf. DiVincenzo is not a Game 1 lever. Anderson and Dosunmu might be, if available.

That distinction matters because connective players change the shape of a possession. They bring the ball up under pressure, make the extra pass, stand in the right corner, take the tougher guard for three minutes, and stop the offense from becoming Edwards-or-nothing.

Then Watch The Bigs

The Gobert-Wembanyama possessions still matter. They just do not exist in a vacuum. If Minnesota has enough shooting and decision-making around Gobert, those minutes can have structure. If the injuries squeeze the spacing, Wembanyama can bend the possession before Gobert ever catches the ball.

For Game 1, track four things: Edwards' burst, Shannon's real minutes, McDaniels' two-way load, and whether Anderson or Dosunmu gives Minnesota another connective body. Those will tell fans more about the series shape than the clean big-man headline.