Minnesota Timberwolves, Portland Trail Blazers, and Denver Nuggets make their young players shine

The workout that sealed the selection of Joan Beringer by the Minnesota Timberwolves with the 17th overall pick last month took place in Chicago less than a week before the draft, writes Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic.

The Wolves front office had been closely monitoring the young center, who didn't start playing basketball until he outgrew his soccer cleats at age 14 while with Cedevita Olimpija. But that late training allowed Beringer to showcase his off-court skills, which turned out to be the deciding factor for Minnesota's decision makers. "I remember making eye contact with [Wolves president, Tim Connelly] and we both raised our eyebrows, like, 'What's going on here, man?'," said chief scout Joe Connelly.

Beringer's agent, Jelani Floyd, believed his client's floor was at number 16 with Orlando, but when the Magic traded their pick to the Grizzlies, the Wolves reached out to him for a last-minute workout, and Floyd made the team's management attend. "My idea was: 'Hey, come in, bring your staff, and we'll see how serious you really are'," said Floyd.

The Wolves found Beringer's combination of size, mobility, and balance—capped off with a dunk from the free-throw line right out of the gate—impressive enough to decide that the French center had to be their guy.

Blazers and Nuggets Pleased with Young Players' Progress

Portland Trail Blazers head coach Chauncey Billups is excited about the preseason work of Scoot Henderson, who, according to Billups, is having an amazing summer. "Last year was a tough year for him, just because he couldn't play basketball in the summer. He was beat up, he was licking his wounds from the season," Billups said in an interview with ESPN's Summer League broadcast team. "This year, he's playing basketball all summer, he's working on his game, like you said. Scoot's gonna make an incredible leap this year." Billups also expressed his enthusiasm for how Jrue Holiday could help in Henderson's development: "What better player in the league could you have to mentor Scoot and Shaedon [Sharpe]?".

Yang Hansen was perhaps the biggest surprise of the 2025 draft when the Trail Blazers picked him at number 16, but his Summer League debut went a long way in silencing doubters, writes Sean Highkin of Rose Garden Report. Hansen scored 10 points, grabbed four rebounds, dished out five assists, and blocked three shots, and while his passing drew attention, Highkin states that the most impressive aspect of his debut was his communication with his teammates. At least one person within the Blazers organization wasn't surprised. "You don't do something that crazy unless you're sure about it," said the anonymous staff member.

Tamar Bates is finding ways to impact the Denver Nuggets' Summer League team beyond statistics, writes Bennett Durando of the Denver Post. Bates, on a two-way contract, has made an effort to be a vocal leader and a good communicator on the court. "I feel like I made a lot of winning plays," Bates said. "I hit a couple of shots, but I think what I'm most proud of is that I didn't let a missed shot or a turnover affect my communication and intensity." Nuggets' Summer League coach Andrew Munson agreed with the self-assessment. "He's the loudest guy on the team, in a good way," Munson said.

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