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25-under-25: Andrew Wiggins at No. 11

By Bryan Toporek

MINNEAPOLIS, MN - MARCH 21: Andrew Wiggins #22 of the Minnesota Timberwolves looks on during the third quarter of the game against the San Antonio Spurs on March 21, 2017 at the Target Center in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The Spurs defeated the Timberwolves 100-93. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Hannah Foslien/Getty Images)
MINNEAPOLIS, MN - MARCH 21: Andrew Wiggins #22 of the Minnesota Timberwolves looks on during the third quarter of the game against the San Antonio Spurs on March 21, 2017 at the Target Center in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The Spurs defeated the Timberwolves 100-93. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Hannah Foslien/Getty Images) /
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The Step Back is rolling out its 25-under-25 list over the next two days. Follow along with our rankings of the top 25 players under the age of 25.

Three years into his NBA career, the book on Andrew Wiggins remains incomplete.

When the Cavaliers selected him first overall in 2014, he profiled as both an electric scorer and tenacious defender. With two subpar stoppers in Kyrie Irving and Dion Waiters manning Cleveland’s backcourt, Wiggins appeared poised to make his biggest impact on the defensive end of the floor early in his NBA career.

LeBron James’ decision to return to The Land changed everything, though.

Read More: Jimmy Butler can unlock Andrew Wiggins’ full two-way potential

One month later, the Cavaliers shipped Wiggins and 2013 No. 1 overall pick Anthony Bennett to the Timberwolves, where the Kansas product immediately became the new face of the franchise. Over the ensuing three years, he emerged as a nightly 20-plus-point-per-game scorer, but he has yet to translate his physical tools into above-average defense. This past season, Wiggins ranked 460th out of 468 players league-wide in defensive real plus-minus, according to ESPN, trailing luminaries such as Trey Burke, Brandon Knight and Kyle Korver.

Heading into the 2017-18 season, there’s renewed hope Wiggins can tap into his two-way potential. In June, the Timberwolves traded for three-time All-Star swingman Jimmy Butler, who made three appearances on the NBA’s All-Defensive Second Team from 2013-14 through 2015-16. In free agency, Minnesota brought in big man Taj Gibson, another favorite of head coach Tom Thibodeau. With Butler and Gibson in the fold, the Wolves are poised to drastically improve upon their 26th-ranked defense from this past season.

The additions of Butler, Gibson, point guard Jeff Teague and microwave scorer Jamal Crawford should help reduce some of the offensive pressure Wiggins faced over the past few years. In turn, that should allow the 22-year-old to focus more of his attention and energy on locking down opposing wings. With Butler aiding in that mission — and mentoring Wiggins during practices and in the locker room — this could be the year where the No. 1 overall pick turns his dismal defensive reputation around.

That development won’t come a moment too soon. Team owner Glen Taylor has offered Wiggins a five-year max contract worth roughly $150 million, but he wasn’t ready to do so until meeting face-to-face with the Kansas product.

“To me, by making this offer, I’m speculating that his contribution to the team will be more in the future,” Taylor told Jon Krawczynski of the Associated Press. “We’ve got to be better. He can’t be paid just for what he’s doing today. He’s got to be better.”

“So when you’re talking about negotiations on his part, I’m already extending to him that I’m willing to meet the max. But there are some things that I need out of him, and that is the commitment to be a better player than you are today.”

It isn’t hard to read through the not-so-subtle shade from Taylor. Wiggins’ impressive scoring output and sky-high potential merit keeping him around at all costs, but if he stagnates in his development, that $150 million investment could be a bust. Thibodeau echoed Taylor’s comments during an interview with ESPN.com’s Nick Friedell in mid-July: “The challenge is to be a complete player” he said in reference to Wiggins.

Those concerns have lingered with Wiggins since his college days, when he finished with more turnovers (80) than assists (54) during his lone year at Kansas. He hauled in just 10.4 percent of the available rebounds when he was on the court that season, fewer than eight of his Jayhawk teammates. That one-dimensional nature contributed to his proclivity to go missing in action at a moment’s notice, such as his four-point outing during a round-of-32 loss to Stanford in the NCAA Tournament.

Wiggins finished with more turnovers than assists in each of his first two seasons with the Timberwolves, and he barely had more helpers (189) than giveaways (187) this past year. He’s been even less of a threat on the glass in the NBA than he was in college, too. Among forwards who played at least 500 minutes in 2016-17, Wiggins had the third-worst rebound rate, ahead of only Luc Mbah a Moute and Terrence Ross. Chandler Parsons, whose knees may be made of papier-mâché, bested Wiggins in that metric, as did a pair of then-36-year-olds in Richard Jefferson and Mike Dunleavy.

In that sense, Butler may arrive in Minnesota at the perfect time. The former Bulls star barely saw the floor as a rookie and only cracked the team’s starting lineup toward the end of his sophomore campaign, but he steadily increased his assists from 0.3 in 2011-12 to a career-high 5.5 this past season. Wiggins may never match that lofty total, but if Butler can help him develop his playmaking instincts and improve as a ball-handler, it’ll make Wiggins much more dangerous offensively.

Then again, spacing could emerge as a major headache for Minnesota this season. Butler is a career 33.7 percent 3-point shooter. Teague knocked down 40 percent of his long-range attempts in 2015-16, but he’s a career 35.5 percent shooter from deep. Wiggins went 103-of-289 (35.6 percent) on triples last season, but he combined to go 96-of-316 (30.4 percent) across his first two seasons. If Gibson, who has hit four 3-pointers in nine NBA seasons, begins as Minnesota’s starting power forward, opponents will likely crowd the paint and dare Wiggins, Butler and Co. to make them pay from deep.

Next: 25-under-25 -- The best young players in the NBA

With Butler, Teague and Karl-Anthony Towns attracting defensive attention, Wiggins could thrive as an off-ball slasher if he accepts that role. If he continues to pigeonhole himself as a primary scorer at the expense of other facets of his game, however, it could limit Minnesota’s ceiling in the wildly competitive Western Conference. As such, Wiggins enters the 2017-18 campaign as one of the NBA’s biggest X-factors.

Can Wiggins round out his skill set and develop into a do-it-all, two-way superstar? We’ll find out soon enough.

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