Timberwolves' Joan Beringer Hype Comes With One Major Catch

Joan Beringer has an All-NBA ceiling.

All it takes is a scroll of his highlights to see the physical flashes, the defensive instincts, and the athleticism on offense that allows him to get higher than anybody else on the floor.

But it's a ceiling for a reason. And just like Anthony Edwards and Jaden McDaniels needed time to find their ideal groove in the league, Beringer's trial by fire season as the backup big man to fellow Frenchman Rudy Gobert in the lineup will be no exception.

Because of the physical tools he possesses and some of the tape he was able to produce last season, it does feel as though expectations may be a little inflated out of the gate. Expectations remain high for someone who will have no shortage of minutes, but the first handful of preseason games have been a perfect tone-setter of what the Wolves might get from him early in the season.

"He's gotta learn," head coach Chris Finch said after the preseason opener against the Milwaukee Bucks. Beringer found himself in foul trouble, as he has done so often early on in his career.

"It's going to be a work in progress," Finch added. In this case, progress may look like three steps forward, two back—an ascension nonetheless.

The opener in Milwaukee serves as an excellent example. The backup five man was his promising self—high-flying with jaw-dropping putback, an immaculate sense of space, and a stat line that left everyone that watched wanting more.

But flanked by that was foul trouble—something Beringer has struggled with throughout his young career. A high fould rate last season, it's a defensive tug-of-war between his excellent shot blocking instincts and inability to guard straight up. And while his sense of the floor is excellent on the offensive end, he has often found himself ball watching defensively and getting beat to the rim.

Following the game against the Bucks, he once again found himself lost against the Indiana Pacers in Hilton Coliseum. Managing just two points and a -8 while on the floor. It's not for defense and fouling being a point of emphasis, however.

"Last season, I had some games where I did so many fouls," he said at media day in late September.
"I just learn to manage my effort on the court and be smarter in defense...showing that I learn and that I'm ready to play."

Beringer would go on to rubber band back in the following game against the Miami Heat with 10 points, posting a +16 en route to four blocks.

So, why the lecture?

Perhaps to level set on expectations with everyone else. Heading into the season, it was pretty impossible to predict what to expect from a player who was growing at such a rapid rate, while flashing as a rookie and soon thrust into a larger role whether ready or not. Notoriously, coaches with the Wolves have beamed about his ability to pick up concepts and learn the game. But where would it leave us after an offseason?

A group of extremely up and down exhibition games that are sure to reflect the euphoric ups and painstaking downs that will come this season. The competition will be better and try harder—and there will be games where he finds the bench for most of his rotations because of an inability to stay vertical. Then games where he's generating second chance points, catching lobs, and looking like the Gobert heir apparent that so many fans want him to be.

"The first practice I had with [LaMelo], he threw me so many lobs, I had never seen it before," he said at media day.

With a full season of development—negatives and positives all the same, he may just end up being something Wolves fans have never seen before either.

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