Bones Hyland Giving Timberwolves Shot in the Arm After Difficult Mental Battle
On Tuesday night, in a 139-106 blowout, Minnesota Timberwolves guard Nah’Shon “Bones” Hyland torched the Milwaukee Bucks off the bench. He had 23 points, dished out five assists, nabbed two rebounds, and recorded a steal in 21 minutes as a whopping plus-41 for his team.
A season-high in his second season with the Wolves, Hyland hasn’t scored that much since Dec. 8, 2024. This year, he’s averaging a modest 6.4 points and 2.5 assists in 13.9 minutes over 32 games, but shooting a career-best 45.1% from the field and 59.7% on twos. He’s strung together three straight double-digit outings twice now.
Amid injuries and spotty playing time over the last couple of years, the 25-year-old has been a wildcard in Minnesota’s rotation.
Hyland has suited up for as many as 35 minutes as a starter for three games in mid-December, while simultaneously registering nine DNP-CDs throughout the first half of the campaign.
While it’s a fluctuating responsibility on his plate, he’s undoubtedly made the most of the chances he’s gotten.
“I feel like I’ve handled it good,” Hyland told R.org in an exclusive interview in Cleveland. “When your number’s called, you go out there and try to produce for your team. We’re a great team with a great roster, so anybody on the team can get their number called, and you’ve got to go out there and you’ve got to produce. That’s where my mind’s been at for sure.”
“I’m really proud of him, excited for him,” Wolves head coach Chris Finch added to R.org in his pregame press conference. “I think when he hasn’t played, he’s had the same energy and excitement to come to work every day as he has now. He’s playing and excited to play, and he’s really helped us.”
Before a home-and-home series with the Cleveland Cavaliers, Finch approached Hyland to discuss his place in Minnesota’s rotation.
“He was just like, ‘Your minutes aren’t gonna be the same every night. Don’t get discouraged or frustrated thinking that they’re not gonna be those minutes,’” Hyland said. “Basically saying no matter what the rotation, what time I go in, I’m still gonna play my minutes that I’ve been playing.”
“He just has this inconsistent role,” Finch added. “Never sure when he might go in, [when] he’s definitely gonna go in. He might play five minutes. He might play nine minutes. The way that we use our guys, he’s often kinda the flexible piece, if you will.”
Hyland is grateful for Finch’s straightforward nature.
“Just have to have that transparency from a coach that talks to you, talks to you about your minutes, about the time that you’ll be playing, I feel like that’s very helpful,” Hyland said. “It allows you to lock in when you’re about to go in and not just on some random [moment] that you get your number called, you know? I definitely appreciate coach for that.”
The Reason Behind Bones’ Role
There’s a lot of talent in Minnesota’s locker room, evidenced by the team’s 27-14 record, tied for the third-most wins in the NBA. Hyland described the roster as “phenomenal.”
“When we lock in, I feel like we’re the best team in the NBA,” Hyland said. “A lot of teams don’t really want to see us because of how great we match up with teams, on the offensive and defensive end.
“We have a lot of scorers on the team. We have a lot of defenders on the team. We have guys who can rebound. We have guys who are versatile and can play numerous roles. I feel like it’s a team that a lot of coaches would love to coach.”
Because of who the Wolves have at their disposal, they like to put Hyland next to anybody.
“The great thing is he can play with so many different lineups,” Finch said. “He’s really been a shot in the arm.”
Hyland works with everyone in the backcourt. According to NBA.com’s lineup data, Donte DiVincenzo is his top partner with a plus-20.6 net rating overall in 220 minutes.
Since the turn of the New Year, that pairing has an advantage of 45.8 points per 100 possessions, the best in the NBA by eight on the next qualifying duo; that includes a stifling 85.9 defensive rating.
In that same sample size, Hyland and Anthony Edwards have combined for a plus-22.7 NET. With Jaylen Clark, it’s plus-45.0. On the season as a whole, he and Conley are a plus-27.2 in 52 minutes.
“It’s great because no matter who’s on the floor, we can switch 1-through-3, sometimes 1-through-4 [depending on] the team,” Hyland continued. “I’m 6-3 with a 6-10 wingspan, so, definitely can guard a lot of bigger guards too. Even on the offensive end, I create and [have] shooting abilities. I can create for myself, create for my teammates. I can get downhill.
“You could throw me out there with any lineup, and it’d be productive.”
Contextually, there’s a four-time Defensive Player of the Year in Rudy Gobert behind him as a rim protector, a three-time All-Star in Julius Randle pushing guys off their spots, a proven lockdown wing in Jaden McDaniels, and a monstrous super sub in Naz Reid, all playing their roles in the frontcourt. All of them are long, strong, and physically imposing individuals.
However, it’s hard not to notice Hyland’s effect, judging by proven advanced data. According to Cleaning the Glass, the Wolves’ NET is in the 98th percentile when he’s on the court, and they’re playing at the rate of a 72-win team. He’s taking care of the basketball and helping force turnovers, being active on the glass, and defending at his highest level.
R.org posed the question of what sticks out the most about Hyland’s skill set to Finch.
“His handle. His ability to go somewhere, make a play at the end of it. He’s got deep range, his shooting,” Finch said. “I’ve been really pleased with his defense; he’s fighting his tail off there as much as he can, that’s all we ask for. But we just need more guys that can connect our main guys, and he does a good job with that.”
After the Los Angeles Clippers traded him away to the Atlanta Hawks before the 2025 NBA trade deadline for Bogdan Bogdanovic, Hyland was waived right after. He was out of the league for three weeks until Minnesota came calling.
The Aid of an Old Friend
Wolves president of basketball operations Tim Connelly – the same man who drafted him with the 26th overall pick when he was with the Denver Nuggets in 2021 – signed Hyland to a two-way contract on Feb. 27 of last year.
Bones only played two games with the Iowa Wolves in dominant fashion. He spent the rest of the season with Minnesota, getting acclimated with his new ball club.
Ahead of training camp this past fall, he signed a standard contract as a part of the Wolves’ main roster, back doing what he loves following a road full of ups and downs. Now, in the middle of his fifth NBA season, Hyland opened up on how he’s changed since he came into the league.
“I would say the biggest thing is maturity, understanding the business side of basketball, and just understanding the patience of basketball, too,” Hyland said. “I feel like some guys get carried away with losing their mind, losing their mental battle with basketball. I feel like once you beat that, everything comes to be much easier for you on the court.
“I feel like I beat that, and now, it’s just taking care of the basketball part and just trying to go out there and be the best basketball player I can be for Minnesota.”