Almost six months after he was drafted by the Timberwolves, Joan Beringer is still somewhat of an unknown for the fans. Yes, they saw him in the summer league and the preseason, but that’s a rather small sample size.
With Minnesota in the regular season, Beringer has only received garbage-time action. Recently, Beringer was assigned to the Iowa Wolves of the G League. Tuesday was his third G League outing, and 1 where he showcased some of the capabilities that had the Timberwolves enamored with him at the draft.
Beringer has now played three games in the G League
With the 17th overall pick of the 2025 NBA Draft, the Timberwolves selected Beringer out of France. He was just 18 years old when selected and turned 19 on November 11.
The 6-foot-11 center was expected to be somewhat of an unfinished project. Tuesday was his third game with Iowa in the G League, and it was probably the best of the three.
The Wolves improved to 8-6 with their 110-108 victory over the Wisconsin Herd. In 29 minutes, Beringer finished the win with 17 points (5-5 from the field, 4-5 from the foul line), eight rebounds, two assists, and four blocks.
Joan Beringer in his third G-League game:
17 points (9 in 1Q)
8 rebounds
4 blocks
2 assists
5-5 FG, 4-5 FT
29 minutes
His defensive versatility popped again (clips below), and benefited offensively when the Wolves got out and ran in transition. pic.twitter.com/W83LBE1Hgf
— Charlie Walton (@CharlieWaltonMN) December 17, 2025
The expected future version of him with the Timberwolves was seen on Tuesday. Beringer ran in transition on the offensive end, and on defense, he was a rim deterrent and was mostly able to stay in front of guards on the perimeter.
Giving him playing reps is crucial
In his first G League outing, Beringer had a double-double (10 points, 11 rebounds) but fouled out in 19 minutes. In his next G League performance, the Frenchman had 12 points and nine rebounds. Tuesday was his finest performance on both ends, though.
I was honestly surprised it took the team so long to assign Beringer to Iowa. With Minnesota, Beringer has only seen action in nine games for a total of 37 minutes. Sure, there was some value in practicing with four-time Defensive Player of the Year, Rudy Gobert, but nothing can take the place of playing reps.
The Timberwolves have had their struggles on the defensive end when Gobert is on the bench. Perhaps these G League minutes can eventually lead to some meaningful NBA minutes for the Timberwolves for Beringer, particularly when Gobert needs a blow.
Remember though, he’s only 19, and the goal is for him to become Gobert’s eventual successor.