Timberwolves coach Chris Finch wasn’t overly thrilled with the collective performance of his team in Minnesota’s exhibition finale Thursday.

Though the deep reserves went toe-to-toe with Denver’s rotational players to the bitter end of a 132-126 loss at Target Center, Finch seemed to think much was lacking in terms of purpose and attention to detail.

There was, however, one player whose performance pleased the coach: Luka Garza.

Yes, Garza delivered again offensively. The supremely skilled big man finished with 27 points to go with nine rebounds. But it was the general way in which Garza attacked the contest that seemed to make Finch happiest.

“He only knows one way to play. He gives you everything he’s got,” Finch said. “He’s got a ton of game, battles, took charges, stands people up, fights. I thought he was really good tonight, actually.”

Good Thursday night — good every night, and every day, whether he’s given the opportunity to show it or not. That’s part of the magic of Garza. Entering his third season in Minnesota, there is a more legitimate path to regular season playing time.

It won’t to start this season, either. There are still three bigs — Rudy Gobert, Naz Reid and Julius Randle — standing between the 25-year-old and any meaningful minutes. But now it does feel like Garza is just one injury away from playing time, which is his closest proximity during his Minnesota tenure.

“I think now, with our new lineup, with our new roster, there’s more opportunities for him to play situationally. Being always ready for that,” Finch said. “He’s a weapon. He can score in all ranges. We feature him when he comes into the game, because he’s so gifted. And usually we’ll have some sort of advantage. We just need him to keep improving his defense, and he’s gotten better there. He’s really started to embrace taking charges and protecting the rim with his verticality and stuff. So just keep growing and growing in that way.”

Even getting to this point — as a player on a guaranteed contract who could serve as a critical depth piece for Minnesota — is quite a leap from where Garza was two short years ago. The former Big Ten player of the year at Iowa entered the Wolves’ training camp in 2022 on an Exhibit-10 contract coming off a disappointing Summer League showing.

Garza had to win a two-way spot in camp that fall. He did so with his abilities, yes. But also through his habits. The Wolves saw how Garza approached his development each day and determined that was a model they wanted in the facility for others to follow.

“One of the things we liked about him most was his work ethic, his understanding of who he was as a player, where he was, what he needed to do to get better,” Finch said.

That same motor evident every time Garza takes the floor — the result of a kid growing up in the Washington, D.C., area who was never passed the ball, so he had to hit the offensive glass to get it — is equally revved up in the practice facility.

The coach said Garza was an “instrumental” piece of that 2022 offseason work that helped Reid and Jaden McDaniels make major leaps in their games. Seeing that process play out changed Finch’s perspective on leadership.

“That 38-year-old vet, he’s not going to spend the time with the other young players that Luka does, being next to them every day and being that example in the same timeframe of player development and playing in the (Stay In Shape League) games and all those things where he’s like right there with them,” Finch said. “(It) kind of made me rethink what it means to lead that part of the roster. That’s been invaluable.”

Garza is a poster child for how an organization would want a player farther down the roster to think and act. The lack of playing time does not deter his pursuit of improvement. Finch noted the team wanted Garza to change his body to improve his quickness. He’s done that through various training methods spanning from ladder work to inviting high school and college-level players to attack him in the pick-and-roll for 90 minutes at a time in the offseason. He knows the narrative about his game is that he can’t defend. And he’s never taken offense to it. Instead, it’s been his challenge to rewrite the story. Along with the physical work, he’s paid close attention to those ahead of him in the pecking order. He’s learned why Gobert is the NBA’s best at defending in drop coverage on pick-and-rolls. He watched as Reid learned how to switch in coverage and chase quick players around the perimeter. Every time he takes the floor, he does his best to emulate others who’ve achieved success in the system.

Everything that can be done to improve, Garza is doing it. Those are the habits with which the Timberwolves fell in love. Garza said he’s always had them.

“I think I just was raised in a tremendous, hard-working family. … I just was around the game since I was young, and I was around people who played the game the right way and approached the game the right way,” Garza said. “I think, being around this league, you see the margin for error — especially at the bottom half of the roster — is so slim. There’s so many players that are incredibly talented, but they can’t make it because they can’t handle some of the stress or they can’t come in every day with that same, consistent attitude and approach.”

Frankly, it’s hard to when you aren’t receiving the immediate payoff in the form of playing time. But Garza doesn’t see it that way. The only motivation he needs is his love for basketball.

“Coming in every day, it’s a blessing — it’s my dream. It don’t matter if I’m getting there early, working out, minutes aren’t coming, it doesn’t matter to me,” he said. “I don’t ever want to look back and say I didn’t do everything I could to make it, so regardless of my situation, I know every single day I’ve got to come in with that mindset and prepare and work like I am going to see minutes and have that faith and belief.”

Garza believes he’s developed into a rotation-quality player. He savors every opportunity to demonstrate that. The big man has scored 484 points across the 593 minutes he’s played in Minnesota in the preseason, regular season and playoffs — that equates to averaging 29.4 points per 36 minutes, a number rivaling some of the game’s elite talents.

Certainly, Garza isn’t close to that level of player, but he is, as Finch noted, “a weapon” offensively.

That those chances to strut his stuff are still few and far between will not get Garza down.

As great as he looks in his minutes, he said there’s “more growing to do.”

“You’ve got to leave it until it’s undeniable, and it’s not at that level yet, and I know that and I understand that. That’s what the mindset is now,” Garza said. “You continue to prove it and prove it and prove it until no one can say anything otherwise. That’s always the mindset. There’s no frustration for me, because I’m just blessed to be a part of this organization and playing and living my dream.

“Obviously, I want to be out there and play, but I’m never going to let that impact my attitude. Those are things you can’t control. When you get worried about things you can’t control, that’s when everything goes awry. And when you do get an opportunity, you end up not making the most of it, because your mind is all messed up.”

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