All Things 2023 Minnesota Timberwolves Off-Season Thread

[JimmyJamesMD]

Yeah, it'll be really tough to make salaries work but that would actually be pretty awesome. Either Scoot Henderson or Brandon Miller would look really good on our team. It would probably require a third team probably to flip Simmons/Nukic for something else.

The bones would have to be something like Nukic _+ filler + 3 for Towns, and I would make the deal this instant.

At the end of the day, Portland is going to have to decide if they feel a team centered on Towns and Lillard can compete in the West.

Unless it's some complex 3 or 4 team trade, Portland would have to include Simons. They dont have much for contracts

 

[Slim Tubby]

Yeah, it'll be really tough to make salaries work but that would actually be pretty awesome. Either Scoot Henderson or Brandon Miller would look really good on our team. It would probably require a third team probably to flip Simmons/Nukic for something else.

The bones would have to be something like Nukic _+ filler + 3 for Towns, and I would make the deal this instant.

At the end of the day, Portland is going to have to decide if they feel a team centered on Towns and Lillard can compete in the West.

If the main asset coming back for a 27 year old, 3x All Star is a completely unproven PG that can't shoot (Scoot) or a thug that should be in prison as an accomplice to murder (Miller), just move the team to Seattle or Vegas already.

I'm not opposed to trading Towns but if you look at the history of the NBA Draft, the chance that whoever is taken at #3 ends up being even remotely as talented as KAT is almost zero.

The fact that CHA and POR are interested in moving their picks tells you all you need to know about the lack of star power in this draft after Wemby.

Nurkic is a decent player but at $17M/year is redundant with Gobert and we want to re-sign Reid. Simons is one of the 10 worst contracts in the league and makes KAT look like a defensive guru.

I understand the desire to have our future PG on the roster (me too) but this is not the answer IMO.

 

[Bob_Loblaw]

If the main asset coming back for a 27 year old, 3x All Star is a completely unproven PG that can't shoot (Scoot) or a thug that should be in prison as an accomplice to murder (Miller), just move the team to Seattle or Vegas already.

I'm not opposed to trading Towns but if you look at the history of the NBA Draft, the chance that whoever is taken at #3 ends up being even remotely as talented as KAT is almost zero.

The fact that CHA and POR are interested in moving their picks tells you all you need to know about the lack of star power in this draft after Wemby.

Nurkic is a decent player but at $17M/year is redundant with Gobert and we want to re-sign Reid. Simons is one of the 10 worst contracts in the league and makes KAT look like a defensive guru.

I understand the desire to have our future PG on the roster (me too) but this is not the answer IMO.

I hear you on Miller that'd be a difficult thing to get over for me. We disagree on Henderson. He was fantastic in the G League last year.

You're 100% right though, the chance of Henderson/Miller being better than KAT is probably around 10-15%. It's unlikely. However, KAT is 27 years old, he has missed significant time in 3 of the last 4 seasons. This draft is generally considered to be pretty deep, even outside of Wemby.

I can definitely see your point and I think that staying put could definitely be our best option. I don't hate the idea of rolling the dice on a high upside player like Henderson, but I am definitely not desperate to move KAT.

 

[Bob_Loblaw]

Unless it's some complex 3 or 4 team trade, Portland would have to include Simons. They dont have much for contracts

I think Portland will probably have some space where they can take on more salary than they trade out. They'd have to renounce their rights to some of their impending FAs (Grant, Thybulle, and Reddish), but I think they'd have some space under the cap to take on KAT and trade out 15-20 million.

 

[kg21]

Miami up 2-0. Need them to go home and sweep the Celtics.

Celtics then trade Jaylen Brown to the Wolves for KAT. Some pieces will need to be mixed in.

 

[Slim Tubby]

I hear you on Miller that'd be a difficult thing to get over for me. We disagree on Henderson. He was fantastic in the G League last year.

You're 100% right though, the chance of Henderson/Miller being better than KAT is probably around 10-15%. It's unlikely. However, KAT is 27 years old, he has missed significant time in 3 of the last 4 seasons. This draft is generally considered to be pretty deep, even outside of Wemby.

I can definitely see your point and I think that staying put could definitely be our best option. I don't hate the idea of rolling the dice on a high upside player like Henderson, but I am definitely not desperate to move KAT.

I like the potential of Scoot, PG is definitely a position of need and shooting %'s can always improve. He's my clear #2 prospect in the draft. With that said, he's probably 4-5 years before reaching his potential and the Gobert trade was an all out effort to win now. KAT gives us a better chance right now and that hopefully keeps Ant from getting frustrated and asking out.

The new CBA will make it very hard to have three (3) Max players on the roster which will bring more parity to the league which I'm a big fan of. With Ant and McDaniels soon up for contracts, something will need to happen and Towns is the logical piece to move though I'd prefer it be Gobert due to his age. I'm holding out hope for a KAT/Mykal Bridges trade but that's probably a pipedream.

 

[jamiche]

If the main asset coming back for a 27 year old, 3x All Star is a completely unproven PG that can't shoot (Scoot) or a thug that should be in prison as an accomplice to murder (Miller), just move the team to Seattle or Vegas already.

I'm not opposed to trading Towns but if you look at the history of the NBA Draft, the chance that whoever is taken at #3 ends up being even remotely as talented as KAT is almost zero.

The fact that CHA and POR are interested in moving their picks tells you all you need to know about the lack of star power in this draft after Wemby.

Nurkic is a decent player but at $17M/year is redundant with Gobert and we want to re-sign Reid. Simons is one of the 10 worst contracts in the league and makes KAT look like a defensive guru.

I understand the desire to have our future PG on the roster (me too) but this is not the answer IMO.

I don't want Miller under any circumstances. If Connelly/ARod/Lore add Miller after doing the Gobert deal they will make Kahn look like a HOF GM.

 

[Slim Tubby]

I don't want Miller under any circumstances. If Connelly/ARod/Lore add Miller after doing the Gobert deal they will make Kahn look like a HOF GM.

According to numerous reports, Miller is grossly out of shape and has been absolutely bombing his pre-draft team interviews. Some team will draft him high but a slide down the board seems imminent. He's an absolute POS and I couldn't agree more with your take.

 

[BleedGopher]

Per Shooter:

>> Kevin Garnett is still expected to be part of Timberwolves ownership if Alex Rodriguez and Marc Lore finalize their $1.5 billion purchase next year.

Charley Walters: Twins batters are major leagues’ strikeout kings

Minnesota Twins starters Sonny Gray, Joe Ryan, Pablo Lopez, Bailey Ober and Louie Varland are a combined 16-3 this season. That’s pitching. As hitters, though, the Twins lead the majors in strikeou…

www.twincities.com

Howl Wolves!!

 

[kg21]

timberwolves have played the nuggets better than anyone in the playoffs.

 

[jamiche]

Very clotheslineable?

I kinda thought he was high. (No physical evidence at all. Just idle internet speculation from a bunch of years ago based on a hunch.) He was a little on the spacey side. Very mellow.

Kahn and Rambis. A Dream Team.

 

[BleedGopher]

Chip: Chris Finch gets another year with Timberwolves while higher-profile NBA coaches get fired. Here's why

The NBA's coaching carousel revved up again — predictably, since firing coaches serves as an annual rite of spring.

The names involved in this cycle move the conversation beyond just normal business. Mike Budenholzer. Doc Rivers. Monty Williams. Nick Nurse.

Prominent names. All accomplished coaches. Two of them — Budenholzer and Nurse — led their respective teams to NBA championships in recent years.

But for different reasons, all those coaches ended up unemployed after their teams fell short of expectations.

Within this firing frenzy, Timberwolves ownership and team President Tim Connelly decided to show patience by sticking with Chris Finch after an erratic season that was a bucket of cold water to the face.

I would have made that same decision. Between Karl-Anthony Towns' 52-game injury absence and the unconventional experiment involving Rudy Gobert, Finch faced challenging circumstances that weren't always in his control. Changing coaches again right now is not the move.

Next season? Different discussion, if the results don't change.

Chris Finch gets another year with Timberwolves while higher-profile NBA coaches get fired. Here's why

It has been an extraordinary firing season in the NBA. But Finch was is being given more time to turn the Timberwolves into true contenders. Is that the right move?

www.startribune.com

Howl Wolves!!

 

[From the Parkinglot]

Future twolve?

 

[Slim Tubby]

Future twolve?

It's a very flat drive to MN.

 

[JimmyJamesMD]

Now that LeFlop has been eliminated, Im good!

 

[jamiche]

Future twolve?

Kyrie.
Just what the wolves need. Maybe Connelly/ARod/Lore will trade Ant, Jaden and a few more unprotected 1sts to get him.

 

[kg21]

I was struck by how the Lakers couldn't play Vanderbilt, Beasley, and very little of DLO.

 

[GopherWeatherGuy]

I was struck by how the Lakers couldn't play Vanderbilt, Beasley, and very little of DLO.

Beasley and Vando just aren't that good, and people will still complain that we traded them.

 

[Bob_Loblaw]

Beasley and Vando just aren't that good, and people will still complain that we traded them.

Yeah, I think people missed Beasley because Nowell was awful in that role. They stopped missing Beasley after NAW joined the team. He isn't very good.

Vando is just a high energy big with almost no skill. If he didn't have the worst hands in the history of basketball, he might actually be ok. I think some Wolves fans missed him because we had so little grit on our team last year. It was almost like how fans missed Corey Brewer. We were so lethargic without them that we craved energy - even if it was pretty unproductive chaotic energy. He played about the same for the Lakers this year as he played for the Wolves the previous year (~25 minutes per game and about ~15 minutes per game in the playoffs).

DLo is just DLo. He is the most annoying player I've ever followed. At times he looks like a dynamic scorer, at times he completely disappears, plays no defense and it looks an awful lot like he just doesn't care. The Lakers got DLo'd in this series. Who could have seen it coming?

 

[Iceland12]

"Lakers, Jazz and Timberwolves are finalizing trade sending D’Angelo Russell, Malik Beasley and Jarred Vanderbilt to Los Angeles, Russell Westbrook and first-round pick to Utah and Mike Conley Jr. and second-round pick compensation to Minnesota, sources tell @TheAthletic @Stadium."

@ShamsCharania 7:12 PM · Feb 8, 2023

As Bob just pointed out The Wolves actually won that trade.

 

[JimmyJamesMD]

"Lakers, Jazz and Timberwolves are finalizing trade sending D’Angelo Russell, Malik Beasley and Jarred Vanderbilt to Los Angeles, Russell Westbrook and first-round pick to Utah and Mike Conley Jr. and second-round pick compensation to Minnesota, sources tell @TheAthletic @Stadium."

@ShamsCharania 7:12 PM · Feb 8, 2023

As Bob just pointed out The Wolves actually won that trade.

I read at article that suggested the Lakers just should have taken Conley. Can't say I disagree with that.

 

[Iceland12]

I read at article that suggested the Lakers just should have taken Conley. Can't say I disagree with that.

True but he wasn't "showy" enough for them.

 

[tikited]

1. Yeah, I think people missed Beasley because Nowell was awful in that role. They stopped missing Beasley after NAW joined the team. He isn't very good.

2. Vando is just a high energy big with almost no skill. If he didn't have the worst hands in the history of basketball, he might actually be ok. I think some Wolves fans missed him because we had so little grit on our team last year.

3. DLo is just DLo. He is the most annoying player I've ever followed.

1. Spot on.
2. Vando has better hands than Gobert. I would take Vando back in a heartbeat. Great guy to have on your team.
3. DLo and Wiggins are tied for the most annoying T-Wolves ever.

 

[Bob_Loblaw]

1. Spot on.
2. Vando has better hands than Gobert. I would take Vando back in a heartbeat. Great guy to have on your team.
3. DLo and Wiggins are tied for the most annoying T-Wolves ever.

Can't disagree with this take. DLo might just be more annoying for me because of my recency bias.

 

[jamiche]

Can't disagree with this take. DLo might just be more annoying for me because of my recency bias.

I think DLo wins it because you can tell he’s kind of a jerk. Wigs was just kind of Wigs. There was no pretense about whether or not he was going to give the wolves his best effort. He certainly didn’t fool LeBron. The only guy he fooled was Taylor.

He drove us crazy, but he was sort of likable in an odd way.

 

[Bob_Loblaw]

I think DLo wins it because you can tell he’s kind of a jerk. Wigs was just kind of Wigs. There was no pretense about whether or not he was going to give the wolves his best effort. He certainly didn’t fool LeBron. The only guy he fooled was Taylor.

He drove us crazy, but he was sort of likable in an odd way.

Yeah, I agree.

I don't know if this is fair at all, but there is also something about DLo's face and body language that just screamed apathy. I don't know if that's me being older than him and screaming at the clouds, but his body language infuriated me.

 

[kg21]

Yeah, I agree.

I don't know if this is fair at all, but there is also something about DLo's face and body language that just screamed apathy. I don't know if that's me being older than him and screaming at the clouds, but his body language infuriated me.

DLO had a hot shooting game against Golden State, was being congratulated and he came out and said he was not being held back anymore. That was a shot at the wolves.

He was dog shit the rest of the playoffs. It makes me laugh.

 

[atsgopher]

Just read D Lo wanted 100 Million for 4 years from TWolves. Damn. No thank you.

 

[Slim Tubby]

Just read D Lo wanted 100 Million for 4 years from TWolves. Damn. No thank you.

I'd pay him NOT to be on the Wolves. I can't imagine he'll get more than the MLE from any contending team.

 

[kg21]

Hey, ah, Miami.........are you going to be the first team ever?