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Timberwolves among teams to contact LeBron James in free agency: Sources
The Timberwolves reached out to James after his exit from the Lakers while also bringing back guard Bones Hyland.
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MINNEAPOLIS — The Minnesota Timberwolves have precious little money to spend and a freezing cold winter waiting ahead, which makes luring LeBron James in free agency one of the longest of long shots.
With a player as talented and cerebral as James is, and a spot in their starting lineup that fits him perfectly, the Wolves had to at least let him know they would love to have him in Minnesota. And that’s exactly what they are doing. After James informed the Los Angeles Lakers
he would not be returning and would instead seek out another team to play for next season, the Wolves were one of several teams to reach out Tuesday and express interest in bringing James aboard, team and league sources that spoke on condition of anonymity to describe ongoing deliberations told
The Athletic.
The Wolves would be silly not to ask now James is on the open market. They have a roster teeming with young talent headlined by Anthony Edwards, plenty of defenders to ease his burden on that side of the floor and an opening at power forward after trading Julius Randle and Naz Reid to help make room for their
acquisition of LaMelo Ball.
The Golden State Warriors, Miami Heat and Cleveland Cavaliers have all been mentioned as preferred landing spots for James. The Wolves do not believe they’re anywhere near the front of the line for James’ services, the team and league sources said, especially considering their lack of spending power
After agreeing to terms with Bones Hyland on a one-year, league minimum deal Tuesday, the Timberwolves have two roster spots to fill and
just a hair above the league minimum for one of those spots. They could try to trade Josh Green, who was acquired in the Ball trade and has an expiring $14.7 million contract to try to add a power forward or more spending wiggle room, but the Wolves are intrigued by Green’s talent, and nothing was materializing immediately on that front, the team and league sources said.
Wolves president of basketball operations Tim Connelly has proved to be one of the league’s most aggressive executives since coming to Minnesota in 2022, so it comes as no surprise they are letting James’ camp know they are interested.
If James is prioritizing a chance at a fifth championship over money, the Timberwolves can make a compelling argument. James has long been a fan of Edwards, and the two won Olympic gold together in Paris last summer.
The Wolves also have top-flight defenders Rudy Gobert and Jaden McDaniels to put around James, reducing the need for James to expend so much energy on that end as he did last season with the Lakers. Offensively, Edwards and Ball could handle a lot of the heavy lifting, and James could use his superior basketball IQ to facilitate and score in clutch situations.
Perhaps most importantly, the Wolves have a young enough core that James would not need to carry a heavy regular-season burden. The 41-year-old could manage his minutes in an effort to have his gas tank full for another deep playoff push. A starting lineup of Ball, Edwards, McDaniels, James and Gobert would be one of the most formidable groups in the Western Conference.
Landing James is a highly unlikely scenario, and the Wolves were moving ahead with other business Tuesday to round out the roster by bringing back Hyland.
Hyland will return to the team that helped him re-establish himself as a rotation-worthy NBA player after two years of sporadic play with the Denver Nuggets and Los Angeles Clippers. Hyland played in 71 games for the Wolves last season, averaging 8.5 points, 2.6 assists and shooting 39 percent from the 3-point range.
Hyland grew to be fast friends with Edwards and proved to be one of the more dynamic players in the Wolves backcourt. He teamed up with Ayo Dosunmu to form the “Twin Turbos,” a pairing that gave one of the slower-paced teams in the league some much-needed speed and transition game. He will give the Wolves some needed depth at point guard behind Ball.
Hyland’s story of resilience served as an inspiration in the locker room. Connelly drafted Hyland in the first round in 2021 while leading Denver’s front office. Hyland had a strong rookie season but fell out of favor and was traded to the Clippers in Year 2. He played only sparingly in Los Angeles and signed a two-way contract with the Wolves in 2025 before beating out Rob Dillingham for a rotation spot last season.
“The past two years that I haven’t been playing, I learned so much,” Hyland said in March. “First, you mature as a person first. And second, you have a sit-down with yourself. What am I doing wrong? It’s not always about what you’re doing right. What am I doing wrong? Let’s dive into that and figure out, maybe hey, lock in more on this, lock in more on that.”
Coach Chris Finch was impressed by Hyland’s willingness to adapt and appreciated having his upbeat personality in the locker room. Bringing him back as another playmaker and shooter, especially given Ball’s past injury issues, was a strong first step into free agency for Minnesota.
“I love having him on the team,” Finch said during the season. “He’s the same every day. He’s a super happy guy. He’s one of these guys who brings joy to the game in the way that he plays it.”
The Wolves are still on the lookout for a power forward, though they could go into the season with McDaniels in that spot. Even so, having more depth behind him would be advisable, but the market is a challenging one. Dean Wade agreed to terms in Philadelphia, and Precious Achiuwa re-signed in Sacramento before the opening bell. Rui Hachimura, Tobias Harris, Sandro Mamukelashvili and John Collins all figured to want more money than the Wolves can offer.
The Wolves do have some flexibility with their lineups. Terrence Shannon Jr. could start at small forward or power forward. If Finch is looking for a sleeker lineup, Dosunmu could start at the three, and McDaniels could be bumped down to four.
Because the Wolves have so little money to spend, they might have to wait out the market to see who is left after the music stops. It probably won’t be James, but the idea of LeBron in Minnesota is tantalizing enough to wait out.
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