Immediately after trading Ricky Rubio to the Jazz for a first-round pick, the Timberwolves have made Jeff Teague their favorite target available, Sam Amick of USA Today writes.
Of course that doesn’t necessarily mean the interest is mutual but there’s reason to believe that Minnesota has a pretty good idea of who their starting point guard will be in 2017/18.
Per Josh Lewenberg of TSN, the Timberwolves wouldn’t make the Rubio trade without knowing who their replacement would be. He speculates that it could be Kyle Lowry but notes that it would make more sense for the club to pursue Teague or George Hill.
If the decision did come between Teague and Lowry, Darren Wolfson of 5 Eyewitness News suggests that the 29-year-old Teague could have the upper hand over his 31-year-old counterpart with the flexibility to offer a shorter deal so that the Wolves could save money.
Another option that has been floated by Chris Mannix of Yahoo Sports is Rajon Rondo. Mannix notes that T-Wolves head coach Tom Thibodeau saw the best of Rondo during his stint with the Celtics.
As of now, ESPN’s Jeff Goodman notes, the only point guard on Minnesota’s roster is Tyus Jones
Hate the return for Ricky, but clearly they didn’t want to take any salary back in the deal. Maybe they hope to flip the pick at some point. That being said, I’ve advocated for a Rubio trade (and I love his game) simply because the T-Wolves now have too many guys who need the ball in their hands. Guys like Teague or Hill are perfect fits, I think better fits than Lowry even because of their experience off-ball as well.
Rubio would have been perfect tho cuz he is a pass first PG
But it doesn’t matter when that pass 1st player makes the pass just to have his defender help off like it’s 4 on 5. Rubio definitely showed improvement down the stretch, but if he had come back shooting like the pre-Jan 2017 Rubio, that really hurts a team built around 3 guys whose biggest strengths are around the basket. As good as Rubio is at every aspect of the game, you need a reliable floor spacing at that spot.
A two year deal for Teague would be amazing. He can play with the “big three” and they’ll have the space to sign Wiggins and Towns to extensions.
Rubio is better than Teague….
Rondo? LMAO please no!!!! Wolves have a chance to be really good, don’t ruin this!
Honestly Lowry is the best PG available by far, and despite his age/concerns about enough shots for everyone, fact is talent wins. Last year Butler/Lowry both played at legit star level (top 15 in the league). Adding both would be fascinating. Teague is nothing special at all. Average starting PG.
The only way signing Teague>Lowry makes sense is for the cash you would save to use on a PF. However even in that case I would have kept Rubio since Teague figures to cost just as much.
I’d vote Lowry.