Timberwolves restricted free agent forward Juan Hernangomez initially sought an offer in excess of $10MM per year, sources tell Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic. Unwilling to meet that price right off the bat, the Wolves “essentially told” Hernangomez to prove he could get an offer from another club while they went looking for possible alternatives at power forward, writes Krawczynski.
Minnesota ended up reaching out to a number forwards in free agency, including Derrick Jones (as previously outlined), Paul Millsap, Jae Crowder, and JaMychal Green, and inquired on possible trades involving Magic forward Aaron Gordon, Rockets forward P.J. Tucker, and Cavaliers big man Larry Nance Jr., sources tell Krawczynski.
The Timberwolves didn’t have any luck with any of those potential targets, but held firm on their offer to Hernangomez, who mulled the possibility of accepting the one-year qualifying offer worth $4.64MM, per Krawczynski. Ultimately, the two sides came to an agreement on a three-year, $21MM deal that has a third-year team option.
Here’s more out of Minnesota:
- The Timberwolves chose Anthony Edwards with the No. 1 pick last week because they believe he has the clearest path of any of this year’s draft-eligible prospects to becoming a multi-time All-Star, says Krawczysnki.
- Sources tell The Athletic that the team’s acquisition of Ricky Rubio was partly motivated by seeing what the veteran point guard did for Donovan Mitchell and Devin Booker at his previous stops and a belief that he’ll aid Edwards’ development.
- The Knicks told Malik Beasley he’d be their Plan B in free agency if they couldn’t land Gordon Hayward, according to Krawczynski. Recognizing that New York could be a threat to put forth a troublesome offer sheet, the Wolves went in with an aggressive pitch on the opening night of free agency and secured a commitment from Beasley on the spot. Sources tell The Athletic that Beasley has appreciated the support he’s received from the franchise since running into off-court legal problems.
- The Timberwolves officially announced Beasley’s new deal today. Keith Smith of Yahoo Sports (Twitter link) has the year-by-year financial breakdown of that contract, which guarantees the swingman $43MM+ over three years.
The clearest path to a multi-time All Star? Is that seriously their biggest concern for whom they pick at #1? Not fit with others or helping the team win a championship? I guess that is why Minnesota has been a lottery team for the majority of their existence.
Yeah, what team would want to draft an all star?
You completely missed my point, but I guess everyone else did too, so maybe I didn’t explain it well enough. Oh well, no skin off my nose. Have a good one.
Or they could have drafted Wiseman and waited around for a few years until he possibly developed into starting center capable of helping his team win a championship. But in the case of Golden State, by that time all of their best players will either have moved on or will be nearing retirement. Oh well.
Golden State and Lakers are so in your head, that nobody even brought up Warriors in this post, other than you.
He’s obsessed with the warriors. It’s kinda sad and pathetic.
I thought it apart of his Schtick, but clearly he pays rent to both Curry and LeBron for being so petty. Must be a rooftop/penthouse view with the rent they charge him everyday.
Hes def a hater but the point is valid here
Strange Og poster mentioned fit as a bad thing- I think Edwards fits the best here
Im guessing Minny looked for a “Ready Now player” trade and nothing was there- GSW Im betting did the exact same thing. Hell maybe GSW had the makings of something till the lost the Glue Klay in the hrs preceeding and had to call an audible
Also, Wiseman and KAT together? That would be horrible spacing. I think Wolves made the best selection. They needed an off the ball guard. Edwards fits their time frame. Maybe trade them Thad Young (back) for a future 2 in 2023?
Totally missed my point, which should be no surprise I guess. Obviously Wiseman wouldn’t fit in Minnesota, duh. The whole point here, for those of us discussing basketball instead of making everything personal here, is that the player taken #1 is NBA-ready and the one taken right after him is not.
Edwards will be able to contribute immediately while Wiseman will take years to reach his full potential after barely playing at all in college. He’s extremely raw for someone taken with the #2 overall pick which makes zero sense for an aging team whose window realistically closed already after the 2018-19 season.
GSW still is better than HOU!
Well, if we’re going based on THAT logic, then Minnesota isn’t the first team that did this. Portland with Durant comes to mind. It is all about system fit and roster fit when selecting a guy like Wiseman at 1, no matter the talent he possesses. Am I arguing he should have gone 1? Not at all, but if they had selected him then they likely have to blow it up with KAT and DLo. Edwards is the best system fit for them, and allows them to compete somewhat in a loaded Western Conference.
I agree. Drafting Wiseman would’ve been for a trade of Wiseman. Edwards could really stick in MN. Adding Rubio makes things much easier for D-Lo, Beasley, Edwards, and everyone, really. Heck, Beasley and Edwards might fit best as “bench scorers”(roles they could excel at if they accept them) with Okogie and Juancho starting alongside Rubio, D-Lo and KAT.
The Wplves have quietly out themselves together a pretty solid 9 man rotation. Now, I’m not entirely sure exactly how they’re going to distribute the minutes, but they’ve definitely upgraded their talent level that’s for sure..
Russell/Rubio
Edwards/Beasley
Turner/Culver
Hernangomez/??
Towns/Davis
They’re still pretty clearly lacking in the #4 spot, but they’ve assembled a pretty good 2-deep rotation elsewhere…
Think you’ll find Turner hasnt signed for next season and the team also has Josh Okogie and Jake Layman.
So swap Turner out for Layman and Okogie will sit behind Beasley and Culver.
They definitely need more help at PF if they want to make the playoffs.
The Wolves should be in the fight to enter the play-in tournament. Anything more this year would be a surprise to me.
I wonder if JRandle would be a nice fit- Def fits the right age
Naz Reid seems to be forgotten about in a lot of these discussions. He had an excellent rookie campaign, especially offensively, in his limited minutes.
If Naz can play the 4 effectively next to KAT, he could start in front of Juancho.
Yeah they done well but West is a blood bath. They still have no D and will just move up a couple of places
Edwards was the right pick. Plus he fits a position of need. They do need a PF to step up. McDanields in the draft was a solid choice. He could be a stretch 4. But he is yrs away. This kid showed a lot of skill. And has good size. Just seems like basketball is not his passion. Getting Rubio a solid vet. Helps their depth and guard rotation. Makes them stronger now. Cause that 17th pick could gave been a PF (Achiuwa). With KAT you can find a 4 who rebs and plays D. You don’t need a great PF. TWolves are guard heavy. They should be a playoff team.
Good point on not needing a great PF w KAT-
I think if Hou falls apart they need to be first second and 3rd in line in getting PJ tucker over to them
If Towns is injured
Wolves small ball Edwards is the tallest 6”5’
Edwards C
Okogie PF
Beasley SF
DLo SG
Rubio PG
Rockets small ball average weight 215 pounds
Wolves small ball average weight 190 pounds
I agree that they are guard heavy, but much further along this year than the start of the 2019-20 season, last years starting PG was Jeff Teague w/Shabazz Napier as the backup.
I’d take Dlo/Rubio over Teague/Napier any day.
Beasley should be an upgrade over Wiggins as well.
I wouldn’t sleep on this years squad.
Wolves don’t have available First pick until 2024
Wolves available assets have little trade value
They have 2022 and 2023? The only pick they are missing is a 2021 1st and a 2nd in like 2024 or something
Warriors got 2021 protected First
If protected Warriors get 2022 unprotected according to CBA，When a team has traded 2022, they are not allowed to trade 2023 first
So because the Wolves owe 1 pick to Golden State, you take that as 3 picks? Hahahaha nonsense!
I think everyone knows the point he was making, they owe a future 1st from the Russell trade, but due to protections under league rules they are unable to trade a 1st until 2024 (at the moment)..
Doesn’t seem like a very good point to make. If the Wolves don’t get a top 3 pick next year, which is very likely. Then they have all their picks to trade except their 2026 (which is going to NY)
My point is, this only handcuffs the Wolves at this seasons trade deadline.
Damn, this MN roster is looking deep and talented. Could be a special team