Minnesota Timberwolves Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Timberwolves Assistant Joseph Blair Departs For Wizards

August 9th, 2021 at 6:41pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

Timberwolves assistant Joseph Blair, who was serving as the club’s Summer League head coach, has departed his post for an assistant position on Wes Unseld Jr.’s staff with the new-look Wizards, reports Fred Katz of The Athletic (Twitter link).

Jon Krawcyznski of The Athletic tweets that Blair will be replaced at the Las Vegas Summer League by Timberwolves assistant coach Jeff Newton, about to embark on his third season in Minnesota. Newton is officially an offensive associate coach and player development coach with the club.

Krawcyznski opines (Twitter link) that this late loss of Blair is a blow for Minnesota. Blair had been set to help revamp the team’s defense after former Timberwolves assistant David Vanterpool left head coach Chris Finch‘s staff for an opportunity with the Nets.

The Wizards, who were the No. 8 seed in the East during the 2020/21 season, have significantly revamped their roster over the summer.

The team traded point guard Russell Westbrook, wing Chandler Hutchison, and draft equity in an epic five-team deal that netted them point guard Spencer Dinwiddie plus valuable role players Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, Kyle Kuzma, and Montrezl Harrell, as well as an intriguing young reserve point guard in Aaron Holiday and the draft rights to rookie forward Isaiah Todd, the No. 31 selection out of the NBA G League Ignite.

Washington also re-signed reserve point guard Raul Neto and selected Gonzaga swingman Corey Kispert with the No. 15 pick in this year’s draft.

Rosas Urges Patience As Wolves Start Slow In Free Agency

August 7th, 2021 at 6:25pm CST by Arthur Hill

Timberwolves president of basketball operations Gersson Rosas is urging fans to be patient after the team’s slow start to free agency, writes Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic. Minnesota hasn’t made any significant additions since the signing period began on Monday, but Rosas said the plan is to keep the core of the team intact and try to build on the momentum from late last season. The Wolves had a .500 record over their final 22 games.

Northwest Notes: Jazz, Nuggets, Martin Sr., Timberwolves

August 6th, 2021 at 6:40pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Jazz’s free agent moves were designed to make them a more complete playoff team, Tony Jones of The Athletic writes. Signing Rudy Gay in free agency and trading for Eric Paschall will allow Utah to match up better against small-ball lineups. The was something the Jazz struggled with when the Clippers went small against them in the postseason. The Jazz are also looking to sign their own restricted free agent, Trent Forrest, to a two-way deal, according to Jones.

We have more from the Western Conference:

The Nuggets began their summer league mini-camp on Friday following a COVID-19 related pause, Kyle Frederickson of the Denver Post reports. Denver’s first three practices were canceled due to health and safety protocols after a positive test and subsequent contact tracing.
Kenyon Martin Sr. is back in the NBA as an assistant coach with the Nuggets’ summer league team, Marc Spears of The Undefeated tweets. He’s hoping to remain in the league in a coaching capacity.
In a detailed interview with the Timberwolves‘ buyers, Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic tells of how former baseball All-Star Alex Rodriguez and Marc Lore made their deal with Glen Taylor. The transfer of ownership will be gradual process and Lore prefers it that way. “Glen had the team for almost 30 years. We’re thinking similarly,” Lore said. “We’re going to have this team for at least the next 30 years. … We don’t think we have all the answers. We’re not ready, quite frankly, to be making all the decisions right now.”

McKinley Wright Signs Two-Way Deal With Timberwolves

August 5th, 2021 at 5:33pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

AUGUST 5: Wright’s two-way contract with the Timberwolves is now official, according to the transactions log at NBA.com. Both of Minnesota’s two-way slots are now full, as our tracker shows.

JULY 30: The Timberwolves will sign a two-way deal with undrafted Colorado guard McKinley Wright IV, writes ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (Twitter link).

The 6’0″ point guard enjoyed four decorated seasons with the Buffaloes. He was a three-time All-Pac-12 selection, a two-time All-Pac-12 Tourney honoree, and a 2020 Pac-12 All-Defensive Team member.

Wright, 22, ranks sixth on ESPN’s list of undrafted prospects. He averaged 15.2 PPG, 5.7 APG, 4.3 RPG and 1.1 SPG in 32 games for the Buffaloes, on .480/.301/.844 shooting during his senior season in 2020/21. Wright started in all but one of his 132 regular season games with the club.

Wolves Sign Nathan Knight To Two-Way Deal

August 4th, 2021 at 9:16pm CST by Eli Cohen

AUGUST 4: Knight’s two-way contract with the Timberwolves is now official, according to NBA.com’s transactions log.

AUGUST 3: The Timberwolves have agreed to a two-way deal with Nathan Knight, reports Michael Scotto of HoopsHype.

Knight, a 6’10” undrafted free agent out of William & Mary, played well in limited minutes for the Hawks last season, showcasing impressive athleticism, motor, and rebounding, and even hitting six of his 33 threes over the course of the year.

Knight averaged 20.9 PPG and nearly 10 RPG in his final two years at William & Mary, and capped off an impressive senior year by being named CAA Player of the Year and CAA Defensive Player of the Year.

According to Darren Wolfson of SKOR North, the Wolves beat out the Thunder and Warriors to land Knight, who will join McKinley Wright IV as the Wolves’ second two-way contract.

Free Agency Rumors: D. Green, Hart, Cavs, Caruso, DeRozan

August 3rd, 2021 at 10:13pm CST by Eli Cohen

Free agent swingman Danny Green has been in contact with the Sixers multiple times over the past two days, according to Harrison Sanford, co-host of Green’s The Green Room podcast (Twitter link).

Sandford said that as of this afternoon, the two sides were nowhere close to a deal, and that the Bucks, Celtics, Bulls and Pelicans have all reached out as well. He adds in a separate tweet that Green has pre-existing relationships with both Ime Udoka of the Celtics and Mike Budenholzer of the Bucks from his time with the Spurs.

We have more free agency rumors:

The Cavaliers have had some discussions about the possibility of a sign-and-trade for Pelicans restricted free agent forward Josh Hart, sources tell Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com (Twitter link). Without a sign-and-trade agreement, Cleveland would be limited to offering Hart the full mid-level exception, which New Orleans would presumably match.
Alex Caruso agreed to sign with the Bulls for four years, $37MM, and according to Zach Lowe of ESPN (hat tip to RealGM), the Lakers‘ offer to keep him was nowhere close to what was offered by Chicago. Ramona Shelburne added that – before Caruso agreed to his deal with the Bulls – the Timberwolves inquired about acquiring him in a sign-and-trade that would have included Marc Gasol, but didn’t have any luck.
According to K.C. Johnson of NBC Sports Chicago (Twitter link), Bulls general manager Marc Eversley was crucial in securing a commitment from DeMar DeRozan, as the two had a long-standing relationship from when Eversley was the assistant general manager for the Raptors. The Bulls’ GM flew to Los Angeles to meet with DeRozan in person and had a “fruitful” two-hour meeting, per Marc J. Spears of The Undefeated (Twitter link).

Free Agency Roundup: Rose, Bjelica, Suns, Vanderbilt, Niang, Schroder

August 3rd, 2021 at 6:12pm CST by Eli Cohen

Derrick Rose had received interest from the Pelicans, Wizards, Bulls, and Heat before re-signing with the Knicks, write Jeff Zillgitt and Mark Medina of USA Today. The USA Today adds that Kyle Lowry signing with the Heat helped usher Rose back to the Knicks and coach Tom Thibodeau. Rose agreed to a three-year, $43MM deal on Monday.

In the same piece, Zillgitt and Medina write that five other teams considered signing Nemanja Bjelica with their mid-level exception, but Bjelica prioritized signing with the Warriors instead. Bjelica agreed to a one-year deal for the veteran’s minimum earlier today.

We have more free agency rumors:

The Suns have two or three roster spots available, and according to John Gambadoro of Arizona Sports 98.7 FM, they expect to fill those spots with another big man, a ball-handler, and a wing. Gambadoro adds that JaVale McGee‘s agreed-upon deal will use part of the non-tax payer mid-level exception, leaving the remainder for another move.
Darren Wolfson of SKOR North reports that the Timberwolves have met with RFA Jarred Vanderbilt. The 6’9 power forward is coming off his best season as a pro, averaging 5.4 PPG, 5.8 RPG and 1.2 APG and providing an interesting blend of defense and play-making from the forward spot.
Georges Niang may be on the Sixers‘ radar as a backup power forward, tweets Keith Pompey of the Philadelphia Inquirer. Niang has had a productive last three years for the Jazz, and would give the Sixers another shooter in the frontcourt.
Dennis Schröder was seeking $25MM a year when free agency started, according to Marc Berman of The New York Post. Now that Schröder is one of the last point guards left on the market, it’s unclear how much that number has come down.

Free Agency Rumors: DeRozan, Bulls, Wizards, McLaughlin, Rose, Heat

August 3rd, 2021 at 1:27pm CST by Luke Adams

A sign-and-trade deal that sends DeMar DeRozan to the Bulls remains a possibility for the veteran free agent wing, league sources tell Marc Stein (Twitter link). Chicago has previously been mentioned as a possible suitor for DeRozan, and Stein’s report suggests the team remains interested even after reaching agreements with Lonzo Ball and Alex Caruso.

A Monday report from Brian Windhorst of ESPN suggested that a double sign-and-trade sending DeRozan to the Bulls and Lauri Markkanen to the Spurs could be one possibility that the two sides would explore. Chicago also expiring contracts belonging to Thaddeus Young ($14.19MM) and Al-Farouq Aminu ($10.18MM), both of which would theoretically make for good salary-matching pieces.

Here are a few more rumors related to free agency:

As Spencer Dinwiddie and the Wizards continue to work toward a possible agreement that would land the point guard in D.C., Jake Fischer of Bleacher Report says (via Twitter) that Washington has begun exploring the possibility of trading Chandler Hutchison and a second-round pick as part of a potential sign-and-trade deal for Dinwiddie.
Jordan McLaughlin and his camp are optimistic about reaching a new multiyear contract agreement with the Timberwolves, according to Chris Hine of The Star Tribune (Twitter link). McLaughlin, a restricted free agent, met face-to-face with the Wolves when free agency opened on Monday, tweets Darren Wolfson of 5 Eyewitness News.
The Knicks are expected to re-sign Derrick Rose using his Early Bird rights, which means they can keep his smaller cap hold on their books for now and then eventually go over the cap to complete his deal, tweets Steve Popper of Newsday. Popper estimates that New York could still have upwards of $9MM in cap room to work with, or even more if the team waives Luca Vildoza‘s non-guaranteed salary.
The Heat had interest in Rudy Gay, but weren’t going to match Utah’s two-year, $12MM offer, preferring to commit most of their mid-level to a strong defensive player in P.J. Tucker, tweets Barry Jackson of The Miami Herald.

Timberwolves Trade Ricky Rubio To Cavaliers

August 3rd, 2021 at 9:52am CST by Luke Adams

AUGUST 3: The Timberwolves and Cavaliers have officially announced the trade in a pair of press releases.

The timing is curious, since the free agency moratorium is underway and trades can’t be formally completed during that time. However, the NBA’s official transactions log suggests the deal was finalized on Monday, presumably before the new league year began.

The announcement comes on the heels of Rubio racking up 38 points for the Spanish national team in a losing effort against Team USA on Tuesday.

JULY 29: The Timberwolves have agreed to trade Ricky Rubio to the Cavaliers in exchange for Taurean Prince, a 2022 second-round pick, and cash, sources tell Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN (Twitter link).

Wojnarowski’s original report stated that the second-round pick and cash were going from Minnesota to Cleveland, but according to Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic (Twitter link), the Wolves are actually acquiring those assets along with Prince.

Subsequent reporting confirms as much — Jake Fischer of Bleacher Report tweets that the Cavs are sending $2.5MM to Minnesota as part of the deal, while Wojnarowski tweets that the pick changing hands is the Wizards’ 2022 second-rounder, which had been controlled by Cleveland.

It’s an interesting deal for the Cavaliers, who already have Darius Garland running the point and Collin Sexton acting as a secondary ball-handler. Giving up assets for Rubio doesn’t necessarily mean the Cavs have to move on from one of those players (likely Sexton), since the team needs depth at the point and was seeking a reliable veteran, per Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com (Twitter link). Still, that added depth would make it easier for Cleveland to move Sexton, who has been the subject of some trade rumors this month.

Rubio, who is currently representing Spain at the Tokyo Olympics, averaged a career-low 8.6 PPG for Minnesota in 2020/21 and shot just .388/.308/.867 in 68 games (26.1 MPG). However, the 30-year-old remains an effective play-maker (6.4 APG) and received praise for his leadership of the young Wolves.

The Timberwolves will create some extra financial flexibility below the luxury tax line as a result of this deal, as Rubio is on a $17.8MM expiring contract, while Prince is making $13MM in the last year of his contract. The team now projects to be about $5.4MM below the tax, tweets ESPN’s Bobby Marks.

It’s unclear if Minnesota intends to keep Prince, but the team was lacking in reliable forward depth this past season, so the former Baylor standout could help out there. He’s a career 37.0% three-point shooter and knocked down 40.0% of his attempts from beyond the arc for Brooklyn and Cleveland in 2020/21.

Free Agency Notes: Fournier, Knicks, Dinwiddie, Wolves, Markkanen

August 3rd, 2021 at 9:38am CST by Luke Adams

Veteran swingman Evan Fournier agreed to a four-year deal with the Knicks on the first day of free agency on Monday, but that hadn’t necessarily been his plan entering the summer. Fournier tells Gary Washburn of The Boston Globe that he had initially hoped to stick with the Celtics.

“That was my priority going into the summer,” Fournier said. “Because I knew the place. I talked to (Celtics president of basketball operations) Brad (Stevens) and we couldn’t get a deal done, obviously. But I had my options. It wasn’t necessarily Boston only, but I was more inclined to sign there because they traded for me and I felt good while I was there. That’s the thing with free agency. It can go both ways.”

While working out a new deal with Boston was his top priority entering free agency, Fournier is happy to land with the Knicks.

“New York has been on my radar for a while now,” he said. “I’ve always said the Knicks are the Knicks. And I’m honestly extremely happy I’ll be there next year.”

Here are a few more notes related to free agency:

Although the Knicks are short on cap space, they’re still exploring the possibility of adding another point guard either in a trade or using their $4.9MM room exception, sources tell Marc Berman of The New York Post.
The Knicks never made a formal contract offer to free agent point guard Spencer Dinwiddie, who was believed to be one of their potential targets, tweets Stefan Bondy of The New York Daily News. Dinwiddie appears likely to end up with Washington.
The Timberwolves have been in contact with Bulls restricted free agent forward Lauri Markkanen, tweets Darren Wolfson of 5 Eyewitness News. Minnesota doesn’t have a ton of cap flexibility, so figuring out a way to land Markkanen would be a challenge.