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Timberwolves Sign Second-Rounder Jaylen Nowell

August 6th, 2019 at 2:34pm CST by Luke Adams

2:34pm: The Timberwolves have officially signed Nowell, the team confirmed today in a press release.

9:43am: The Timberwolves have agreed to sign second-round pick Jaylen Nowell to his first NBA contract, reports Darren Wolfson of SKOR North (Twitter links). Nowell is expected to formally sign the deal later today.

While exact terms of the agreement aren’t yet known, Wolfson suggests that it will feature a guaranteed $1.4MM salary in year one, and will span four years in total. He also notes that it will be similar to Naz Reid‘s contract, which is non-guaranteed in years two and three and has a fourth-year team option.

Because the deal will run longer than two years, the Wolves will use their mid-level exception. They’ve used that MLE to sign Reid and Noah Vonleh so far, but both players received modest salaries, so the team still has plenty of it available. Nowell also projects to be Minnesota’s 15th guaranteed contract for 2019/20, so the regular season roster looks pretty set, barring an unexpected move or two.

Nowell, the 43rd overall pick in the draft, is a 6’4″ guard who played his college ball at Washington. He declared for the draft this spring after averaging 16.2 PPG, 5.3 RPG, and 3.1 APG on .502/.440/.779 shooting as a sophomore, earning Pac-12 Player of the Year honors.

Now that Nowell has a deal in place, only six players from this year’s draft class remain unsigned, as our tracker shows.

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NBA Teams With Hard Caps For 2019/20

August 6th, 2019 at 11:16am CST by Luke Adams

The NBA salary cap is somewhat malleable, with various exceptions allowing every team to surpass the $109,140,000 threshold once their room is used up. In some cases, teams blow past not only the cap limit, but the luxury-tax limit of $132,627,000 as well — the Trail Blazers have this season’s highest payroll at the moment, more than $11MM above the tax line.

The NBA doesn’t have a “hard cap” by default, which allows a club like Portland to build a significant payroll without violating CBA rules. However, there are certain scenarios in which teams can be hard-capped.

When a club uses the bi-annual exception, acquires a player via sign-and-trade, or uses more than the taxpayer portion ($5,718,000) of the mid-level exception, that club will face a hard cap for the remainder of the league year.

When a team becomes hard-capped, it cannot exceed the “tax apron” at any point during the rest of the league year. The tax apron was set $6MM above the luxury tax line in 2017/18 (the first year of the current Collective Bargaining Agreement) and creeps up a little higher each season. For the 2019/20 league year, the tax apron – and hard cap for certain clubs – is set at $138,928,000.

More teams than ever this offseason have been willing to hard-cap themselves, and in at least a couple cases, it will significantly impact a team’s ability to add further reinforcements later in the league year. The Warriors and Heat are nearly right up against the hard cap, and won’t be players in free agency during the season unless they can shed salary.

So far this year, half the teams in the NBA have imposed a hard cap on themselves by using the bi-annual exception, using the non-taxpayer mid-level exception, or acquiring a player via sign-and-trade. Listed below are those 15 teams, along with how they created a hard cap.

Boston Celtics

  • Acquired Kemba Walker from the Hornets via sign-and-trade.

Brooklyn Nets

  • Acquired Kevin Durant from the Warriors via sign-and-trade.

Charlotte Hornets

  • Acquired Terry Rozier from the Celtics via sign-and-trade.

Chicago Bulls

Dallas Mavericks

  • Acquired Delon Wright from the Grizzlies via sign-and-trade.
  • Used approximately $7.46MM of their mid-level exception to sign Seth Curry.
  • Used their bi-annual exception to sign Boban Marjanovic.

Detroit Pistons

  • Used approximately $7.32MM of their mid-level exception to sign Derrick Rose.
  • Used their bi-annual exception to sign Markieff Morris.

Golden State Warriors

Indiana Pacers

Memphis Grizzlies

  • Used their full mid-level exception ($9,258,000) to sign Tyus Jones.
  • Used their bi-annual exception to sign Marko Guduric.

Miami Heat

Minnesota Timberwolves

  • Acquired Jake Layman from the Trail Blazers via sign-and-trade.

Orlando Magic

  • Used their full mid-level exception ($9,258,000) to sign Al-Farouq Aminu.

San Antonio Spurs

Toronto Raptors

Washington Wizards

Outside of the Warriors and Heat, no clubs on the list above are really being restricted by the hard cap at this time. A few teams – such as the Pistons and Magic – are near the luxury tax threshold, but that still gives them several million dollars in breathing room below the hard cap.

While it’s possible that trades could push some teams closer to the apron, Golden State and Miami appear to be the only clubs that will be noticeably affected by the hard cap in 2019/20.

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World Cup Updates: Shamet, Powell, Germany, Senegal

August 2nd, 2019 at 12:29pm CST by Luke Adams

The series of withdrawals from Team USA’s World Cup training camp rosters continued on Friday, as ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski reports (via Twitter) that Clippers guard Landry Shamet has opted against participating. Shamet had been penciled in as a member of USA Basketball’s Select Team.

“He was appreciative of the opportunity and hopes to be part of USAB again in future,” agent George Langberg said of Shamet, who will focus on preparing for what he hopes will be a long Clippers season that ends with a deep playoff run.

Of course, Team USA isn’t the only club dealing with NBA players removing their names from consideration. After finding out earlier this week that R.J. Barrett wouldn’t participate in this year’s World Cup, Team Canada will now also be without Mavericks big man Dwight Powell, league sources tell Marc Stein of The New York Times (Twitter link). Having signed a contract extension with Dallas this offseason, Powell will use the time to focus on the upcoming season, says Stein.

Here’s more on the 2019 World Cup:

  • After the 2014 World Cup, FIBA altered the qualification process and schedule for the event going forward, and Team USA – with a roster full of NBA players – has been hit hard by those changes, as USA Basketball managing director Jerry Colangelo tells Ben Golliver of The Washington Post. “Playing in back-to-back years, with full NBA seasons before and after, in a real hurdle to overcome,” Colangelo said. “FIBA is not concerned about us. They’re concerned about what’s best for basketball internationally. FIBA got exactly what they wanted. They’re getting a lot of games, a lot of attendance. There’s more interest in a lot of countries. Personally, I didn’t like the change. I knew it would have a negative effect on us.”
  • Team Germany formally announced a preliminary 16-man World Cup roster that features several NBA players, including Mavericks forward Maxi Kleber, Thunder guard Dennis Schroder, Celtics center Daniel Theis, and new Wizards Moritz Wagner and Isaac Bonga.
  • Team Senegal’s preliminary 24-man squad will have to be cut in half in advance of the 2019 World Cup, but it also includes some intriguing names. According to the official release, Timberwolves big man Gorgui Dieng and Celtics rookie Tacko Fall are among the players representing Senegal.
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2019 NBA Head Coaching Carousel Recap

July 31st, 2019 at 1:10pm CST by Luke Adams

The 2017/18 NBA league year was one of the most active in recent memory for head coaching changes. Nine teams – nearly one-third of the league’s 30 franchises – named new head coaches between the start of the ’17/18 season and the 2018 draft.

The ’18/19 league year was only slightly quieter in terms of head coaching changes. Fred Hoiberg (Bulls), Tyronn Lue (Cavaliers), and Tom Thibodeau (Timberwolves) were fired during the season, and several more coaches got the axe at season’s end.

Jim Boylen, Hoiberg’s replacement in Chicago, was named the Bulls’ new permanent head coach during the season and was extended at season’s end, but Cleveland and Minnesota conducted head coaching searches this spring. As such, the Cavs and Wolves are included in our round-up below of the offseason’s head coaching shake-up, but the Bulls aren’t.

Here’s a recap of which teams have named new permanent head coaches since the end of the 2018/19 season:

Cleveland Cavaliers

  • Hired: John Beilein (story)
  • Replaced: Larry Drew (story)
  • Contract details: Five-year deal (link)
  • Also reportedly interviewed: Juwan Howard, Jamahl Mosley, J.B. Bickerstaff, Alex Jensen, Ime Udoka, Ettore Messina, Steve Hetzel, Wes Unseld Jr., Jordi Fernandez, David Vanterpool

After mutually agreeing to part ways with Drew, the Cavaliers conducted a long, thorough coaching search that focused primarily on young, up-and-coming assistants. So it came as a surprise when they made a long-term commitment to Beilein, a 66-year-old college head coach.

Still, Beilein has a strong track record developing young players at the University of Michigan. He’ll bring that pedigree to Cleveland, where he’ll be joined by other new hires like associate head coach J.B. Bickerstaff and assistant Lindsay Gottlieb.

Los Angeles Lakers

  • Hired: Frank Vogel (story)
  • Replaced: Luke Walton (story)
  • Contract details: Three-year deal (link)
  • Also reportedly interviewed: Monty Williams, Tyronn Lue, Jason Kidd, Juwan Howard, J.B. Bickerstaff

After months of rumors that Walton was on the hot seat, it seemed as if the Lakers would have a top candidate or two in mind to pursue at season’s end, when Walton’s ouster became official. Williams and Lue appeared to be those top targets, but Williams accepted an offer from Phoenix and Lue and the Lakers couldn’t agree to terms.

The Lakers moved onto Plan B (or was it Plan C?), unexpectedly turning to Vogel on a fairly short-term deal. The former Pacers coach will be joined by other former head coaches on the Lakers’ sidelines, as Kidd and Lionel Hollins are reportedly coming aboard as assistants.

Memphis Grizzlies

  • Hired: Taylor Jenkins (story)
  • Replaced: J.B. Bickerstaff (story)
  • Contract details: Not known
  • Also reportedly interviewed: Alex Jensen, Jarron Collins, Igor Kokoskov, Nate Tibbetts, Adrian Griffin, Sarunas Jasikevicius

The longest-lasting head coaching search of the offseason also resulted in the most out-of-left-field hire. Jenkins, a longtime Mike Budenholzer lieutenant in Atlanta and Milwaukee, hadn’t received much head coaching buzz in recent years, but the Grizzlies liked what they saw in multiple meetings with him.

The hiring of Jenkins was the first major decision made by the new Memphis management group led by team president Jason Wexler and executive VP of basketball operations Zach Kleiman.

Minnesota Timberwolves

  • Hired: Ryan Saunders (story)
  • Replaced: Tom Thibodeau (in-season change)
  • Contract details: Not known
  • Also reportedly interviewed: Juwan Howard, David Vanterpool, Chris Finch, Darvin Ham

Saunders stepped in as the Timberwolves’ interim head coach in January when Thibodeau was let go, and he immediately emerged as a player-friendly coach who earned the trust of Karl-Anthony Towns, Andrew Wiggins, and others.

With a new president of basketball operations arriving in the spring, it seemed as if the Wolves might go in another direction, and Gersson Rosas did briefly consider outside candidates. However, Rosas ultimately opted for continuity, making the 33-year-old the NBA’s youngest current head coach.

Phoenix Suns

  • Hired: Monty Williams (story)
  • Replaced: Igor Kokoskov (story)
  • Contract details: Five-year deal (link)
  • Also reportedly interviewed: David Vanterpool, Nate Tibbetts

Williams was one of the most popular head coaching candidates on the market this offseason, as the Sixers assistant received consideration from the Lakers and Kings in addition to the Suns. In Phoenix, he’ll assume control of a young roster headed by Deandre Ayton and Devin Booker.

It will be Williams’ second opportunity to serve as an NBA head coach. He previously held that position in New Orleans from 2010-15 for the Hornets and Pelicans.

Sacramento Kings

  • Hired: Luke Walton (story)
  • Replaced: Dave Joerger (story)
  • Contract details: Four-year deal (link)

No team moved faster to name a new head coach than the Kings, who had a deal in place with Walton just two days after firing Joerger. While there were rumors that Sacramento would consider Monty Williams and Ettore Messina, the team settled quickly on Walton, who was originally hired in Los Angeles to coach a young Lakers squad that didn’t feature LeBron James. He’ll get another opportunity to coach an up-and-coming roster in Sacramento.

The fact that the Kings moved so quickly on Walton meant that by the time sexual assault allegations against him surfaced later in April, he was already under contract with his new team. There has been no indication that Sacramento is reconsidering its commitment to Walton, who has vehemently denied those allegations.

Photos courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

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Western Notes: Rockets, Wolves, Kawhi

July 30th, 2019 at 11:05pm CST by ChrisCrouse

Eric Gordon could end up in the backup wing spot for the Rockets when the season begins, as Kelly Iko of The Athletic writes. Houston has depth at the guard position but lacks it in the three/four spots.

Houston still has interest in Andre Iguodala, though Memphis appears to be holding out for a first-round pick, which could be a deal-breaker. J.R. Smith is a possibility. He had his best season under coach Mike D’Antoni when the pair was in New York, though Iko cautions that he hasn’t heard any new developments when it comes to bringing the 3-point marksman to Houston.

Here’s more from around the Western Conference:

  • Iko doesn’t see Kevin Love as a realistic target for the Rockets, as he explains in the same piece. Love’s salary, which comes in at just under $29MM for the upcoming year, makes a trade difficult for the two parties.
  • Britt Robson of The Athletic examines how the Timberwolves’ current roster fits in with the team’s blueprint for the future. The team failed to pair Karl-Anthony Towns with another All-Star but smartly opted against overspending on middling talent. Minnesota’s 2019 free agent spending spree wasn’t a wild one, as the club brought in five players who combined will make approximately $11MM this upcoming season.
  • Kawhi Leonard attempted to get the Spurs to trade for Paul George while he was in San Antonio, as he tells ESPN’s Rachel Nichols (h/t Justin Russo on Twitter). Leonard was originally drafted with the No. 15 overall pick by Indiana, the team George previously played for. The Pacers traded Leonard’s rights on draft night, but George wishes Indiana had kept him, as Ohm Youngmisuk of ESPN.com relays. “It seems like this was destiny that we were supposed to play together,” George said of his new Clippers teammate.
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Wolves Hire Pistons’ Sachin Gupta As EVP Of Basketball Ops

July 30th, 2019 at 11:47am CST by Luke Adams

JULY 30: More than two months after Gupta’s hiring was first reported, the Timberwolves made it official, issuing a press release to announce that Gupta has been named the team’s executive VP of basketball operations.

“Sachin is an extremely talented basketball mind who brings a diverse and unique background to our staff,” Rosas said in a statement. “Known as a pioneer of basketball analytics and one of the leaders in the CBA, I’m thrilled to partner with Sachin as we aim to build the Timberwolves into one of the most modern and dynamic franchises in the NBA.”

MAY 28: The Timberwolves‘ front office makeover will continue with another new hire, as Shams Charania of The Athletic reports (via Twitter) that Pistons executive Sachin Gupta will become Minnesota’s executive VP of basketball operations.

Gupta, a veteran NBA executive who is perhaps best known for inventing ESPN’s trade machine, had been serving as an assistant general manager in Detroit. Before spending last season with the Pistons, he was a special advisor to Rockets GM Daryl Morey, who hired him way back in 2006. Between his two stints in Houston, Gupta also spent several years with the Sixers, working as the VP of basketball operations under Sam Hinkie.

According to JD Shaw of Hoops Rumors (via Twitter), Gupta and the Timberwolves had been discussing a potential role for the last several days. Gupta also interviewed with the team in 2017, but the fit makes more sense now, as he’ll be reunited with new Wolves president of basketball operations Gersson Rosas, with whom he worked in Houston.

Gupta is the second notable executive the Wolves have brought in since hiring Rosas, joining new assistant GM Gianluca Pascucci. According to Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic (via Twitter), Gupta figures to be Minnesota’s new No. 2 under Rosas in the team’s revamped front office.

There has been no word yet on incumbent general manager Scott Layden, but Krawczynski says most people expect him to stay on board in some capacity.

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Mitch Creek Headed Back To Australia

July 29th, 2019 at 5:30pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Swingman Mitch Creek, who finished last season with the Timberwolves, will return to Australia next season and play for South East Melbourne Phoenix, according to a post on the Melbourne team’s website.

The Australian team will be making its franchise debut in the country’s National Basketball League this year.

“Mitch was the club’s first signing,” head coach Simon Mitchell said.

Creek signed a standard contract to finish out last season with Minnesota after his 10-day contract expired in April. He also had a pair of 10-day contracts with the Nets last season.

He scored six points in 12 minutes in his lone appearance with the Timberwolves. He played in four games with Brooklyn, averaging 3.8 PPG and 2.5 RPG in 9.0 MPG.

He appeared in seven summer league games at Las Vegas for the Timberwolves earlier this month. He averaged 11.1 PPG and 4.3 RPG in 25.7 MPG.

“I did everything humanly possible to make my NBA dream come true and have no regrets,” Creek said.

Creek led Adelaide to the 2017-18 NBL Grand Final series against Melbourne United and was the leading rebounder in the series with 8.7 RPG.

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Wolves Project To Have Deeper Rotation, Competitive Camp

July 26th, 2019 at 4:01pm CST by Luke Adams
  • With Tom Thibodeau no longer in the picture in Minnesota, the Timberwolves project to have a deeper rotation to start the 2019/20 season than they did a year ago. Still, as Kent Youngblood of The Star Tribune writes, with so many young, hungry players on the roster, there should be some interesting position and rotation battles in training camp this fall.
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Northwest Notes: Wiggins, Coaching Additions, Bradley

July 23rd, 2019 at 8:19pm CST by ChrisCrouse

Berry Tramel of The Oklahoman makes a case for the Thunder to trade Chris Paul to the Timberwolves for Andrew Wiggins. Paul would elevate the team’s immediate ceiling in Minnesota, providing Karl-Anthony Towns with arguably the best point guard he’s played with at the professional level.

Tramel believes OKC may provide Wiggins with an environment that would allow him to improve. Wiggins has played under four head coaches in Minnesota and the organization doesn’t have the recent track record for developing players that OKC does.

Here’s more from around the Northwest Division:

  • The Thunder have named David Akinyooye, Dave Bliss, Mark Daigneault, Brian Keefe, and Mike Wilks as assistant coaches, the team announces on its website. The group will join head coach Billy Donovan and assistant coaches Maurice Cheeks and Vin Bhavnani on the bench.
  • The Timberwolves are close to adding Pelicans assistant Kevin Hanson to their coaching staff, as Chris Hine of the Star Tribune reports. Hanson spent the past four seasons in New Orleans.
  • Tony Bradley, who was selected in the 2017 draft, had a Summer League that saved his roster spot on the Jazz, Tony Jones of The Athletic explains. Third-year first-rounders don’t typically play in the Summer League and the front office told the center that it wanted to see him be the best player on the team. Bradley shined and will be the third center behind Rudy Gobert and Ed Davis.
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Karl-Anthony Towns Talks Changes In Minnesota, False Narratives Off The Court

July 23rd, 2019 at 4:06pm CST by ChrisCrouse

The NBA has seen its share of power moves by players in the last year. Kawhi Leonard joined the Clippers this offseason while angling for the Paul George trade. Anthony Davis, who shares an agent with LeBron James, demanded a trade with eyes for the Lakers and Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving reportedly began their planning to team up long ago.

Many have speculated that Karl-Anthony Towns could the next player in a small market to leverage his way to a new destination. Towns hears the noise and says he isn’t swayed by the glamour of a bigger city.

“Game is game. Basketball is basketball,” Towns said (via Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic). “Competition is competition. It don’t matter where you at,” Towns said. “All of us were raised, regardless of where we’re at, playing in the park, playing in hot box rec gyms. You were competing. It don’t matter if you’re in Milwaukee, in Minnesota. It doesn’t matter if you’re in L.A. or New York, competition is competition. You have to come ready to play and kick some ass.

“That’s how I approach it. I’m not afraid to play anywhere. I don’t care about where it’s at, who it’s against. I’m going to go out there and compete and try my best.”

New president of basketball operations Gersson Rosas has made it clear that the team is building around Towns as its star. Coach Ryan Saunders, who served in an interim capacity last season, has a close relationship with the center and that was part of the reason Saunders was awarded the full-time job.

“I’m here. That’s the answer. That’s the best answer I can give you,” Towns said. “I’m here. I’m actually in Minnesota.”

A year ago, Tom Thibodeau was still running the show in Minnesota. Towns was entering the final season of his rookie deal and Jimmy Butler was seen by some as the leader of the team. Towns had his concerns about the franchise then, Krawczynski writes. He steered clear of the off-court turmoil surrounding Butler and Thibodeau, instead, focusing on the game.

“I go out there to do my job and do it better than everybody in this league. That’s what my focus is,” Towns said. “I’m not here to be a show.”

Towns is entering the first season of five-year, $190MM max deal. He missed out on roughly $32MM by not making an All-NBA team this past season, though he doesn’t dwell on last year’s results.

“It’s a great thing for me because I laugh about it,” Towns said. “When you’re doing something so well for so long, it gets boring. I guess I’m a boring guy now…It’s never been about the individual awards. It’s about the team success. I’ve got to do better of getting my team in a better position to win. Obviously, it’s going to be fun this year to have the kind of group I have.”

While it may seem like the endorsements and other financial opportunities are heavily concentrated in bigger markets, Towns is doing just fine, as his agency (CAA) has helped him with off-court exposure. In addition to endorsements, Towns has been in movies and on television shows. He has a YouTube Channel as well.

“I thought when you were in Minnesota, you would have less opportunities. I’ve seemed to have only grown with my opportunities,” Towns said. “The idea of it being because of my market or where I’m at is a false narrative that’s written by people who want to keep big cities’ talent pool larger than others. It’s just not true.

“We’re in a digital age. Talent is talent wherever you are. We find it through social media and the markets and the companies know who they want to work with. It doesn’t matter where.”

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