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2018 Offseason In Review: Minnesota Timberwolves

October 20th, 2018 at 8:23pm CST by Arthur Hill

Hoops Rumors is breaking down the 2018 offseason for all 30 NBA teams, revisiting the summer’s free agent signings, trades, draft picks, departures, and more. We’ll evaluate each team’s moves from the last several months and look ahead to what the 2018/19 season holds for all 30 franchises. Today, we’re focusing on the Minnesota Timberwolves.

Signings:

Standard contracts:
- Anthony Tolliver: One year, $5.75MM. Signed using mid-level exception.
- James Nunnally: Two years, minimum salary. First year partially guaranteed ($350K). Second year non-guaranteed. Signed using minimum salary exception.
- Luol Deng: One year, minimum salary. Signed using minimum salary exception.
- Derrick Rose: One year, minimum salary. Re-signed using minimum salary exception.
Two-way contracts:
- Jared Terrell
- C.J. Williams
Non-guaranteed camp contracts:
- Canyon Barry: One year, minimum salary (waived).
- Darius Johnson-Odom: One year, minimum salary (waived).
- William Lee: One year, minimum salary (waived).
- Jonathan Stark: One year, minimum salary (waived).

Trades:

None

Draft picks:

1-20: Josh Okogie — Signed to rookie contract.
2-48: Keita Bates-Diop — Signed to three-year, minimum salary contract. First two years guaranteed. Signed using minimum salary exception.

Extensions:

Karl-Anthony Towns — Signed five-year, maximum salary rookie scale extension. Starts at 25% of the cap. Projected value of $158.05MM. Starts in 2019/20.
- Note: Starting salary will be worth 30% of the cap if Towns earns All-NBA honors in 2018/19 (projected value of $189.66MM).

Departing players:

Other offseason news:

Jimmy Butler requested trade after turning down extension offer.
Justin Patton underwent foot surgery.

Salary cap situation:

Remained over the cap.
Carrying approximately $121.2MM in salary.
Hard-capped at $129.82MM.
Approximately $2.05MM of mid-level exception available ($6.59MM used on Anthony Tolliver and Keita Bates-Diop).

Check out the Minnesota Timberwolves’ full roster and depth chart at RosterResource.com.

Story of the summer:

Everything else that happened for the Timberwolves during the offseason was overshadowed on September 19 when Jimmy Butler issued a trade request to the front office. The move spawned a stream of chaos, some of it orchestrated and some of it legitimate, but the result was that Butler was in the lineup when Minnesota opened the season, regardless of his wishes.

Butler has expressed a desire to play for a contender and has clashed frequently with younger teammates Karl-Anthony Towns and Andrew Wiggins, but ultimately the dispute is motivated by money. Butler wants a five-year max deal next summer that would pay him around $190MM. The Wolves have his Bird Rights and are the only team that can extend that offer as long as he stays; everyone else is limited to four years at roughly $140MM. Butler is hoping to be traded during the season to another organization willing to make that commitment.

The Heat and Rockets have been the strongest suitors for Butler since his trade request became public, and Miami reportedly had an agreement in place before the Wolves asked for additional assets. That incident, along with sky-high requests from other teams that pursued Butler, have led many to question whether Minnesota has ever been serious about making a deal. Trade talks have been called “mostly dormant” for now, but Butler has maintained his desire to leave and there’s a strong chance something will materialize before the February deadline.

The Butler soap opera dwarfed a piece of good news that may have a greater impact on the Wolves’ future. Towns agreed to an extension last month that could pay him up to $190MM over the next five seasons. He is already among the league’s best centers at age 22 and should provide a cornerstone for the franchise to build around once Butler is gone.

Key offseason losses:

Jamal Crawford was never happy with his playing time in Minnesota, but the former Sixth Man of the Year knew about coach Tom Thibodeau’s tight rotation before signing with the team. Crawford’s minutes per game dropped to 20.7 last season, the lowest since his rookie year, and his scoring average plunged to 10.3 PPG, his worst since 2001/02. After waiting for an offer all through the preseason, Crawford signed with the Suns this week and will presumably return to his usual level of production.

The Wolves withdrew their qualifying offer for Nemanja Bjelica to open up cap room for free agency. After averaging 6.8 PPG in 67 games, he has moved on to Sacramento. Veteran guard Aaron Brooks, who played 32 games, also didn’t return, along with a few others such as Cole Aldrich and Anthony Brown, but none of them were in Minnesota’s long-term plans.

Key offseason additions:

The Wolves kept their rotation more or less intact, but made lots of changes around the edges. One of those moves was the signing of free agent swingman Anthony Tolliver, who agreed to a one-year deal in July. Tolliver is 33, but just turned in one of the best seasons of his career with the Pistons. He averaged 8.9 PPG in 79 games and shot .436 from 3-point range, giving the Wolves an extra weapon from outside. Minnesota made him its top priority in free agency, with Thibodeau calling him twice.

The Wolves also brought in veteran forward Luol Deng after he accepted a buyout with the Lakers to escape his exile in L.A. Despite being fully healthy, Deng only got into one game last season, playing a few minutes in the season opener before being benched for the rest of the year. He joins Butler, Taj Gibson and Derrick Rose as former Thibodeau-era Bulls who have made their way to Minnesota.

Outlook for 2018/19:

More blowups at practice? Posturing for the media? Fistfights in the locker room? Who really knows? The only safe bets are that Butler will continue to push for a trade and Thibodeau will try to keep him as long as possible to help the team win and give himself job security.

The trade deadline is February 7, so something will have to be resolved by then. Butler has made it clear that he plans to opt out next summer, and the Wolves don’t want to lose him without getting something in return. However, it’s not clear if the trade offers will get better or worse in the next three and a half months.

The most logical conclusion is that the Wolves eventually trade Butler somewhere, probably Miami, for a package of young players and draft picks, then start to build around those assets along with Towns and Wiggins. Whether Thibodeau or GM Scott Layden remain in the equation is an open question, as owner Glen Taylor hasn’t been happy with their lack of urgency in finding a Butler deal.

In the meantime, the Wolves will continue to be among the most entertaining teams in the NBA. Maybe not for the right reasons, but it’s hard to look away.

Salary information from Basketball Insiders was used in the creation of this post. Photos courtesy of USA Today Sports Images. Luke Adams contributed to this post.

NBA Teams With Open Roster Spots

October 19th, 2018 at 1:57pm CST by Luke Adams

When the Kings sign Troy Williams to a two-way contract after he clears waivers today, as is expected, they’ll become the 16th NBA team to fill all 17 of their available roster spots, with 15 players on standard contracts and two more on two-way pacts.

Still, that will leave nearly half of the league’s teams that will still have at least one opening on their rosters, either on the standard 15-man squad or in their two-way slots.

For many clubs, that decision is primarily financially motivated. Teams like the Warriors, Rockets, Thunder, Raptors, and Wizards all project to have pricey luxury tax bills at season’s end, so there’s no need for them to push those projected penalties higher by carrying an extra player they won’t use.

Other teams may simply prefer to preserve some roster flexibility rather than carrying a full 15-man squad. The Lakers, for instance, aren’t close to the tax line, but have an open roster spot for now. That could allow the team to make a trade or signing later to fortify its roster without costing anyone a job.

Listed below, with the help of our roster counts breakdown, are the teams that aren’t carrying full rosters.

Teams with an open 15-man roster spot:

Charlotte Hornets
Cleveland Cavaliers
Golden State Warriors
Houston Rockets
Los Angeles Lakers
Miami Heat
Minnesota Timberwolves
Oklahoma City Thunder
Toronto Raptors
Washington Wizards
- Note: The Wizards have two open roster spots and will need to fill one of them by October 30.

Teams with an open two-way slot:

New Orleans Pelicans
Phoenix Suns
Portland Trail Blazers
- Note: The Blazers have two open two-way slots.
San Antonio Spurs

Heat’s Josh Richardson Discusses Trade Rumors

October 19th, 2018 at 11:12am CST by Luke Adams

Heat swingman Josh Richardson hasn’t expressed any dissatisfaction or requested a trade like Jimmy Butler has in Minnesota, but he has still been the subject of several trade rumors this fall since he’s viewed as the potential centerpiece of a Miami trade for Butler. Speaking to Ira Winderman of The South Florida Sun Sentinel, Richardson acknowledged that the NBA is a “cutthroat business” but added that he’s trying not to let the speculation affect him.

“For like the first hour, I was hearing from everyone,” Richardson said, referring to when his name first came up in the Butler rumors. “But after that, it is what it is. I don’t get too much into it. When it first came out a little bit, yeah, it was hard to ignore.”

Richardson, who added that the trade chatter was “a distraction at first,” hasn’t demonstrated any signs of being bothered by those rumors during his first two games of the 2018/19 season. The 25-year-old has poured in 24.5 PPG to go along with 4.5 RPG and 4.0 APG so far, showing exactly why the Timberwolves insisted on including him in a potential deal for Butler.

Minnesota’s Butler trade talks are “mostly dormant” at the moment, and multiple reports have suggested that Heat president Pat Riley told his players before the season that he has pulled the plug on Miami’s involvement in those discussions — at least for now. With Butler still expected to be moved by the February trade deadline, Richardson isn’t totally safe in South Beach yet, but for the time being, he’s welcoming his increased role in the Heat’s offensive attack.

“I pretty much embrace it now,” Richardson said of being Miami’s leading man on offense, per Winderman. “I had a whole summer of it and at times it was like that last year. So I’m pretty much used to it.”

Woj: Teams Will Re-Engage On Butler When Wolves' Asking Price Gets 'More Realistic'

October 18th, 2018 at 12:41pm CST by Luke Adams

Wojnarowski also expects the Clippers to “be heard from again” in the Jimmy Butler sweepstakes, though the ESPN scribe expects many other potential trade partners to re-engage the Timberwolves once Minnesota gets “more realistic” about its asking price.

[SOURCE LINK]

Jimmy Butler Trade Talks ‘Mostly Dormant’ For Now

October 18th, 2018 at 11:07am CST by Luke Adams

With the 2018/19 season officially underway, the Jimmy Butler trade talks that were so active in the weeks leading up to opening night are “mostly dormant” for the time being, reports Shams Charania of The Athletic.

The Heat were the most aggressive suitor for Butler during the preseason, having nearly reached a deal with the Timberwolves that would have sent Josh Richardson, Dion Waiters, and a protected first-round pick to Minnesota for the All-NBA swingman. However, according to Charania, Heat president Pat Riley informed his players a few days before the regular season began that the club planned to stick with its current roster for now.

While the Timberwolves aren’t close to any deals involving Butler at the moment, trade discussions figure to pick back up at some point. Team owner Glen Taylor confirmed earlier this week that he and the 29-year-old reached an understanding — Butler will play hard for the Wolves while the team continues to seek out a trade package for him.

If and when those trade talks resume, Miami still looks like a prime landing spot. Marc Stein of The New York Times also noted earlier this week that “rumbles persist” about the Rockets maintaining serious interest in trading for Butler, despite the Wolves’ aversion to helping Houston build another super-team in the Western Conference.

Although Butler isn’t necessarily happy to still be in Minnesota, he has been making an effort to display leadership and help out his teammates by easing the pressure from head coach Tom Thibodeau, according to Charania.

“Just hoop, I told them, and I think that I can get Thibs to relax a little bit,” Butler said. “He’s never going to say anything about offense as long as you go down there and play with effort on the defensive end and get a couple stops. It’s whenever you’re not getting stops when he starts yelling. I think Thibs has calmed down a lot, and guys are playing with effort.”

Wolves Notes: Butler, Thibodeau, Towns, Wiggins

October 17th, 2018 at 5:35pm CST by Arthur Hill

Timberwolves coach/executive Tom Thibodeau raised the asking price for Jimmy Butler in trade talks after last week’s infamous practice incident, ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski said on today’s edition of “The Jump.” The ESPN scribe adds that Thibodeau feels like he came away victorious in his struggle with owner Glen Taylor because Butler remains on the team and will play in tonight’s opener.

“This is exactly what Tom Thibodeau wanted, which was him in the lineup on opening night,” Wojnarowski said. “The day that Jimmy came back and practiced, Thibs won. He waited out his owner, he waited out Jimmy, got him back on the court.”

He adds that Minnesota still hasn’t gotten serious about trading Butler and continues to ask for returns that it knows teams won’t agree to. Woj doesn’t expect the situation to change until closer to the trade deadline in February, when he says some teams that have been involved in trade talks will “circle back” to see if the Wolves have become more realistic.

There’s more today out of Minnesota:

Thibodeau isn’t concerned about team chemistry despite the surreal preseason and lingering rumors from last year of locker room disharmony, relays Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic. Thibodeau contends the bond that players have is reflected by their performance on the court. “That’s how you measure chemistry. When guys are playing together, how do they play with each other? Do they play effectively?” he said. “That’s what was so encouraging to me about what we did last year. The starters were a very dynamic group. To be third in offense and seventh in defense and the record we had when everyone was healthy (37-22) was terrific. And we want to build off of that.”
Karl-Anthony Towns has the talent to be considered the second-best player in franchise history after Kevin Garnett, but he may not reach his potential until Butler is gone, suggests Jim Souhan of The Star-Tribune. Towns has been targeted frequently by Butler because of a passive attitude, and Souhan believes the best outcome is a trade that leaves Towns as the team’s unquestioned on-court leader.
A Star-Tribune panel debates whether Andrew Wiggins can blossom into the player the Wolves hoped when they gave him a five-year, $148MM extension. That new deal kicks in this year, and there are concerns that he might never be more than an inefficient scorer.

Wolves Notes: Garnett, Taylor, Thibodeau

October 16th, 2018 at 10:55pm CST by ChrisCrouse

Kevin Garnett is not a shy person when it comes to speaking his mind and he offered his thoughts on the Jimmy Butler saga during an appearance on TNT’s pregame show.

“I totally understand [Butler]. I totally get it. And he’s dealing with [owner Glen Taylor], who doesn’t know [expletive] about basketball,” Garnett said (h/t AJ Neuharth-Keusch of USA Today). “He knows how to make money, but he don’t know anything about basketball. I wouldn’t say that he’s the best basketball mind.”

Taylor said he reached an understanding with Butler: the Wolves’ wing will play to his full ability while the team continues to search for a trade offer. “I think [Butler has] made it very clear that he would not re-sign with us at the end of the year and therefore it is in our interest to get a trade so that we can get a player or two to replace him that helps our team,” Taylor said.

Here’s more from Minnesota:

Taylor gave a vote of confidence to Tom Thibodeau, telling Sid Hartman of the Star Tribune that the executive/head coach is not on the hot seat. “No, no, the only thing now is that we are starting to play games and I am asking him to concentrate on coaching,” Taylor said. “GM Scott Layden will help to see if any trades are available.”
Taylor told Hartman (same piece) that he is alright with how Thibodeau handed the whole Butler situation so far. “Well, I’m OK with it,” Taylor said. “Initially, when Butler told [Thibodeau] he wanted to leave, you know Tom did everything he could to try to keep Jimmy here and I understand that. They have a close relationship. Thibs brought him here so that he would stay here. But eventually I think that in listening to Jimmy, Thibs and I are lined up on this. We need to be looking at a trade.”
Taylor has owned the Timberwolves since 1994 and the messy situation with Butler has not made him think about selling the team, Hartman relays. “No, no, we will get through this,” he said. “The changes we have to make, we will get through this. I’ll just keep working and doing the best I can on it to keep our team very competitive.”

Timberwolves Owner Has Understanding With Jimmy Butler

October 16th, 2018 at 8:27pm CST by ChrisCrouse

Timberwolves owner Glen Taylor said he has reached an understanding with Jimmy Butler, telling the four-time All-Star that the franchise will continue to try and trade him, Sid Hartman of the StarTribune, passes along. According to Taylor, Butler has agreed to play to his full ability while the team finds a suitor. The agreement was first reported over the weekend, though Taylor had not spoken publicly since the report.

“The latest is he is going to be going to practice every day, which he has been, and plans to play in games,” said Taylor tells Hartman. “He will be a regular team player. What I said to him in the meantime is our GM, Scott Layden, will be talking to other teams to see if there is a trade that works.”

Taylor added that there is no question Butler will give 100 percent on the court. “[Butler] said that is the only way he knows how to do it,” Taylor said.

The owner added that as far as he can tell, there’s no chance Butler remains on the team past this season. “That is not part of the plan, but as you know, things can change,” Taylor said. “But that is not what we have agreed to.”

“…I think [Butler has] made it very clear that he would not re-sign with us at the end of the year and therefore it is in our interest to get a trade so that we can get a player or two to replace him that helps our team.”

Taylor hinted that economics are playing a role in the situation. “We would have to make some changes on our team in order to keep Jimmy,” Taylor said. Minnesota has already given huge deals to Karl-Anthony Towns (five years, up to $190MM) and Andrew Wiggins (five years, $147MM). Butler could command a five-year deal worth $190MM from the Timberwolves should he re-sign with the team in 2019, and reportedly wanted the club to renegotiate his contract this past summer.

2018/19 Over/Unders: Northwest Division

October 16th, 2018 at 11:42am CST by Luke Adams

The 2018/19 NBA regular season gets underway tonight, which means it’s time to get serious about predictions for the upcoming campaign. With the help of the lines from Bovada and the Westgate Las Vegas SuperBook, we’re running through the predicted win totals for each of the NBA’s 30 teams, by division, to have you weigh in on whether you think those forecasts are too optimistic or too pessimistic.

Having already looked at the other five divisions, we’re moving onto the Northwest today…

Utah Jazz

2017/18 record: 48-34
Over/under for 2018/19: 50.5 wins
Major offseason moves:
- Added: Grayson Allen
- Lost: Jonas Jerebko

(Trade Rumors app users, click here for Jazz poll)

Oklahoma City Thunder

2017/18 record: 48-34
Over/under for 2018/19: 48.5 wins
Major offseason moves:
- Added: Dennis Schroder, Nerlens Noel, Abdel Nader, Timothe Luwawu-Cabarrot, Hamidou Diallo
- Lost: Carmelo Anthony, Corey Brewer, Nick Collison, Josh Huestis, Dakari Johnson, Kyle Singler

(Trade Rumors app users, click here for Thunder poll)

Denver Nuggets

2017/18 record: 46-36
Over/under for 2018/19: 48.5 wins
Major offseason moves:
- Added: Isaiah Thomas, Michael Porter Jr., Jarred Vanderbilt
- Lost: Wilson Chandler, Devin Harris, Kenneth Faried, Darrell Arthur, Richard Jefferson

(Trade Rumors app users, click here for Nuggets poll)

Portland Trail Blazers

2017/18 record: 49-33
Over/under for 2018/19: 42.5 wins
Major offseason moves:
- Added: Seth Curry, Nik Stauskas, Anfernee Simons, Gary Trent Jr.
- Lost: Ed Davis, Shabazz Napier, Pat Connaughton, Georgios Papagiannis

(Trade Rumors app users, click here for Trail Blazers poll)

Minnesota Timberwolves

2017/18 record: 47-35
Over/under for 2018/19: 41.5 wins
Major offseason moves:
- Added: Anthony Tolliver, Luol Deng, James Nunnally, Josh Okogie, Keita Bates-Diop
- Lost: Jamal Crawford, Nemanja Bjelica, Marcus Georges-Hunt, Aaron Brooks, Cole Aldrich

(Trade Rumors app users, click here for Timberwolves poll)

Previous voting results:

Atlantic:

Boston Celtics (59.5 wins): Over (53.63%)
Toronto Raptors (55.5 wins): Over (56.95%)
Philadelphia 76ers (54.5 wins): Under (51.19%)
Brooklyn Nets (31.5 wins): Under (56.04%)
New York Knicks (28.5 wins): Under (54.13%)

Southwest:

Houston Rockets (56.5 wins): Over (69.33%)
New Orleans Pelicans (45.5 wins): Under (53.4%)
San Antonio Spurs (44.5 wins): Under (60%)
Dallas Mavericks (34.5 wins): Over (55.16%)
Memphis Grizzlies (34.5 wins): Under (60.87%)

Central:

Indiana Pacers (47.5 wins): Over (62.04%)
Milwaukee Bucks (47.5 wins): Over (73.7%)
Detroit Pistons (38.5 wins): Over (56.36%)
Cleveland Cavaliers (30.5 wins): Over (55.42%)
Chicago Bulls (29.5 wins): Over (61.8%)

Pacific:

Golden State Warriors (62.5 wins): Over (53.45%)
Los Angeles Lakers (48.5 wins): Over (55.2%)
Los Angeles Clippers (36.5 wins): Under (55.7%)
Phoenix Suns (29.5 wins): Under (53.4%)
Sacramento Kings (25.5 wins): Under (63.87%)

Southeast:

Washington Wizards (45.5 wins): Over (56.28%)
Miami Heat (43.5 wins): Under (57.42%)
Charlotte Hornets (35.5 wins): Over (56.73%)
Orlando Magic (30.5 wins): Under (68.41%)
Atlanta Hawks (23.5 wins): Under (58.38%

Sixers Have Shown 'Almost No Interest' In Trading For Butler

October 16th, 2018 at 9:55am CST by Luke Adams

Although teams like the Heat, Nets, and Clippers have been cited as Jimmy Butler‘s preferred destinations, the Timberwolves wing also “has eyes” for the Sixers, per Lowe. However, sources tell ESPN that Philadelphia has shown “almost no interest” in trading for Butler.

[SOURCE LINK]