Minnesota Timberwolves Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Free Agent Rumors: Clippers, KCP, Lakers, Casspi

July 7th, 2017 at 2:25pm CST by Luke Adams

Free agent big man Willie Reed is meeting today with the Clippers, league sources tell Alex Kennedy of HoopsHype (Twitter link). ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski confirms the meeting and adds (via Twitter) that Jeff Withey is also sitting down with the club today. Los Angeles doesn’t have a whole lot of financial flexibility left, having used most of its mid-level exception on Milos Teodosic, but the club remains in the market for a backup for DeAndre Jordan, with Marreese Speights having opted out.

Here’s more on free agency:

The Pistons‘ best offer to Kentavious Caldwell-Pope was worth $80MM over five years, which “wasn’t even close” to what the free agent guard was seeking, a source tells Jake Fischer of SI.com (Twitter link). Vince Ellis of The Detroit Free Press (Twitter link) also hears the two sides weren’t at all close, though he doesn’t confirm those specific figures. Caldwell-Pope is now an unrestricted free agent.
The Lakers have shown some interest in Rodney Stuckey, but have only had preliminary discussions on that front, writes Mark Medina of The Orange County Register. Alex Kennedy (Twitter link) first reported L.A.’s interest in Stuckey.
Before he agreed to sign with the Warriors on a minimum salary deal, Omri Casspi turned down a one-year, $4.5MM offer from a probable lottery team, according to ESPN’s Zach Lowe, who notes that Casspi opted for a chance at a title instead of the bigger payday.
The Timberwolves are said to be trying harder to unload Cole Aldrich‘s contract in an effort to land C.J. Miles, but the team remains reluctant to attach a first-round pick, tweets Darren Wolfson of 5 Eyewitness News.

And-Ones: Clark, Shved, Bogdanovic

July 6th, 2017 at 11:04pm CST by ChrisCrouse

Add Warriors guard Ian Clark to the list of wing players who interest the Timberwolves, tweets Darren Wolfson of 5 Eyewitness News. C.J. Miles remains their prime target, but Minnesota doesn’t have enough cap room left to make a competitive offer. The Wolves have discussed a sign-and-trade that would send center Cole Aldrich and Oklahoma City’s 2018 first-rounder to Indiana in exchange for Miles, according to an ESPN report.

Here’s more from around the league:

Alexey Shved may void the final year of his contract with Khimki Moscow in order to return to the NBA, a source tells international journalist David Pick (Twitter link). Shved last played in the NBA for the Knicks during the 2014/15 campaign.
The Kings are covering all of Bogdan Bogdanovic‘s $850K NBA buyout with Fenerbahce, a source tells Pick (Twitter link). Sacramento signed the swingman to a three-year deal worth $27MM, which is the richest contract for a rookie in league history.
Phil Ricci will join the Kings’ coaching staff as an assistant player development coach, James Ham of NBC Sports tweets. Ricci played professionally abroad for several seasons before coaching at the high school level.
Grizzlies GM Chris Wallace has penned a thank you letter to Zach Randolph for his contributions over the past eight years. The note, which is posted on the team’s website, credits Randolph for helping to establish Memphis’ “grit and grind” identity. Randolph agreed to a two-year, $24MM deal with the Kings on Tuesday. The Grizzlies also announced today that Randolph’s number will be retired.

Arthur Hill contributed to this post

Timberwolves Sign Justin Patton To Rookie Deal

July 6th, 2017 at 8:51am CST by Luke Adams

The Timberwolves have officially signed first-round pick Justin Patton to his rookie contract, the team announced in a press release. The move was made official earlier this week.

Patton, the 16th overall pick in this year’s draft, was part of a trade that sent Zach LaVine, Kris Dunn, and the No. 7 pick (Lauri Markkanen) to Chicago. Patton arrived in Minnesota along with Jimmy Butler as part of that blockbuster deal.

Unfortunately, Patton’s pro career didn’t get off to a great start. The former Creighton center won’t be participating in Summer League with the club, having suffered a foot fracture during a workout, the Wolves announced on Tuesday. Patton underwent surgery to repair a broken fifth metatarsal in his left foot and will be sidelined indefinitely, per the team.

As our breakdown of this year’s rookie scale salaries shows, Patton’s four-year deal with Minnesota will be worth about $12.81MM, with a first-year salary just shy of $2.25MM.

Free Agent Rumors: Celtics, Heat, Cavs, Wolves

July 5th, 2017 at 5:51pm CST by Luke Adams

Having landed Gordon Hayward, the Celtics have shifted their focus to adding a rim-protecting big man, and are showing interest in several free agents who fit that bill, tweets Alex Kennedy of HoopsHype. Currently, the Celtics could only offer the $4.3MM room exception, but if they clear more than the minimum space necessary for Hayward’s deal, they could potentially make a bigger offer.

Speaking of Hayward, Jody Genessy of The Deseret News talked at length with agent Mark Bartelstein about how and why his client’s free agency announcement turned into such a mess on Tuesday. As Genessy details, via Bartelstein, Hayward went back and forth between the Jazz and Celtics before making his final decision.

Here are more free agency updates from around the NBA:

Having reached a deal with Dion Waiters, the Heat have interest in bringing back James Johnson and Luke Babbitt as well, writes Barry Jackson of The Miami Herald. Bartelstein, who is also Johnson’s agent, will talk to Pat Riley tonight, according to Jackson.
While Richard Jefferson, who is under contract for 2017/18, plans to return to the Cavaliers, James Jones may not, per Joe Vardon of Cleveland.com. Agent Joel Bell says that neither the Cavs nor Jones have made any decisions, but a source tells Vardon that Jones – who is a free agent – won’t be back in Cleveland next season.
The Timberwolves have touched base with veteran free agent Vince Carter, but there’s nothing “concrete” happening with him for now, tweets Darren Wolfson of 5 Eyewitness News.
The Mavericks are considering adding German power forward Maxi Kleber, per Sportando (Twitter link). Kleber expects to continue playing for Bayern Munich if he doesn’t make the jump to the NBA.

Western Rumors: Gasol, Faried, T-Wolves, Young

July 5th, 2017 at 12:33pm CST by Luke Adams

While a handful of Western Conference teams have made major roster moves so far this offseason, the Grizzlies have been fairly quiet. The team reached an agreement to sign Ben McLemore, but also lost Zach Randolph and has yet to lock up its other free agents like JaMychal Green and Tony Allen.

With their window of contention potentially closing, would the Grizzlies consider moving Marc Gasol? Two league executives suggest to Chris Mannix of The Vertical that Gasol is a player worth keeping an eye on as a possible trade candidate. Mannix’s note is tucked away in a larger piece about the Celtics‘ next moves, and as he points out, Gasol would make a lot of sense as a target for Boston. However, there’s no indication that any talks have happened or that Memphis is even considering such a roster shake-up, so it sounds like speculation at this point.

Here’s more from around the Western Conference:

Teams are calling the Nuggets to inquire about Kenneth Faried, tweets Alex Kennedy of HoopsHype. With Paul Millsap arriving in Denver, the Nuggets’ frontcourt is getting crowded, and the team probably wouldn’t mind getting out from under Faried’s contract, so a trade remains a possibility.
Darren Wolfson of 5 Eyewitness News, who reported on Tuesday that the Pacers might be interested in working out a sign-and-trade deal with the Timberwolves for C.J. Miles, suggests that Indiana is further along on a Miles sign-and-trade scenario with another team (Twitter link). Meanwhile, Minnesota is waiting on Nick Young, having made him a two-year offer that is likely worth the room exception, tweets Wolfson.
In other Timberwolves news, first-round pick Justin Patton won’t be participating in Summer League with the club, having suffered a foot fracture during a workout, the team announced on Tuesday. Patton underwent surgery to repair a broken fifth metatarsal in his left foot and will be sidelined indefinitely, per the team.

Free Agent Rumors: Wolves, Knicks, Waiters, Jazz

July 4th, 2017 at 10:09pm CST by Luke Adams

The Timberwolves were linked to free agent swingman C.J. Miles earlier today, but weren’t necessarily considered a probable landing spot for Miles due to the team’s lack of cap flexibility. However, according to Darren Wolfson of 5 Eyewitness News (Twitter link), who passed along the initial report on Miles, the Pacers are open to the idea of a sign-and-trade which would net them Cole Aldrich‘s contract and OKC’s 2018 first-round pick from Minnesota.

Both teams would have to agree on that sign-and-trade scenario, and of course Miles would also have to be on board, so there may be some snags along the way. But as Wolfson points out, there are ways for the Wolves to get creative if they really want to land Miles or another free agent.

Wolfson has more on the Wolves, tweeting that he has heard the team made an offer to Nick Young. That offer would likely be worth the $4.3MM room exception, and Young turned down a $5.67MM player option with the Lakers last month, so I’d be surprised if Minnesota’s offer is enough to land him, but the club clearly remains on the lookout for shooting help.

Here’s more on free agency:

The Knicks continue to stay in touch with free agent guard Dion Waiters, according to Ramona Shelburne of ESPN, who reports (via Twitter) that Waiters and Rajon Rondo remain on the Lakers‘ radar.
With Gordon Hayward and Otto Porter off the board, the Jazz have expressed interest in Rudy Gay, says Alex Kennedy of Basketball Insiders (Twitter link). As Royce Young of ESPN tweets, Patrick Patterson essentially took the deal that Gay was unwilling to with the Thunder, so OKC may be out, leaving the Heat and Jazz as the top contenders for Gay.
Having already brought back nearly all of their key free agents, the Warriors are also considered likely to re-sign Zaza Pachulia, according to Sam Amick of USA Today.
After a strong showing for the Pistons in Summer League play, Eric Moreland is believed to have received a multiyear contract offer from Detroit, tweets Steve Kyler of Basketball Insiders.

C.J. Miles Drawing Interest From Heat, Hawks, Others

July 4th, 2017 at 6:11pm CST by Luke Adams

Veteran swingman C.J. Miles is receiving interest from a handful of teams, according to Darren Wolfson of 5 Eyewitness News, who reports (via Twitter) that the Heat, Hawks, and Kings are among the teams in the mix. The Timberwolves also maintain interest in Miles, but don’t currently have the cap flexibility to make a competitive offer, Wolfson notes.

Miles, 30, hits the free agent market this summer after one of the strongest seasons of his career. In 76 games (29 starts) for the Pacers, the 6’6″ sharpshooter averaged 10.7 PPG and 3.0 RPG, converting a career-best 41.3% of his three-point attempts.

The Heat, Hawks, and Kings all have cap room left over, though Miami has a number of balls up in the air as the club waits for Gordon Hayward‘s decision. As for the Wolves, their commitments to Jeff Teague and Taj Gibson have eaten up virtually all of their cap space, so the most they could offer Miles – without moving salary or working out a sign-and-trade – would likely be the $4.3MM room exception.

Miles is expected to take free agent visits soon, according to Wolfson.

JaMychal Green Considering Offer Sheet, Sign-And-Trade Scenarios

July 4th, 2017 at 3:33pm CST by Arthur Hill

3:33pm: The Grizzlies made an offer to Green when free agency opened and are now awaiting an offer sheet, tweets Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical. That doesn’t contradict Hodges’ account (noted below) — it sounds like the Grizzlies haven’t had discussions with Green’s camp since making their initial offer, and will consider their options when he brings them an offer sheet or sign-and-trade scenario from another team.

In the wake of Randolph’s departure, I’d be surprised if the Grizzlies don’t strongly consider matching an offer sheet for Green, as long as the price isn’t exorbitant.

2:59pm: JaMychal Green may be the next player to leave the Grizzlies, tweets Ronald Tillery of The Memphis Commercial Appeal. Green appears headed out of Memphis either in a free agent deal or a sign-and-trade.

“I’m looking at two offer sheets and sign-and-trades,” said Green’s agent, Michael Hodges. “Seems to us Memphis is going in a different direction.”

Hodges adds that he hasn’t spoken to the Grizzlies about a new contract for his client since free agency began on Saturday (Twitter link). However, Green is a restricted free agent, so even if he does sign an offer sheet with another team, Memphis would still have the opportunity to match it.

The Timberwolves have talked to Green, tweets Darren Wolfson of 5 Eyewitness News, but they aren’t among the teams Hodges referenced.

A 6’9″ power forward, Green signed two 10-day contracts with Memphis in February of 2015 and has been with the team ever since. He appeared in 77 games this season, starting 75, and averaged 8.9 points and 7.1 rebounds.

The Grizzlies saw another free agent power forward, Zach Randolph, strike an agreement with the Kings earlier today.

Luke Adams contributed to this post.

Pacific Notes: Hill, Young, Collison, Clippers

July 4th, 2017 at 12:02pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Lakers believe George Hill could provide backcourt depth, improve their outside shooting and serve as a locker room veteran, writes Mark Medina of The Los Angeles Daily News. The 31-year-old free agent met with L.A. officials on Monday, although no deal was reached. Hill could be used as a backup to rookie point guard Lonzo Ball or could be shifted to shooting guard. He averaged a career-high 16.9 points with the Jazz last season and shot .403 from 3-point range.

In their quest for backcourt help, the Lakers also met with Dion Waiters on Sunday and have had several phone conversations with Rajon Rondo. L.A. has spoken to several coaches and players who have worked with Rondo to see how he might handle a mentor’s role with Ball.

There’s more news from the Pacific Division:

The Timberwolves are the latest team to reach out to Lakers guard Nick Young, Medina notes in the same story. They join the Warriors, Thunder and Pelicans, who have also been linked to the 10-year veteran. Young revived his career this season, becoming a full-time starter and averaging 13.2 points per game.
The Clippers, Knicks and Magic all contacted Darren Collison before he agreed to a two-year deal with the Pacers Monday night, tweets Sean Cunningham of ABC 10 in Sacramento. The Kings made no effort to keep Collison, he adds.
A proposed three-team trade that would bring Danilo Gallinari to the Clippers would push the team closer to the repeater tax, posts Bobby Marks on ESPN Now. Adding Gallinari would give L.A. 10 players under contract with $110.4MM in guaranteed salary. The Clippers would hit the repeater tax if their salary tops $119M, so they will have to be careful in assembling the rest of their roster.
Gary Sacks has resigned as Clippers assistant GM, tweets Brad Turner of The Los Angeles Times. Sacks’ contract expired Friday.

Free Agent Rumors: Wolves, Young, Knicks, Gay

July 3rd, 2017 at 3:58pm CST by Luke Adams

Although the Warriors remain an option for Nick Young, several other teams are in the mix, per Sam Amick of USA Today (Twitter link). Oklahoma City and New Orleans have been mentioned as possible landing spots, and Darren Wolfson of 5 Eyewitness News (Twitter link) says the Timberwolves have also inquired.

As Wolfson notes in a separate tweet, Minnesota has reached out to Gerald Green as well. The Timberwolves are “casting a wide net” for wing options, in the hopes that a bigger name falls into their lap for the $4.3MM room exception, says Wolfson.

Here are more free agency updates from around the NBA:

According to Steve Kyler of Basketball Insiders (Twitter link), the Knicks have told multiple agents that they believe they’re closing in on a deal with a guard. Kyler suggests that mystery guard may be Derrick Rose or Shelvin Mack. Of those two, Mack seems like the more probable candidate, as a Sunday report suggested that Knicks GM Steve Mills isn’t bullish on bringing back Rose.
Rudy Gay was “impressed” by the Clippers‘ presentation to him on Sunday, but no deal is in place between the two sides, tweets Broderick Turner of The Los Angeles Times. The team met with Danilo Gallinari on the weekend as well.
Appearing on Zach Lowe’s ESPN podcast for the first time, cap guru Bobby Marks expressed skepticism that the Nets will go after Pistons restricted free agent Kentavious Caldwell-Pope as aggressively as they pursued RFAs a year ago. Brooklyn has frequently been linked to KCP and Otto Porter, but there has been no word yet about a Nets offer for either player. Brooklyn was scheduled to meet with Porter today, according to Matt Moore of CBSSports.com.