Minnesota Timberwolves Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Northwest Notes: Favors, Bjelica, Malone

September 9th, 2015 at 8:59am CST by Chuck Myron

Derrick Favors had started only eight games the season before he signed his four-year, $49MM-plus extension with the Jazz in 2013, but GM Dennis Lindsey tells Adi Joseph of The Sporting News that the team wasn’t worried. Lindsey credits Favors with having patiently waited his turn to inherit a major role.

“The present screams while the future whispers,” Lindsey said. “And many of those contracts, you do have to project. But Derrick gave us a great sense of calm with how he’s handled himself as a player and as a person.”

Lindsey added that he considered supplementing the team’s playoff push this season with a veteran free agent addition or a splashy trade but decided against it when the right player didn’t emerge, entrusting Favors and the other members of the team’s youthful core with taking the next step this season. While we wait to see if they can, see more on the Jazz and their Northwest Division rivals:

Favors wasn’t initially sold on Utah, but that’s changed, as he said to Joseph for the same piece. “I didn’t expect to stay [long term], no,” Favors said. “Utah was so different, I was so new to it. I didn’t expect to stay. But as the years have gone on, I’ve grown to love it. I got used to it. I just started feeling comfortable. I like how calm and chill it is in Utah. It’s a good thing and it’s a bad thing. The bad part is, maybe after a big game you want to go out and hang out or whatever, and there’s really not too many spots like that in Utah. Down here, you could go anywhere. Out in Utah, it’s chill, laid-back. There’s not a lot of rah-rah stuff going on. You can focus on your job, your career, whatever else you have going on.”
Nemanja Bjelica will fight for minutes at a crowded power forward position as a rookie this year, but the Timberwolves draft-and-stash signee figures to earn his share of playing team, and he’s capable of becoming a star in the NBA, opines SB Nation’s Liam Boylan-Pett. His performance in this week’s Eurobasket tournament has provided glimpses of why he can succeed at the NBA level, as Boylan-Pett examines.
The addition of coach Michael Malone is one of the few moves that the Nuggets have made recently that seem to have struck the right chord, writes Shaun Powell of NBA.com in his 30 Teams, 30 Days series.

Western Notes: Bryant, Gates, Malone

September 8th, 2015 at 6:48pm CST by Eddie Scarito

With Kobe Bryant entering the final year of his current deal, the Lakers were hampered by the Mamba’s $25MM salary when trying to rebuild their roster this offseason, and as a result this season will be more of a farewell tour for the superstar than a run at a final title, Shaun Powell of NBA.com writes in his season preview of the club. Powell also notes that while Bryant has a reputation as someone willing to do anything to win a championship, if that was indeed the case he would have pushed to join a contender for what could end up being his final NBA campaign. So instead, Powell opines that Bryant is willing to win, but only on his terms.

Here’s more out of the West:

Former Pelicans assistant coach Bryan Gates, who wasn’t retained when Monty Williams was fired, has been added to Flip Saunders‘ staff with the Timberwolves, Ken Berger of CBSSports.com reports (Twitter link).
New Nuggets coach Michael Malone acknowledged that he was consulted by the team’s front office prior to troubled point guard Ty Lawson being traded to the Rockets, Nicki Jhabvala of The Denver Post writes. “We’re a team. There’s no separation between church and state,” Malone said of his relationship with Denver’s front office. “We’re together, we’re one, we communicate, and I think that’s so important. But at the end of the day, Tim’s [Connelly] job as GM is to make those decisions, obviously with the blessing of [team president] Josh Kroenke. They asked my opinion, I gave it, I tell him what I feel and believe in, and then whatever decision they make I roll with it.”
The Trail Blazers will have to take a committee approach to try and replace the rim protection that was lost when Robin Lopez departed for the Knicks in free agency this Summer, Mike Richman of The Oregonian writes.

Western Rumors: Bennett, Morris, Clippers

September 7th, 2015 at 9:23pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Anthony Bennett’s spirited play with the Canadian national team at the FIBA Americas tournament provides hope that he can still live up to his status as the top pick in the 2013 draft, Eric Koreen of the National Post reports. The Timberwolves power forward has endeared himself to Canada coach Jay Triano by running the floor, setting screens and attacking the rim, Koreen continues. “I think Anthony Bennett’s summer has been absolutely fantastic for us,” Triano told reporters at the tournament. “He’s engaged in everything that we do on the floor, off the floor, rebounding. We’ve asked him to rebound, and he’s done it on a continuous basis. He runs the floor on a continuous basis. He provides help on the defensive end. He understands our defensive system.” Canada has not featured Bennett much offensively, but he has been effective when given opportunities, Ryan Wolstat of the Toronto Sun points out. Bennett was shooting 68.2% on two-point attempts while averaging 10.3 points and 7.3 rebounds through the team’s first four games. Bennett has been Canada’s de facto center but with Minnesota using its No. 1 overall pick on Karl-Anthony Towns this summer and plenty of competition in a crowded frontcourt, Bennett might not be able to display his improvement immediately, Koreen adds.

In other news around the Western Conference:

The Raptors, Magic, Celtics, Rockets and Pistons are the five most logical landing spots for disgruntled Suns power forward Markieff Morris, Cody Taylor of Basketball Insiders opines. Morris, who is entering the first year of a four-year, $32MM extension, demanded a trade after Phoenix dealt his brother, Marcus Morris, to the Pistons in July.
Clippers owner Steve Ballmer turned down an offer of $60MM annually from Fox Sports to broadcast his team’s games locally, according to Broderick Turner of the Los Angeles Times. Ballmer asked for $100MM annually, executives familiar with the talks told Turner, but Fox declined. Ballmer is considering other options, including creating his own network and streaming the games, Turner adds.

Pelicans In Mix As Sean Kilpatrick Nears Camp Deal

September 7th, 2015 at 2:10pm CST by Chuck Myron

One-year NBA veteran shooting guard Sean Kilpatrick is closing in on signing a deal for training camp, and the Pelicans are squarely in the mix, reports Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN Twin Cities (Twitter link). The 25-year-old who was with the Timberwolves on a 10-day contract last season was a participant in recent workouts with the Pelicans, Hawks, Spurs and Lakers.

New Orleans has plenty of roster flexibility, with 13 fully guaranteed salaries and a partial guarantee for Bryce Dejean-Jones the team’s only commitments so far. They were reportedly to have worked out shooting guard Corey Webster, a prospect from New Zealand. The Hawks and Spurs also have only 13 full guarantees apiece, but they have plenty of others on non-guaranteed or partially guaranteed arrangements. The Lakers have a dozen full guarantees but are similarly stocked with multiple players who are without fully guaranteed salary.

The 6’4″ former Cincinnati Bearcat averaged an impressive 18.2 points in 28.7 minutes per game in summer league for the Bucks this year, but Milwaukee has 15 full guarantees and it’s unclear if the team has interest in him for camp. The Timberwolves have 16 fully guaranteed deals, so Kilpatrick would seemingly have a tough time making the regular season roster in Minnesota despite his experience there. The Wolves signed Kilpatrick in large measure because he was in close proximity to New York when they were short a player before a game against the Knicks, but he saw plenty of playing time in his brief stint with Minnesota, putting up 5.5 PPG in 17.9 MPG.

Northwest Notes: Nurkic, Wolves, Kanter

September 5th, 2015 at 7:56pm CST by Arthur Hill

Nuggets center Jusuf Nurkic is sitting out the Eurobasket tournament as he continues to rehab his left knee, though he hopes to be healthy enough to play for the Nuggets at the start of the season or shortly thereafter, Christopher Dempsey of the Denver Post reports. Nurkic was planning to play for Bosnia and Herzegovina before he underwent knee surgery in May to repair a partially torn left patella tendon, Dempsey continues.

There’s more from the Northwest Division:

The Wolves‘ lottery luck turned around and gave them perhaps the second franchise player in their history, writes Shaun Powell of NBA.com. Karl-Anthony Towns, the first player selected in this year’s draft, has the potential for greatness, according to Powell, and he has the good fortune of being tutored by Minnesota’s other franchise player, Kevin Garnett. The writer believes Towns’ addition makes Nikola Pekovic expendable, although his salary of more than $35MM over the next three years may make a deal difficult until at least the trade deadline. Ricky Rubio may also be dealt now that rookie Tyus Jones and veteran Andre Miller are in town. With a wealth of young and inexpensive talent on hand, Powell sees the Wolves as contenders for a top free agent next summer.
Enes Kanter tells Carla Hinton of The Oklahoman that efforts to accommodate his Muslim faith made him feel welcome in Oklahoma City. Kanter, whose four-year, $70MM offer sheet with the Blazers was matched by the Thunder, said the organization set up a prayer room for him at Chesapeake Energy Arena.

Dana Gauruder contributed to this post.

Western Notes: Exum, Williams, Hayes

September 3rd, 2015 at 9:32pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Jazz point guard Dante Exum underwent successful surgery today to repair damage to the ACL in his left knee, the team announced. The 20-year-old, who was the No. 5 overall pick in the 2014 NBA Draft, was injured in early August while playing for the Australian National Team, and he is out indefinitely as a result. Exum appeared in 82 contests as a rookie, including 41 starts. His numbers for the 2014/15 campaign were 4.8 points, 1.6 rebounds, and 2.4 assists in 22.2 minutes per contest to accompany a slash line of .349/.314/.625.

Here’s more out of the West:

New Mavericks point guard Deron Williams doesn’t like that he has been labeled as a “coach killer,” Mike Mazzeo of ESPN.com relays (Twitter links). Williams played for four different head coaches during his three seasons in Brooklyn, Mazzeo notes. Lionel Hollins, who was Williams’ final coach while with the Nets, recently said that the 31-year-old is no longer a franchise player.
J.J. O’Brien‘s deal with the Jazz is a three-year, minimum salary arrangement that includes a partial guarantee of $75K for the 2015/16 season, Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders tweets.
The one year pact that Chuck Hayes signed with the Clippers is non-guaranteed, and includes limited injury protection, meaning that it is likely an Exhibit 9 contract, Pincus relays (Twitter link).
The Timberwolves intend to add one or two more players to their roster prior to training camp commencing, Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN relays (on Twitter). Minnesota currently has a roster count of 17, which is three below the preseason maximum.

Latest On Ricky Rubio

September 3rd, 2015 at 9:45am CST by Chuck Myron

The Timberwolves no longer believe in Ricky Rubio as the long-term solution at point guard and have surveyed the trade market for him, as Bleacher Report’s Ric Bucher hears (video link). They’re not engaging in trade talk about him now, Bucher adds, nonetheless suggesting a decent chance exists they again explore the subject when the season starts. The dispatch comes despite Rubio’s continued insistence that he would prefer to remain in Minnesota and a recent report from Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN Twin Cities that the Wolves weren’t shopping him.

Bucher said that the Nets, Mavericks, Knicks and, most of all, the Bucks make sense for him as a trade destination, though that appears to be speculation. The Knicks “tested the waters” to see if they could trade Jose Calderon, according to Bucher, though it’s unclear if he’s referring to the team’s reported attempts to deal Calderon before the trade deadline this past winter or if he’s heard of more recent efforts on that front.

Wolves coach/executive Flip Saunders made mention of Rubio in June when he listed some of the team’s cornerstone players, referring to him as “a great point guard,” so that would run counter to the idea that the Wolves are ready to move on from the former fifth overall pick. Reports in May conflicted on whether Rubio’s camp, which includes agent Dan Fegan, was trying to convince the Wolves to trade him, but Rubio came out shortly thereafter to deny that he wanted out of Minnesota, and Rubio’s most recent comments reiterated that.

The incentive-laden four-year, $55MM extension that Rubio signed last fall kicks in for this coming season, when he’s slated to make $12.7MM. The 24-year-old who turns 25 next month is the highest-paid player on the Timberwolves. He played in a career-low 22 games this past season, chiefly because of injuries to his left ankle.

Do you think the Wolves should part with Rubio or keep him? Leave a comment to let us know.

Sixers Interested In Kendall Marshall

September 2nd, 2015 at 10:27am CST by Eddie Scarito

TUESDAY, 10:27am: Marshall has been with the Sixers at their practice facility over the past few days, a league source tells Jake Fischer of SI Now, who speculates that a training camp invitation appears on the way (Twitter link).

MONDAY, 8:45am: The Sixers have expressed interest in unrestricted free agent Kendall Marshall, league sources have informed Michael Kaskey-Blomain of ESPN’s TrueHoop Network (on Twitter). The Timberwolves are reportedly eyeing the point guard as well.

Philadelphia currently has a roster count of 19 players, though only 12 possess fully guaranteed deals, which means that Marshall would have a strong chance to make the club’s regular season roster. Also working in Marshall’s favor would be the Sixers’ distinct lack of depth at the one spot. The team currently has Tony Wroten penciled in atop the depth chart, with Isaiah Canaan, Scottie Wilbekin, and Pierre Jackson in the mix as well.

Marshall’s 2014/15 campaign was cut short when he tore his right ACL in January while playing for the Bucks, who had made the unusual move of guaranteeing his non-guaranteed salary before the season, more than two months before they needed to make a decision on the matter. The 24-year-old made 28 appearances for Milwaukee prior to his injury, and he averaged 4.2 points, 1.0 rebound, and 3.1 assists in 14.9 minutes per contest. His career numbers through parts of three NBA seasons are 5.3 PPG, 1.7 RPG, and 5.4 APG to go along with a slash line of .405/.377/.593.

Northwest Notes: Rubio, Harkless, Claver

September 2nd, 2015 at 8:47am CST by Chuck Myron

Ricky Rubio answered affirmatively when asked whether he wanted to remain with the Timberwolves and praised the team’s offseason additions in an interview with Jamie Goodwin of the Gulf News in Dubai, where the point guard had traveled for a basketball camp. Reports conflicted this spring on the subject of whether Rubio’s camp was pushing for a trade, though comments since that time from Rubio and Wolves coach/executive Flip Saunders have downplayed the notion that a trade is forthcoming. See more on Minnesota’s Northwest Division rivals here:

The Trail Blazers were eyeing Maurice Harkless long before they traded with the Magic this summer to acquire him, as GM Neil Olshey tells Gary Washburn of The Boston Globe. “Mo was very high on our board a few years ago in the [2012] draft,” Portland general manager Neil Olshey said. “We were excited about him. He has a lot of potential. He fits our model right now; he’s an emerging young player. He’s got a lot of talent. We have a lot of faith in our player development staff and our coaches that guys hit their ceilings, and we know Mo’s not even close to his ceiling at this point. He’s going to get a great opportunity with us to be the player we loved coming out of the draft.”
Former Blazers small forward Victor Claver has officially signed with Lokomotiv Kuban of Russia, the team announced (hat tip to Sportando’s Emiliano Carchia). International journalist David Pick first reported the deal this weekend. It had appeared that Claver would return to his native Spain to play, but he’s instead headed to Russia, where he finished up this past season with Khimki Moscow after hitting NBA waivers. The Blazers traded him to the Nuggets in the Arron Afflalo deal, and Denver released him a few days later.
The Jazz have hired Jordan Brady as an assistant coach for their D-League affiliate, the team announced. He spent last season as a Lakers D-League assistant coach. He’ll work under D-League head coach Dean Cooper and replace Andrae Patterson, who moved into a front office role with the Jazz this summer.

Western Notes: Allen, Hayes, Majok

September 1st, 2015 at 10:31pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Despite having already proven his versatility to the team, Tony Allen knows that he’ll have to fight for minutes this season on a deep Grizzlies squad, Ronald Tillery of The Commercial Appeal (subscription required) writes. For his part, Allen indicated that he’d willingly accept any role the team asked him to play, Tillery adds. “I don’t get into that. It is what it is. It’s not how you start. It’s how you finish,” Allen said. “I just want to come in, go to work and when I leave [the coaches] will be like, ‘He put his all out there on the line.’ Starting doesn’t mean anything to me. I’ve already shown that.” The 33-year-old appeared in 63 games for Memphis in 2014/15, including 41 starts, and averaged 8.6 points, 4.4 rebounds, and 1.4 assists in 26.2 minutes per contest.

Here’s more from out West:

Chuck Hayes‘ one year, minimum salary deal with the Clippers is non-guaranteed, former NBA executive Bobby Marks confirms (via Twitter). Dan Woike of the Orange County Register first reported that no guaranteed salary would be a part of the agreement. That means his salary wouldn’t have bearing on any would-be hard cap unless he makes the opening night roster, as Marks points out (Twitter link).
Lakers draft-and-stash power forward Ater Majok has signed with the Polish club Trefl Sopot, the team announced (translation courtesy of Emiliano Carchia of Sportando). Majok was selected by Los Angeles with the No. 58 overall pick in the 2011 NBA Draft.
Timberwolves combo forward Anthony Bennett hopes to use his strong play for Team Canada this Summer as a springboard to a strong NBA season, Josh Lewenberg of TSN.ca writes. Former NBA player and current GM of the Canadian senior men’s team, Steve Nash, is a firm believer in Bennett’s potential, Lewenberg notes, with Nash saying of the young forward, “For me, just to be around him and to see how seriously he’s taking it and how hard he’s worked and how hard he’s trying to pick up the details, like I said, those are the ingredients that are going to make him a great NBA player and a guy that plays in the league for a long time. So I’m [incredibly] proud of Anthony and the work he’s put in this summer.” Minnesota would reportedly be willing to deal Bennett for the right price, though the team isn’t actively shopping the 2013 No. 1 overall pick.