Minnesota Timberwolves Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Wolves Sign Raduljica To Second 10-Day Pact

January 19th, 2015 at 11:13am CST by Charlie Adams

MONDAY, 11:13pm: The deal is official, the team announced.

SUNDAY, 2:08pm: The Wolves have signed Miroslav Raduljica to a second 10-day contract, reports Shams Charania of RealGM (on Twitter), although there’s been no official announcement from the team yet. The big man from Serbia inked his first 10-day deal with Minnesota on January 8th, so he became a free agent when that contract expired at the end of Saturday.

It’s no surprise that the injury-riddled Wolves are electing to bring back Raduljica, since the club is without starting center Nikola Pekovic, and reserve big man Ronny Turiaf went down for the remainder of the season with an injury shortly before the team shipped him off to Philadelphia in the Corey Brewer trade.

Raduljica has appeared in three contests for Minnesota, tallying just 19 total minutes. His best game came against his former team, the Bucks, where he put up four points and nabbed a pair of rebounds in just eight and a half minutes on the floor. If the Wolves want to retain Raduljica after his second 10-day deal expires, they’ll need to ink him for the rest of the season since a player can only sign a pair of 10-day contracts for a team in a given season.

Jeff Adrien To Play In China

January 18th, 2015 at 7:19pm CST by Chuck Myron

Jeff Adrien has reached agreement on a deal to play in China for the rest of the season, reports Shams Charania of RealGM (Twitter link). Adrien is headed to Guangdong, Charania says, and it appears as though that’s the Guangdong Southern Tigers rather than the Guangdong Foshan Dralions, since Charania also tweets that he’ll be joining Will Bynum, who plays for the Tigers. There’s no word on specific financial details, but it’s a lucrative arrangement and his salary is guaranteed, according to Charania.

Adrien’s addition to the Tigers would be an ominous sign for marquee draft prospect Emmanuel Mudiay, who also plays for the team. Teams in the Chinese Basketball Association are allowed to have only two healthy American players. Mudiay has been planning to remain in China all season as he works his way back from a sprained ankle that he suffered in November, but it appears Guangdong isn’t going to wait on him as the Chinese playoffs approach.

Adrien was drawing interest from NBA teams before agreeing to the Chinese deal, Charania reports. The Timberwolves waived Adrien earlier this month, shortly before his prorated minimum salary would have become guaranteed for the rest of the season. The Aaron Mintz client is poised to go back on the market after his Chinese team is eliminated, and thanks to the accelerated Chinese schedule, that should happen with enough time left for him to attract NBA teams looking to bolster their rosters in the final weeks in the regular season.

Atlantic Notes: Sixers, Embiid, Celtics, Nets

January 18th, 2015 at 11:47am CST by Arthur Hill

The Sixers may be dreaming of the top selection in June’s draft, but Tom Moore of Calkins Media writes that picking Jahlil Okafor could lead to other problems. The Duke center is the consensus choice to be the first player chosen, but Philadelphia already has injured rookie Joel Embiid and second-year big man Nerlens Noel, both of whom are low-post players. “I don’t think they can play together,” an unidentified NBA source said of Okafor and Embiid. “They’re both low-post centers. It doesn’t make sense.” He later added, “The combination of Noel and either one of them doesn’t make sense.” The Sixers currently occupy the third spot in Hoops Rumors’ reverse standings.

There’s more from the Atlantic Division:

Embiid now weighs nearly 300 pounds and the Sixers are displeased with his commitment to conditioning, reports Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer. He reportedly clashed with assistant strength and conditioning coach James Davis and was sent home early from a recent West Coast trip. Embiid is still recovering from foot surgery he had before last year’s draft, and his workouts are limited to things such as an antigravity treadmill and long walks to stimulate his heart rate. An unidentified source claims the rookie has skipped some conditioning drills.
Another team looking to rebuild through the draft is Boston, which could have five first-round picks in June, writes Jimmy Smith of The Times-Picayune. In addition to their own selection, the Celtics have a top 12 protected pick from the Timberwolves, a top 14 protected choice from the Sixers, the Clippers’ pick that came as compensation for coach Doc Rivers and a top 4-14 protected pick from the Mavericks in the Rajon Rondo deal. In 2016, Boston has the rights to two more first-round selections, along with its own. “Draft picks are always tradable; players are not,” said Celtics president Danny Ainge. “Draft picks are always assets.”
Steven A. Cohen has decided not to make a bid for the Nets, according to Scott Soshnick of Bloomberg News (Twitter link). The billionaire hedge fund manager reportedly had meetings with the group handling the sale, but elected not to pursue the team. Cohen has a net worth of approximately $10 billion, but recently pleaded guilty to insider trading charges. Nets owner Mikhail Prokhorov has claimed he hired a group called Evercore simply to assess the team’s value, but many believe he would sell at the right price.

And-Ones: Malone, Blatche, Walker

January 16th, 2015 at 7:44pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Michael Malone‘s reputation among NBA executives remains high in spite of his firing from the Kings, as Sean Deveney of The Sporting News hears. He may have to wait a while for a job, since few teams seem ripe for a coaching change, Deveney writes. The Timberwolves are one of those few, according to Deveney, and Malone has been tagging along with Minnesota as an observer at the request of coach/executive Flip Saunders, as Jerry Zgoda of the Star Tribune notes. Saunders, who has a deal to coach the team that’s open-ended in length and Glen Taylor haven’t spoken about whether Saunders, who also serves as the team’s president of basketball operations, will continue to coach next season. All of this doesn’t mean that Malone is in any way a candidate to become the next coach of the Wolves, as it’s simply my own dot-connecting, but it’s worth keeping an eye on. Here’s more from around the league:

There has also been some talk linking Malone to the Cavaliers, Deveney notes. With the Cavs not meeting expectations thus far this season, rookie coach David Blatt could be the one who takes the blame, Deveney adds. Malone was an assistant in Cleveland under former coach Mike Brown, which was during LeBron James‘ first stint with the Cavs, notes Deveney. James is a fan of Malone, which certainly wouldn’t hurt Malone’s chances should Cleveland decide to make a coaching change, the Sporting News scribe adds.
Andray Blatche, who is currently playing in China, will become a free agent in February and is drawing interest from NBA teams, Jorge Sierra of Hoops Hype reports. “Top teams in both the Eastern and Western conference playoff race have begun the recruiting and courting process,” Andy Miller, Blatche’s agent, told Sierra. Blatche appeared in 73 games for the Nets last season.
Florida sophomore Chris Walker considered entering the 2014 NBA draft but wisely decided to return for another season in college, Chris Mannix of SI.com writes. “I needed to get stronger, and I needed to learn the game,” Walker said of his decision. “When I go to the NBA, I want to go and actually play. I don’t want to sit or play in the D-League.” Walker, who is currently ranked No. 39 by DraftExpress, could use another season in school before jumping to the pros, Mannix adds.

Chuck Myron contributed to this post.

Nets, Wolves Discuss Thaddeus Young

January 16th, 2015 at 11:48am CST by Chuck Myron

11:48am: The Nets and Wolves have spoken about Young in recent weeks and the talks have included discussion about three-way deals that would deliver Young to Brooklyn, reports Ohm Youngmisuk of ESPNNewYork.com (on Twitter).

11:37am: The Nets would have strong interest in trying to flip Kendrick Perkins for Thaddeus Young if they acquire Perkins in a Brook Lopez deal with the Thunder, sources tell Marc Stein of ESPN.com (Twitter links). The Timberwolves are willing to part with Young as they rebuild, Stein adds. The Nets and Thunder are reportedly making progress in talks that would send Lopez to Oklahoma City in exchange for Perkins, Jeremy Lamb and more.

League rules would prohibit Brooklyn from aggregating Perkins’ salary in a subsequent swap at any point through the trade deadline, but the Nets could send him out by himself. Perkins’ salary of more than $9.654MM this season would be within the matching bounds in a one-for-one exchange for Young, who makes nearly $9.414MM this year.

The Wolves insisted on Young instead of receiving Miami’s 2015 protected first-round pick from the Cavs as part of the Kevin Love trade, but Minnesota’s hopes for a playoff berth have largely vanished amid a hail of injuries and a 6-31 record. Young, who holds a player option worth almost $9.972MM this year, has compiled a career-worst 13.5 PER this season.

Perkins is on an expiring contract, and his minutes are down a tick this season, the third straight year he’s averaged fewer minutes per game. Steven Adams has replaced the 30-year-old in Oklahoma City’s starting lineup this year.

Atlantic Notes: Williams, Stephenson, Wiggins

January 16th, 2015 at 11:13am CST by Chuck Myron

The Knicks have the league’s worst record, but commissioner Adam Silver isn’t concerned about their lack of success on the court in the league’s largest market, even with the All-Star Game coming to Madison Square Garden, as Peter Botte of the New York Daily News details. The Nets will host part of the All-Star festivities, too, but they’re 16-23 and appear ready to hit the reset button. Here’s more on the struggling Atlantic Division, where only the Raptors are above .500:

There’s apparently plenty of interest in Brook Lopez, but the Nets have had such trouble finding a taker for Deron Williams that one source tells Marc Stein of ESPN.com that the point guard will be staying put through the trade deadline.
A source close to Lance Stephenson told Stefan Bondy of the New York Daily News a month ago that Stephenson wasn’t mentally prepared to play for his hometown Nets (Twitter link). The shooting guard would apparently like to play for Brooklyn at some point, but the Nets also reportedly have their doubts.
The Raptors are listening to offers but not shopping, and while a minor move is conceivable, a significant change is highly unlikely, reports Cathal Kelly of The Globe and Mail. They remain poised to pursue Marc Gasol as they prepare to chase marquee big men this summer, and GM Masai Ujiri is studying what prompted Carmelo Anthony to re-sign with the Knicks this past summer to better understand the free agency process. The Raptors are already making plans for a run at Ontario native Andrew Wiggins, who can’t elect unrestricted free agency until 2019 at the earliest.
Chris Forsberg of ESPNBoston.com analyzes the sum of the many moves of the Celtics, who since September have traded nine players and one second-round draft pick for 15 players and what’s likely to turn to out be nine second-rounders, Forsberg notes.

Fallout/Reaction To The Jeff Green Trade

January 12th, 2015 at 4:59pm CST by Chuck Myron

The Grizzlies and Celtics had cursory discussions about Jeff Green two years ago when Memphis was nearing its Rudy Gay trade, and the teams engaged in more serious discussions about Green last year, according to Chris Herrington of The Commercial Appeal, who writes in a subcription-only piece. The Grizzlies thought they might acquire Green as part of the Courtney Lee swap that took place in January 2014, sources tell Marc Stein of ESPN.com. Memphis probably isn’t done dealing, though the Green deal seems to have extinguished the chances that the team will give up Kosta Koufos, Herrington believes. The Grizzlies “kicked the tires” on Thaddeus Young, Herrington writes, echoing a hint from earlier report, but they appear to have moved on from that, the Commerical Appeal scribe adds. Here’s more in the wake of today’s three-team deal:

Grizzlies coach Dave Joerger had a major voice in the trade talks, as he said Sunday to reporters, including Ronald Tillery of The Commercial Appeal (Twitter link).
Green isn’t a massive upgrade over what the Grizzlies had at his position, but he’s the right fit, especially given the savings that the team reaps on this year’s team salary and in the long term with the offloading of Quincy Pondexter, opines Ben Golliver of SI.com. It’s also a signal to soon-to-be free agent Marc Gasol that the team is committed to winning, Golliver believes.
The flurry of trades the Celtics have made in the past few weeks have left the team positioned to clear cap space for the first time in several years, as Chris Forsberg of ESPNBoston.com points out. The growth of some of the players eligible for restricted free agency this summer makes that cap flexibility all the more intriguing for the C’s, as Ben Rohrbach of WEEI.com explains.
The Pelicans made an upgrade at small forward a priority as they sought Pondexter, writes John Reid of The Times-Picayune.

Northwest Notes: Waiters, Nurkic, Millsap

January 11th, 2015 at 8:57am CST by ChrisCrouse

New addition Dion Waiters will be the NBA’s latest reclamation project, writes Anthony Slater of The Oklahoman. The Thunder believe Waiters can help them overcome their early season deficit because his mentality is aligned with the team’s. “I’m excited about bringing Dion aboard,” teammate Kevin Durant said. “A guy that has a lot of toughness. Being from the East Coast, I know a lot about Philadelphia, South Philly, where he comes from. Those guys are tough and they play with an edge. And that’s what we need here.” Oklahoma City is 1-1 since Waiters joined the team and he is shooting 34.8% from the field in his first two games.

Here’s a look at the rest of the Northwest Division:

One of the beneficiaries of the Timofey Mozgov trade will be the new starting center for the Nuggets, writes Christopher Dempsey of The Denver Post. Jusuf Nurkic‘s teammates are optimistic that the rookie can thrive in his new role. “He’s going to have to learn,” said guard Arron Afflalo. “It’s tough getting thrown in there under these circumstances. Sometimes when you become a starter in the NBA, it’s kind of earned over time or there’s a transition period within a summer or something. But to have a trade go down and suddenly you’re starting, it may be a lot for him, but he’s a maturing kid at this moment. He’s got a lot of tools and hopefully he takes advantage of this opportunity.”
Elijah Millsap, the newest member of the Jazz, is making a name for himself in Utah, writes Jody Genessy of the Deseret News. The younger brother of veteran Paul Millsap has played 71 minutes in three games and has shot the ball well from behind the arc since arriving in Utah on a 10-day contract. With his impressive play, another deal from the Jazz could be on the horizon for the 27-year-old rookie, but that is simply my speculation.
The Wolves are struggling this season and mental errors plague the young team, writes Andy Greder of the St. Paul Pioneer Press. Minnesota has lost 15 games in a row and currently resides in second place of our reverse standings with a record of 5-31.
LaMarcus Aldridge needs to be mentioned more often when discussing the best big men in the league, opines Broderick Turner of the Los Angeles Times. Turner argues that other players such as Blake Griffin, Anthony Davis and Kevin Love get unfairly mentioned ahead of Aldridge when the discussion of the best power forward in the league comes up. Griffin has never advanced farther in the playoffs than Aldridge has, while Davis and Love have yet to make the postseason. The Blazers currently sit atop the Northwest Division with a record of 29-8.

Western Notes: Brooks, Clippers, Waiters

January 10th, 2015 at 2:57pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Though he’s unlikely to be fired mid-season, Thunder coach Scott Brooks‘ job is definitely on the line this year, Berry Tramel of The Oklahoman writes. Tramel cites the Thunder’s disappointing record, and how the team has regressed even after getting Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook back from injuries, as major reasons why Brooks’ days in OKC could be numbered.

Here’s the latest out of the Western Conference:

Toure’ Murry, who was waived by the Jazz earlier this month, was acquired by the Rio Grande Valley Vipers of the NBA D-League, the team announced. Rio Grande Valley is the D-League affiliate of the Rockets.
The Warriors were one of the Wolves‘ most aggressive suitors for Kevin Love prior to him being dealt to Cleveland, but Love still isn’t sure how close he was to heading to Oakland, Rusty Simmons of The San Francisco Chronicle writes. “I know that they were a team that was in talks,” Love said. “But that’s really as far as it got.” Love definitely appreciates just how talented a squad Golden State has, Simmons adds. “They’re a great team,” Love said. “They’re a fun team to watch. They get up and down the floor. They shoot the three ball really well. They have a lot of guys that can do a lot of different things.”
Dion Waiters said that he learned that he had been traded to the Thunder after the starting lineup had been announced and the Cavs’ game against the Sixers was just about to begin, Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports notes (Twitter link). Waiters still wanted to play in the game, but wasn’t permitted to for obvious reasons, Spears adds.
In light of president of basketball operations Neil Olshey‘s brand new contract extension, Yannis Koutroupis of Basketball Insiders looks at the success that Olshey has had during his tenure with the Blazers.
The Clippers sent $300K to the Sixers as part of the Jared Cunningham deal, Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders reports (Twitter link).
Grizzlies coach Dave Joerger isn’t happy that trade talks have leaked to the media, Ronald Tillery of The Commercial Appeal tweets. “It’s a major distraction,” Joerger said. “Things like that should be kept behind closed doors. It ticks me off.“

Bucks Notes: Parker, Wolters, Henson, Sanders

January 9th, 2015 at 4:00pm CST by Chuck Myron

Jabari Parker has said in the past that he wants to remain with the Bucks for his entire career, and he tells Sean Deveney of The Sporting News that market size simply isn’t a consideration.

“LeBron [James] went back to Cleveland, Kevin Durant is in OKC,” Parker said. “There’s no such thing as a small market. If you win, they come see your games. It’s about winning. If you lose and you’re in a big city, they are not going to come to your games, so it doesn’t matter.”

Indeed, big-city draws aren’t what they used to be, as Deveney examines. Parker couldn’t elect unrestricted free agency until July 2019, but Milwaukee will certainly welcome the promise of a franchise cornerstone for more than just a handful of years to come. Here’s more on the Bucks:

The Timberwolves are surely high on Nate Wolters, whom the Bucks waived today, tweets Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN Twin Cities, who nonetheless doesn’t get the sense that Minnesota will pursue him, since that would require opening up a roster spot.
The Bucks were “in position” on Christmas Day to listen to offers for John Henson, but in the two weeks since, he’s done much to demonstrate his value to the Bucks as a long-term piece, Grantland’s Zach Lowe writes. GM John Hammond insists the team is committed to the big man and always has been. “We’ve never had any interest in trading John Henson,” Hammond tells Lowe. “He’s the kind of player you want in your organization for a long time.”
The Bucks aren’t entirely certain of their options regarding Larry Sanders and his salary as the center continues to sit out games, but the team isn’t particularly concerned about that at this point, league sources tell Steve Aschburner of NBA.com. The Bucks instead appear willing to give Sanders, in year one of a four-year, $44MM extension, time to sort through his issues and tend to his mental health, Aschburner writes.