Minnesota Timberwolves Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Wolves Ink Miroslav Raduljica To 10-Day Pact

January 8th, 2015 at 5:53pm CST by ChrisCrouse

JANUARY 8TH, 5:53pm: The Timberwolves have signed Miroslav Raduljica to a 10-day contract, the team has announced (Twitter link). The center will take the open roster spot the team had created by waiving Jeff Adrien on Wednesday.

JANUARY 2ND, 12:29pm: It looks like Raduljica will end up in Minnesota next week, Wolfson tweets. It’d be surprising if the team lets go of Jeff Adrien to make room on the roster, Wolfson asserts, though Adrien holds the team’s only contract without any guaranteed money.

DECEMBER 29TH: There’s no deal between Raduljica and the Wolves yet, and if it’s to happen, it probably won’t for at least a few more days, tweets Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN Twin Cities. Sunday, Wolfson cautioned that at least one hurdle remained but said that signs pointed toward a pact between Minnesota and the big man (Twitter link).

DECEMBER 28TH: Free agent center Miroslav Raduljica is finalizing a deal to play with Minnesota for the remainder of the season, according to Shams Charania of Real GM. The deal is reported to be fully guaranteed and while there is no salary reported, it is likely a minimum salary arrangement. The Wolves currently have a 15-man roster and will have to unload somebody, by release or by trade, to accommodate the signing.

Raduljica recently agreed upon a buyout with Shandong of the Chinese Basketball Association. The seven-footer played the 2013/14 season with Bucks and shot 54.0% from the field while averaging 3.8 points per game.

Last offseason, Raduljica was traded to the Clippers along with Carlos Delfino and was subsequently waived. The Bucks received Jared Dudley and a first-round draft pick in the deal.

Wolves Waive Jeff Adrien

January 7th, 2015 at 4:05pm CST by Chuck Myron

4:05pm: Adrien has officially been waived, the team announced via Twitter.

2:04pm: The Timberwolves are set to release Jeff Adrien, reports Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN Twin Cities (Twitter link). Adrien is on a non-guaranteed contract, but if Minnesota fails to waive him by 4:00pm Central today, that minimum-salary deal becomes guaranteed for the balance of the season. He’s the only member of the Timberwolves without at least a partial guarantee, and the team has been carrying 15 players, as our roster counts show.

This move would free up a roster spot for Miroslav Raduljica, whom some reports say has a deal with Minnesota, and Wolfson suggests the team has Raduljica in mind as it prepares to cut ties with Adrien (Twitter link).

In 17 games with the Wolves this season, Adrien has averaged 3.5 points, 4.5 rebounds, and 0.9 assists while logging 12.6 minutes per contest. His career averages are 4.6 PPG, 4.3 RPG, and 0.7 APG. His career slash line is .474/.000/.628.

Western Notes: Kings, Wolves, Lakers

January 3rd, 2015 at 10:32am CST by Eddie Scarito

The Kings have quickly become a mess of a team since former coach Mike Malone was fired, Robert Windrem of Nets Daily writes. Sacramento’s problems include DeMarcus Cousins, who was reportedly upset with the dismissal of Malone, not playing up to par, especially on the defensive end, and the players finding out about Tyrone Corbin being signed as coach for the rest of the season from the media, which didn’t sit well with them at all, Windrem notes.

Here’s what else is happening around the Western Conference:

The Wolves‘ 2013 draft night trade of Trey Burke for Shabazz Muhammad is beginning to pay off thanks to Muhammad’s marked improvement this season, Andy Greder of The Pioneer Press writes. “We’re talking a guy that has been inserted into the starting lineup and is becoming a guy that is a major factor in what we are trying to accomplish,” president of basketball operations Flip Saunders said.
One of the Wolves‘ recent additions, Troy Daniels, is starting to pay dividends thanks to his deft outside touch, Kent Youngblood of The Star Tribune writes. “He is going to have opportunities,” Saunders said. “He brings something that we lack, perimeter shooting, the ability to stretch the floor a little bit.”
The main reason that the Lakers hired Byron Scott as their coach this past summer was because of his relationship with Kobe Bryant, Arash Markazi of ESPNLosAngeles.com writes. Few other coaches would be have been able to get Bryant to agree to skipping practices, taking games off, and the minutes restriction that Kobe is currently under, Markazi adds.

Western Notes: Nash, Wolves, Harris

December 31st, 2014 at 10:07pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Steve Nash has been away from the Lakers since being ruled out for the rest of the season, but the veteran finally paid the team a brief visit, Arash Markazi of ESPN.com writes. Nash greeted the team at the airport as they prepared to board a flight to Chicago, Markazi notes. “It was great to see him, first of all, and for all the players to see him,” coach Byron Scott said. “It was a great gesture on his part to wish everyone a Merry Christmas. He still has to deal with the fact that his career might be over. That’s still something he’s wrestling with. I’m still inviting him to come around here for practice and to join in and just be a part of the team and part the coaching staff. That’s something that he has to deal with and when he wants to and he feels he’s able to do that, whatever time that might be, he’ll be welcome with open arms.”

Here’s more out of the West:

The improved play this season of Gorgui Dieng and Shabazz Muhammad is making the 2013 trade of Trey Burke to Utah look like a great deal for the Wolves, Jerry Zgoda of The Star Tribune writes.
Former Lakers guard Manny Harris has inked a deal to play in Turkey with Eskisehir Basket, the team announced via Twitter (translation by Emiliano Carchia of Sportando). Harris was with Los Angeles on a pair of 10-day contracts during the 2013/14 campaign, and he spent parts of 2010/11 and 2011/12 with Cleveland.
With the Nuggets‘ season all but lost, it is now up to GM Tim Connelly to try and rebuild the franchise through trades, Mark Kiszla of The Denver Post opines. If the Nuggets want to tank for a chance at a higher draft pick, then Ty Lawson is the obvious player to trade, Kiszla notes. After Lawson, there isn’t another player on the roster who can consistently direct Denver’s already unreliable offense, and the result of dealing him could be a top five draft pick, Kiszla adds.

Pacific Notes: Kings, Heslip, Kobe, Vujacic

December 31st, 2014 at 10:01am CST by Chuck Myron

It seems as though the top eight teams in the Western Conference are in many ways already set, but the Kings aren’t giving up on the idea that they can find a way into the playoffs this year, Bleacher Report’s Howard Beck writes. Sacramento will add an impact player if an opportunity arises, according to Beck.

“This league, it’s a league of injuries, it’s a league of things that happen, chemistry,” Kings GM Pete D’Alessandro told Beck. “And you’ve seen things happen really fast in this league. So I don’t think we buy into the notion of, ‘Well, it’s locked to eight.’ We really don’t believe that. From our perspective, it’s: How are we getting better? How are we pursuing that spot?”

The Kings are 13-18, four games behind the Suns for the last playoff spot. There’s another Kings-related item amid the latest from the Pacific Division:

Brady Heslip has decided against signing with Banvit of Turkey because he believes he’s close to joining an NBA team, reports Marc Stein of ESPN.com (Twitter link). David Pick of Eurobasket.com reported earlier this week that Heslip, who’s been playing for Sacramento’s D-League affiliate, had a deal with the Turkish team. The Kings and Clippers have reportedly held interest in adding the sharpshooter to their NBA rosters.
Kobe Bryant still doesn’t rule out playing beyond his current contract, which expires in 2016, but for now he plans to retire after next season, as he said Tuesday to reporters, including Bill Oram of the Orange County Register (Twitter link). “If you asked me if I’m going to play beyond that, right now the answer is no,” Bryant said.
Sasha Vujacic is leaving Laboral Kuxta Vitoria (aka Saski Baskonia) of Spain, the team announced (translation via Sportando’s Emiliano Carchia). He’s next headed to play for Turkey’s Istanbul BSB, Carchia writes. Vujacic, who spent time on a 10-day contract with the Clippers last season, is one of several among 2013/14 10-day signees who are now playing overseas, as I noted Tuesday.
Warriors backup center Marreese Speights said he was especially motivated to beat the Sixers, as Golden State did Tuesday, not because of anyone with the team at current but because he harbors ill will toward Doug Collins, tweets Rusty Simmons of the San Francisco Chronicle. Speights saw a career low 11.5 minutes per game under the former Sixers coach in 2010/11.

Western Notes: Wolves, Warriors, Varnado

December 30th, 2014 at 3:33pm CST by Chuck Myron

The teams at the top of the Eastern Conference have begun to close the gap on the West, as Chris Herrington of The Commercial Appeal observes in his latest “Pick and Pop” column. There are as many teams with winning percentages of .700 or better in the East as there are in the West, and the top four Eastern teams have all won at least eight of their last 10 games. The Blazers are the only Western team that can boast that. Imbalance still exists farther down the standings, where the 18-14 Suns cling to the last Western playoff spot while the 14-18 Heat lay claim to eighth place in the East. Here’s the latest from around the conference that still reigns supreme:

Flip Saunders said the Timberwolves are looking at “all kinds of options” and said the team hasn’t reached a deal with anyone amid conflicting reports of an agreement with Miroslav Raduljica, notes Jerry Zgoda of the Star Tribune (Twitter link). Still, Saunders acknowledged there’s “no question” that the team needs to add size, as Zgoda tweets.
Warriors coach Steve Kerr doesn’t expect his team will make significant changes anytime soon, as he said on NBA TV, notes Diamond Leung of the Bay Area News Group (on Twitter). “I don’t anticipate us doing a whole lot,” Kerr said. “We’re doing well. We like our team. We’ve got good versatility and depth.”
The D-League affiliate of the Lakers acquired the rights to Jarvis Varnado in a trade with the Grizzlies D-League affiliate, the L.A. D-Fenders announced (on Twitter). That sort of move usually coincides with or precedes a signing, though it doesn’t appear as though Varnado has a contract with the D-Fenders just yet. Varnado, who was in camp with the Sixers this past fall, was one of a half-dozen players without a deal to play pro basketball after inking an NBA 10-day contract last season, as I noted earlier.
Former Jazz camp invitee Kevin Murphy has left Utah’s D-League affiliate to pursue a deal overseas, reports Gino Pilato of D-League Digest (Twitter link). The swingman was briefly with the Jazz during the preseason before the team cut him October 10th.

Nets, Kings Discuss Deron Williams Deal

December 30th, 2014 at 11:55am CST by Chuck Myron

DECEMBER 30TH: The Nets also expressed interest in acquiring Nik Stauskas as part of a deal, but the Kings were reluctant to give him up, reports Tim Bontemps of the New York Post.

2:27pm: The talks aren’t completely dead, Broussard cautions in a full story, and a source tells the ESPN scribe that he expects the teams to continue their conversation until the February 19th trade deadline.

DECEMBER 23RD, 10:57am: The conversation between the Kings and Nets is “virtually dead,” since Plumlee, and not Williams, was Sacramento’s primary target and Brooklyn is unwilling to give up Plumlee, reports Chris Broussard of ESPN.com (Twitter link).

DECEMBER 20TH, 8:24pm: Talks aren’t ongoing for now, according to Alex Raskin of The Wall Street Journal (Twitter link). The Kings made the initial inquiry, according to Raskin and Devin Kharpertian of The Brooklyn Game (Twitter link). Still, the discussion is liable to pick back up, since the Nets are listening to all offers, Raskin tweets, adding that Brooklyn considers none of its players untradeable, an assertion that would seem to conflict with the other reports indicating that Plumlee is off-limits. Sources “emphatically” told Tim Bontemps of the New York Post that Plumlee isn’t going anywhere, however.

5:49pm: The Nets and Kings are in trade talks about Deron Williams, reports Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports, who cautions that no deal is imminent. A source confirms the talks to Stefan Bondy of the New York Daily News, who nonetheless hears that the sides aren’t at all close to a deal that this point (Twitter link). The discussion involves Darren Collison, Derrick Williams and Jason Thompson from Sacramento’s side, according to Wojnarowski. The Kings would like for Mason Plumlee to be a part of any transaction, and that’s a stumbling block from the Nets’ perspective, Wojnarowski adds. Plumlee is virtually untouchable as far as Brooklyn is concerned, Bleacher Report’s Howard Beck tweets, and the same is true of Sergey Karasev and Bojan Bogdanovic, as NetsDaily’s Robert Windrem hears (Twitter link). The Kings are high on Collison and hesitant to give him up, but the Nets want to have a point guard to replace Williams should they give him up, as the Yahoo scribe details.

The relationship between Deron Williams and the Nets has chilled over the past two years, and there’s mutual appeal to parting ways, sources tell Wojnarowski. Conversely, Williams and Kings coach Tyrone Corbin have a relationship that’s persisted since their years together in Utah, where Corbin was an assistant coach while Williams played with the Jazz. The Kings are thrilled with Collison so far this season, Wojnarowski writes. Still, they’ve poked around for an upgrade at point guard since signing Collison over the summer, having asked the Timberwolves about Ricky Rubio before Rubio signed his extension with Minnesota in October, according to Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN Twin Cities (Twitter link). The Kings maintained interest in Rajon Rondo, though the Celtics’ demands for him were reportedly too high for Sacramento’s liking.

The Nets have had talks about moving Williams, Brook Lopez and Joe Johnson of late as they appear ready to make major changes. They also looked into the idea of trading for Lance Stephenson and spoke to Boston about Rondo before he went to the Mavs, according to earlier reports.

Deron Williams’ salary of more than $19.754MM for this season and the two additional years that remain on his contract make him tough to move, especially considering the decline in his performance since he signed the maximum-salary deal as the marquee free agent in the 2012 market. He averaged 20.1 points and 8.7 assists the season before he signed the max contract and is putting up 15.6 PPG and 6.8 APG this season. Those numbers are similar to the 15.6 PPG and 6.1 APG that Collison is putting up for the Kings this year, as Windrem notes (on Twitter). Collison makes about $4.798MM this season, less than Derrick Williams and his salary of more than $6.331MM and Thompson, who’s getting almost $6.038MM.

Northwest Notes: Matthews, Daniels, Tinsley

December 29th, 2014 at 10:35pm CST by ChrisCrouse

Wesley Matthews has steadily improved his game over the last few seasons for the Blazers, especially from behind the arc, writes Joe Freeman of The Oregonian. Matthews leads the league with 96 three-pointers made on the season, and he’s compiled a 59.5% effective field goal percentage. With three-point shooting being such a valuable commodity, the soon to be free agent could be in line for a hefty raise over his current $7.25MM salary, although that is just my speculation.

Here’s more from the Northwest Division:

Newly acquired guard Troy Daniels has fit in well with the Wolves, writes Jerry Zgoda of the Star Tribune. “He shoots the basketball,” coach Flip Saunders said. “I probably should have found a way to put him in sooner. As I told our guys, when you utilize your minutes on the floor, you either gain trust from your teammates and coaches or not. So he did a good job and gained some trust.” Daniels was acquired from Houston in a trade for Corey Brewer earlier in the month.
The Thunder offered Jamaal Tinsley an opportunity to join the team last offseason, as the former first-round pick tells David Pick of Eurobasket.com. “OKC offered but I elected not to indulge because it wasn’t a guaranteed deal and I’m too far along in my career for non-guarantees,” Tinsley said. The 36-year-old guard is currently entertaining offers to play overseas.
If the Thunder are going to make the playoff this season, Serge Ibaka has to become more involved in the offense, particularly in the fourth quarter, argues Darnell Mayberry of The Oklahoman. Mayberry points out that Ibaka is averaging only 3.4 points on just 2.6 attempts per game in the fourth quarter. The Thunder sit three games out of the eighth seed in the Western Conference with a record of 15-17.

Western Notes: Heslip, Black, Smith

December 26th, 2014 at 9:59pm CST by Eddie Scarito

D-League standout Brady Heslip is considering a jump to Europe if he doesn’t secure an NBA deal soon, reports Marc Stein of ESPN.com (on Twitter). Heslip, who appeared on the Wolves’ Summer League roster after going undrafted out of Baylor, is averaging a blistering 27.1 PPG for the Reno Bighorns while completing 49.4% of his shots from beyond the arc. The Kings were close to signing the sharpshooting guard, according to Stein (Twitter link), but that was before Mike Malone was dismissed as coach. Sportando’s Orazio Cauchi hears Heslip has an offer from Baskonia of Spain.

Here’s more from out West:

Tarik Black wasn’t surprised when he was waived by the Rockets in order to accommodate Josh Smith’s signing, as Mark Berman of Fox 26 Houston details. “You got an undrafted free agent and you got Josh Smith, superstar,” Black said. “I think most GMs would have taken him. It happens. It’s business… I’m so thankful to the city of Houston. I still love this team.“
Rockets coach Kevin McHale said that he would determine exactly how Smith would be used over time, Jonathan Feigen of The Houston Chronicle writes. “I hate to put guys out there until they’re comfortable,” McHale said. “He’ll get some run. We’ll play everything by ear. All that stuff takes care of itself moving forward. He’s been a quality player in this league for a lot of years. I see him continuing to be a quality player.”
Smith was pursued by a number of contending clubs, but he chose the Rockets over the Grizzlies, Mavericks, Heat and Kings because when considering his skills and Houston’s style of play, the Rockets were the best fit, Feigen adds. “I just feel like with the guys they have along on the roster, all the talent, and the opportunity to do something special for the rest of this year and in the postseason, this was the most attractive place to be,” Smith said.

Charlie Adams contributed to this post.

Central Notes: Martin, Butler, Knight, Love

December 25th, 2014 at 9:04am CST by Charlie Adams

We at Hoops Rumors want to wish all of our readers and their families a merry Christmas and a happy holiday season! While we wait for an exciting day of NBA action to tip off, let’s round up the latest from the Central Division:

The Cavs were struck with terrible news yesterday when they learned that Anderson Varejao would be sidelined for the remainder of the season with a torn Achilles. In wake of the injury, one free agent big man, Kenyon Martin, admitted he’d be interested in joining Cleveland if the team wanted to bring him aboard, reports Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports (on Twitter). “I’m definitely interested,” said the 36-year-old veteran. “I believe I can immediately help in that system. I’m healthy and ready to play now.” Signing Martin could help bolster their depth in the frontcourt, but the title-hopeful Cavs seem more likely to trade for a starting caliber center than to ink Martin.
Restricted free agent in waiting Jimmy Butler won’t call himself a star, but Alex Kennedy of Basketball Insiders writes that a lot of other people around the league are willing to say it for him. Butler’s career year has come on the heels of his decision to turn down a contract extension that would have paid him $11MM per season over the next four years, and although he’s has expressed a desire to stay with the Bulls, it will now likely cost the Chicago a lot more than that figure to keep Butler around after his stellar start to the year.
The Bucks‘ Brandon Knight is another soon-to-be restricted free agent who is making the most of his opportunity, argues John Zitzler of Basketball Insiders. Knight, the only Milwaukee player to start all 28 games, is averaging 17.5 points, 5.4 assists and 1.3 steals per contest. Knight has indicated a desire to stay with the Bucks, and Milwaukee can match any offer made to the 23-year-old this summer, but Zitzler speculates that the guard could get an offer of more than $12MM annually, similar to deals Kemba Walker and Kyle Lowry signed.
Flip Saunders is doing his best to move on from the Kevin Love fiasco and isn’t interested in talking about it anymore, as Chris Haynes of the Northeast Ohio Media Group observes. Before Tuesday’s Wolves-Cavs game, Saunders went out of his way to avoid mentioning Love by name, except for commenting, “From the league, I’m at liberty not really to talk about Kevin Love. So I can’t talk about him.” However, there is no such policy in place by the league, as Haynes points out, and Saunders openly discussed the Love deal as recently as Monday.

Arthur Hill contributed to this post.