Minnesota Timberwolves Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Northwest Rumors: Wolves, Jazz, Brewer, Aldridge

July 2nd, 2013 at 7:58am CST by Luke Adams

With the exception of the defending division champs from Oklahoma City, we've got a little something this morning on every Northwest team, so let's dive in and round up the latest….

J.J. Redick and Chase Budinger have received four-year contract offers from the Timberwolves, as we heard last night. Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports reports (via Twitter) that Redick is the priority for Minnesota, but the team would like to sign one of those two players.
The Jazz met with Paul Millsap late on Sunday night when free agency opened, according to Bill Oram of the Salt Lake Tribune. While Utah didn't make Millsap an offer, the team expressed a "high interest" in re-signing the big man, who figures to be a Plan B for some of the clubs that fail to land Dwight Howard.
Marc Stein of ESPN.com (Twitter link) hears that Corey Brewer is garnering interest from the Pelicans, Hawks, and Nuggets. Brewer is also set to meet with the Rockets, who believe that he would be a strong complementary piece for their top target (Howard).
Ben Golliver of Blazer's Edge does an excellent job of rounding up all the LaMarcus Aldridge trade rumors to date, including the latest from Kerry Eggers of the Portland Tribune.

Northwest Notes: Timberwolves, Watson, Jazz

July 1st, 2013 at 9:25pm CST by Michael Pina

A few notes from around the Northwest Division:

Earl Watson is currently in discussions with several teams, according to a tweet from the Deseret News' Jody Genessy. The free agent point guard spent last season with the Jazz.
Also according to Genessy, the Jazz have spoken to Mo Williams and DeMarre Carroll, as have other teams.
The Salt Lake Tribune's Bill Oram reiterates Genessy's report that the Jazz and Carroll have been in heavy discussion, but nothing is imminent.
Also according to Oram, the Jazz are said to be very interesting in re-signing forward Paul Millsap, but no deal has been offered yet.
According to a tweet from 1500 ESPN's Darren Wolfson, the Timberwolves have reached out to Alan Anderson.
The Timberwolves also have four-year offers out to J.J. Redick and Chase Budinger, according to a tweet from Yahoo! NBA reporter Adrian Wojnarowski.

Wolves, Mavs Discuss O.J. Mayo Sign-And-Trade

July 1st, 2013 at 7:44pm CST by Chuck Myron

The Mavs and Timbewolves have engaged in sign-and-trade talks about O.J. Mayo, tweets Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN Twin Cities, with J.J. Barea or Luke Ridnour likely heading to Dallas in return. The Mavericks are also discussing a Mayo sign-and-trade with the Clippers involving Eric Bledsoe, though any Mayo deal probably hinges on Dallas missing out on Dwight Howard. Dallas would no doubt prefer the Bledsoe deal to any of the Minnesota trade options, so the Wolves appear to be down the list of options, notes Wolfson (on Twitter), who also points out that a Minnesota-Dallas trade isn't imminent.

Any sign-and-trade would require Mayo's consent, and Mayo and Wolves president of basketball operations Flip Saunders were scheduled to meet today. Still, there are more than a half dozen teams with interest in the shooting guard, who seems destined to improve on the $4MM option for next season that he turned down from the Mavs.

The Mavs are reportedly becoming more and more confident they can work out a sign-and-trade for the Landmark Sports Agency client, and having at least two such deals in the works seems to indicate that's the case. Mayo tailed off after a hot start last season, but he still averaged 15.3 points per game and showed career-best 40.3% three-point shooting.

The Mavs aren't the only ones who've had multiple sign-and-trade deals in the works. Before Mike Dunleavy agreed to sign with the Bulls, the Wolves and Bucks were discussing a sign-and-trade that would have sent Ridnour to Minnesota, reports Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports.

Bulls Close To Deal With Mike Dunleavy

July 1st, 2013 at 6:40pm CST by Chuck Myron

The Bulls are the front-runners for Mike Dunleavy, and they're negotiating a two-year, $6MM deal, tweets Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports. Other teams remain in play, but there's confidence an agreement can be reached, according to K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune (Twitter link).

Wojnarowski pointed earlier to the Rockets as another option for Dunleavy, if Houston falls short of signing Dwight Howard (Twitter link). The Mavs, Lakers and Wolves are also in the mix, tweets Marc Stein of ESPN.com. The Knicks reportedly like him, too. Still, Dunleavy is intrigued by the chance to play alongside Derrick Rose, Johnson notes (on Twitter).

The 32-year-old Arn Tellem client spent the past two seasons with the Bucks, where he made a career-high 42.8% of his three-point attempts this past season. When I examined his free agent stock, I figured he could fit in as a role player on a contending club, and that appears to be just what he would sign to do in Chicago. The Bulls would be using their mini mid-level to bring him aboard.

Spurs In Mix For Andrei Kirilenko

July 1st, 2013 at 2:22pm CST by Luke Adams

Having declined his player option for 2013/14, Andrei Kirilenko is on the open market, and at least one team besides the Wolves has Kirilenko in its sights, according to ESPN.com's Marc Stein. Stein tweets that the Spurs are expected to be in the mix for the Russian forward.

San Antonio has the opportunity to clear a good chunk of cap space this summer, but it will depend on what the team decides to do with free agents Manu Ginobili, Tiago Splitter, and Gary Neal. Re-signing all three players at reasonable prices could ensure that the team doesn't have the room necessary to pursue Kirilenko. But if the club were to let Splitter walk, for instance, there may be room to make a player like Kirilenko a competitive offer.

Kirilenko turned down a $10MM+ salary from the Timberwolves to hit the open market, and in an interview with Russia's Sport Express (translated by HoopsHype), he explains that he's seeking the security of a long-term contract. The 32-year-old believes he has at least three productive seasons left in him, and indicated he's open to returning to Minnesota, though Jerry Zgoda of the Star Tribune doesn't believe the Wolves have much interest in a reunion (Twitter link).

Wolfson On Mayo, Iguodala, Redick, Dunleavy

July 1st, 2013 at 10:17am CST by Chuck Myron

Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN Twin Cities has plenty on all things Timberwolves in his latest dispatch, including a look at the itinerary for president of basketball operations Flip Saunders that sheds some light on the team's order of free agent priorities. Here's what Wolfson is sharing:

The team's top targets appear to be Mayo, Redick and Martin, Wolfson tweets.

Earlier updates:

Saunders will meet with O.J. Mayo, and he could meet with Andre Iguodala as well, since agent Rob Pelinka has them together in Los Angeles. Iguodala, though, is probably out of the team's price range, Wolfson writes.
Saunders will then see Wasserman Media Group clients J.J. Redick and Mike Dunleavy Jr. Dorell Wright will likely meet with Saunders as well. Finally, Saunders will take his reported meeting with Rick Adelman favorite Chase Budinger, who's strongly interested in signing with the Bucks.
Kevin Martin is on the Wolves' radar, too, according to Wolfson. If Saunders can't land him or any of the above targets, he'll turn to Marco Belinelli.
Though it's more likely that Andrei Kirilenko will sign elsewhere, he'll still consider re-signing with Minnesota, a source tells Wolfson. The team made phone calls and held meetings last night, but it did not reach out to Kirilenko, Wolfson tweets.
Owner Glen Taylor's strong preference is to stay out of the luxury tax, and it's likely the team will remain below the tax line, but if Saunders can make a "can't miss" proposition to become a tax team, Taylor may consent to doing so.
We'd heard that the team plans to waive Greg Stiemsma before his non-guaranteed contract becomes fully guaranteed later this month, and Wolfson says the same is true for Mickael Gelabale, though Wolfson believes the team may try to find trading partners for them in the meantime.
J.J. Barea, Luke Ridnour and Derrick Williams are the others on the team's trading block.
The team has not reached out to Carlos Delfino, Wolfson reports via Twitter.

Wolves Offered Martin Four-Year, $30MM Deal

July 1st, 2013 at 6:21am CST by Zachary Links

The T'Wolves have offered Kevin Martin a four-year deal that is worth as much as $30MM with incentives, according to Sam Amick of USA Today (via Twitter). Martin is represented by Dan Fegan of Relativity Sports, according to the Hoops Rumors Agency Database.

Martin, of course, spent last season with the Thunder after coming over from Houston in the James Harden trade. The guard averaged 14.0 PPG while shooting 45% from the floor in 27.7 minutes per contest last season.

The Thunder would like to facilitate a sign-and-trade for Martin if they are unable to retain him, but that could be tricky given their lack of cap flexibility.

Several Teams Interested In Chase Budinger

July 1st, 2013 at 12:48am CST by Luke Adams

9:44am: There is strong mutual interest between Budinger and the Bucks, tweets Gery Woelfel of the Racine Journal Times.

12:48am: As expected, Flip Saunders and a Timberwolves contingent is meeting with free agent wing Chase Budinger in San Diego, as Sean Deveney of the Sporting News tweets. However, the Wolves aren't the only team interested in signing Budinger.

According to Sam Amick of USA Today (via Twitter), the Pelicans, Bucks, Pacers, and Mavericks all have some level of interest in Budinger. Mark Medina of the Los Angeles Daily News adds the Lakers to that list of potential suitors (Twitter link), though Mike Bresnahan of the L.A. Times hears that Budinger will likely receive more than the $3.18MM mini mid-level that the Lakers can offer (Twitter link).

Budinger, 25, missed most of the 2012/13 season with a knee injury, but provides excellent outside shooting when healthy.

Odds & Ends: Mayo, Martin, Noel, Bulls

June 30th, 2013 at 8:45pm CST by Zachary Links

Here's the latest from around the Association as we gear up for the start of free agency..

The Jazz, Bucks, Timberwolves, Clippers, Blazers, Bobcats, and Bulls are all likely suitors for Mavs guard O.J. Mayo, USA Today's Sam Amick tweets. Mayo is expected to turn down his $4.2MM option this summer and it makes a lot of sense considering the number of teams with major cap space to burn.
Kevin Martin is expected to draw interest from the Bucks, Pelicans, Timberwolves, Mavericks, and Pistons, as well as the Thunder, tweets Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports.
Before Nerlens Noel fell to pick No. 6, the Pelicans were entertaining the idea of trading that selection to the Bobcats for Michael Kidd-Gilchrist, as Gary Washburn of the Boston Globe notes amid his weekly roundup.
Drastic change isn't likely to blow through the Windy City for the Bulls this summer, writes Aggrey Sam of CSNChicago.com. There's still a lot of moving pieces for the club, but the major shifting probably won't come until the summer of 2014 for the Bulls.
The Wizards face some tough decisions with free agency approaching, writes Michael Lee of the Washington Post. Washington obviously won't be in play for any of the elite free agents this summer and they have their sights set on less-thrilling goals, like retaining small forward Martell Webster.
We hear similar news out of Portland, where Joe Freeman of The Oregonian cautions fans not to expect anything too crazy out of the Blazers. Of course, there have been rumblings over LaMarcus Aldridge's discontent.

Wolfson On Mayo, Budinger, Belinelli, Iguodala

June 30th, 2013 at 10:04am CST by Chuck Myron

Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN Twin Cities covers a broad spectrum of Minnesota sports in his weekly Scoops column, but with the NBA draft just completed and free agency about to start, his focus this week is on the Timberwolves. Let's dive in:

Wolfson writes that Wolves president of basketball operations Flip Saunders may meet with O.J. Mayo this week, and Wolfson adds via Twitter that there's a strong belief that the meeting will indeed take place, around the same time Saunders meets with Chase Budinger.
Minnesota is also considering Marco Belinelli.
The Wolves are unlikely to go after Andre Iguodala, and his high price tag isn't the only reason.
A source tells Wolfson that while the Wolves like Bucks big man Ekpe Udoh, who was rumored this week to be part of a trade for Luke Ridnour, the team is getting plenty of offers for Ridnour, and Minnesota may wind up with a more attractive player than Udoh in return.
Bojan Dubljevic, whom the Wolves took 59th overall, will remain in Europe for at least two more years.
Another rumor around draft time had the Wolves swapping the No. 26 pick for MarShon Brooks, but such a deal was "never that close," Wolfson writes.
Greg Stiemsma has left agent Mike Naiditch, and the Priority Sports Agency will now handle his representation.