Minnesota Timberwolves Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Wolves Notes: KAT, Gobert, Russell, Connelly, Nuggets

January 20th, 2023 at 9:51pm CST by Rory Maher

Karl-Anthony Towns has been sidelined since November 28 after suffering a right calf strain. As Chris Hine of The Star Tribune writes, the Timberwolves‘ star big man recently expressed frustration regarding the reporting surrounding the injury.

“It was never a Grade 2 [strain], it was never going to be a Grade 2, unfortunately,” Towns said on his livestream. “I prayed to God almighty that it was a Grade 2, but I knew it wasn’t. It was a Grade 3.”

Hine notes that Grade 3 strains are more severe and a recovery timeline could be more than two months. ESPN reported on November 29 that Towns would miss four-to-six weeks, but was expected to make a full recovery and return in January. Towns said that timeline was never in the cards.

“I wish it was four-to-six weeks. I knew then it wasn’t going to be four to six,” Towns said. “The team was trying to say four to six. There was no way with the injury I sustained, it’s a very significant injury. I don’t know if they were trying to give false hope to the fans or what the case may be.”

Hine points out that the Wolves ruled Towns out indefinitely and never gave a definitive recovery timeline. Still, it’s understandable that he would be frustrated about an inaccurate timeline that was leaked almost immediately after taking his MRI. The 27-year-old also gave a positive (if vague) update on his recovery.

“I’m getting better. Everything is going good. Going really well,” Towns said, per Hine. “Just getting better, man. It takes time. This is a very real injury. Significant, but it could’ve been way worse.”

Here’s more on the Wolves:

Grading the team to this point is “premature and pointless,” according to Jim Souhan of The Star Tribune, who argues that the Wolves still need to see what they have with a fully healthy lineup before declaring the season — and the Rudy Gobert trade — a lost cause. Souhan says it has been a disappointing 47 games, and they clearly have some issues, but it’s too early to make broad declarations. They’ve gone 13-13 without Towns and are still in the playoff mix at 23-24, currently the West’s No. 7 seed.
D’Angelo Russell showed both his strengths and weaknesses in Thursday’s game against the Raptors, but ultimately came through in the clutch with several big shots in leading the Wolves to a comeback victory, per Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic. Russell has been the subject of recent trade rumors, and his high-variance play can be frustrating, so Minnesota will have a tough decision to make ahead of the deadline, Krawczynski adds.
President of basketball operations Tim Connelly, who was hired away from the Nuggets in the offseason, says he still wants to see his former team succeed, according to Mike Singer of The Denver Post (subscriber link). “… I watch every Nuggets game, I root for them like crazy,” he said. “It’s neat that me and my family played something super small.” Minnesota visited Denver for the first time this season on Wednesday, and while Connelly enjoyed seeing his former co-workers, he also said it was “super weird.”

Northwest Notes: Wolves, Simons, Adelman, Conley

January 19th, 2023 at 10:53am CST by Luke Adams

The Timberwolves are off to a disappointing 22-24 start this season, but Rudy Gobert‘s former teammates continue to preach patience and still believe the center can be successful in Minnesota, writes Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic. Gobert’s fellow All-Star in Utah, Donovan Mitchell, says he let friends Anthony Edwards and D’Angelo Russell know that building rapport with the big man on both sides of the ball wouldn’t be an overnight process.

“I told them, ‘It’s not just going to happen,'” Mitchell said. “‘You’ve gotta stay building that bond and chemistry. It’s going to take time to see it continuously build gradually.'”

Meanwhile, ex-colleagues of Timberwolves president of basketball operations Tim Connelly have faith in the former Nuggets executive’s ability to right the ship in Minnesota, raving about his ability to stay positive in the face of adversity, as Krawczynski details in another story for The Athletic.

“This may sound strange, but in a long, emotional NBA season, he’s going to find a way to bring some comedy and some lightness to it, which I think is needed,” Nuggets head coach Michael Malone said of Connelly. “I’m sure everybody here in Minnesota is not happy with their play. Getting down and getting negative will not help that. That will only make it worse. So Tim is definitely the guy that can get this team out of that.”

Here’s more from around the Northwest:

Appearing on the Rip City Radio 620 show in Portland, Chris Haynes of Bleacher Report said he hasn’t heard anything so far about the Trail Blazers dangling players in trade talks, though he acknowledged that could change within the next three weeks (story via Matthew Legros of Blazer’s Edge). Haynes added that the team considers guard Anfernee Simons close to untouchable.
Filling in this week for Michael Malone, who was placed in the NBA’s health and safety protocols, Nuggets assistant coach David Adelman received a strong endorsement from two-time MVP Nikola Jokic, writes Mike Singer of The Denver Post (subscription required). Jokic believes it’s just a matter of time before Adelman is named a permanent head coach by an NBA team. “I really think that DA’s a guy who’s gonna be next head coach because he has that, I’m gonna say ‘head’ for a head coach,” Jokic said. “… He knows the answers. He reads, reacts.”
Andy Larsen of The Salt Lake Tribune explores the rumors linking Jazz point guard Mike Conley to the Clippers and considers what a trade package might look like. Larsen suggests that a combination like Robert Covington, John Wall, and one minimum-salary or near-minimum player might work, adding that Utah could seek a second-round pick depending on who that third player is.

Western Notes: Wall, Rockets, Kessler, Gordon

January 18th, 2023 at 8:04am CST by Luke Adams

Appearing on the Run Your Race podcast (YouTube link), Clippers point guard John Wall revisited his tenure with the Rockets, suggesting that the team went into tanking mode after trading James Harden during Wall’s first year in Houston. According to Wall, the culture during his stint with the club was so lax that he had to tell his young teammates not to get accustomed to how little was expected of them.

“I always talked to Jalen Green, Kevin Porter, K.J. (Kenyon Martin Jr.), I’m like, ‘Don’t get adjusted to this losing s–t, this is not how the league is,'” Wall said. “But at the same time, I had to tell them, like, ‘This s–t y’all are getting away with over here, if you go to any other team, you’d be out of the f—ing league. You wouldn’t play.’ I’m trying to explain that to them because they think it’s sweet. But I’m like, ‘If you ever get traded and go somewhere else, you going to be like, ‘This motherf—er was right.””

Wall also reiterated his disappointment with how his second year in Houston played out, when he sat out for the entire season. Wall said he would have been fine playing for the rebuilding club and mentoring its young players, but wasn’t comfortable with the team asking him to accept a limited bench role of no more than 10 or 15 minutes per night when he felt as if the Rockets’ prospects were being handed starting jobs instead of earning them.

Here’s more from around the Southwest:

Kelly Iko and Sam Vecenie of The Athletic rank the Rockets‘ players in terms of value, agreeing that Jalen Green and Jabari Smith are in the top tier and Tari Eason and Alperen Sengun are in the second. However, the two authors disagree on the order within those tiers, as Iko favors Green and Eason while Vecenie prefers Smith and Sengun.
Jazz rookie Walker Kessler had his best game of the season on Monday against the team that drafted him, racking up 20 points and 21 rebounds in a one-point win over Minnesota. As Tony Jones of The Athletic observes, it was the latest instance of Kessler showing why Utah lobbied to have him included in the Rudy Gobert blockbuster over the summer and why the Timberwolves initially resisted his inclusion after having just drafted the young center.
Nuggets forward Aaron Gordon has been the second-best player for the top team in the Western Conference so far this season and is building a strong case for an All-Star spot with his two-way play, writes Law Murray of The Athletic. “For us to be the team that wanted to win at a high level, we had to have a much greater buy-in and commitment (on defense). And Aaron definitely fits that bill,” head coach Michael Malone said. “He guards the other team’s best player almost every night. And he never shies away from a challenge. … We wouldn’t be where we’re at at the halfway point without Aaron Gordon’s play, his attitude, and his team-first mentality.”

Anderson Provides Steady Hand

January 17th, 2023 at 9:10pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The Timberwolves’ acquisition of Rudy Gobert could eventually go down as the most lopsided trade in NBA history with the Jazz as the beneficiary, Andy Larsen of Salt Lake Tribune opines.

Jazz rookie center Walker Kessler has played as well or better than Gobert has this season, in Larsen’s view. Utah also received Jarred Vanderbilt and Malik Beasley, who could potentially be flipped for first-round picks, plus the Timberwolves’ first-rounder this year as well as first-rounders in 2025, 2027 and 2029 and a pick swap in 2026.

The Timberwolves used their mid-level exception last summer to sign forward Kyle Anderson to a two-year deal. He’s proving to be a very valuable addition, Chris Hine of the Minneapolis Star Tribune writes. Anderson, who is averaging a career-best 3.9 assists, had a triple-double in Monday’s loss to the Jazz. “He’s just such a solid basketball player that when he’s out there, he’s always keeping things steady,” guard Austin Rivers said.

Timberwolves Have Interest In Mike Conley

January 17th, 2023 at 9:29am CST by Luke Adams

The Clippers aren’t the only Western Conference playoff contender eyeing Mike Conley. According to Shams Charania of The Athletic, the Timberwolves have also expressed interest in the Jazz point guard.

As Charania outlines, the Wolves will have to make a decision in the coming months on D’Angelo Russell, who is on an expiring $31.4MM contract and appears unlikely to sign an extension with Minnesota before reaching free agency in July. If Russell leaves as a free agent this summer, the Wolves would lose his salary slot, which could negatively impact their ability to acquire another impact player moving forward.

According to Charania, Minnesota has been exploring trade scenarios involving Russell and has been prioritizing finding another point guard in such a deal.

Conley, 35, is nearly nine years older than Russell and has seen his production decline in recent years, but he’s averaging a career-high 7.5 assists per game this season to go along with 10.3 PPG on .386/.354/.789 shooting. As Charania points out, the Jazz have a winning record (18-17) with Conley available this season and are just 5-7 without him.

Conley, a well-respected veteran in the locker room, is earning $22.68MM this season and has a partially guaranteed $24.36MM salary for 2023/24. His partial guarantee is pretty substantial ($14.32MM), so he looks more likely to be retained for next season than waived unless he has a poor second half or suffers a major injury.

As mentioned above, the Clippers have also reportedly conveyed interest in Conley, which Charania confirms.

As the Wolves consider their options with Russell, there have also been rumors about the possibility of a trade with Miami involving Kyle Lowry. However, Minnesota is said to be averse to the idea of taking on Lowry’s contract, which is pricier than Conley’s ($28.3MM this season, $29.7MM in ’23/24) and is fully guaranteed.

Gobert Ruled Out After Five Minutes Monday

January 16th, 2023 at 4:08pm CST by Rory Maher

After being limited to 13 minutes in Saturday’s over Cleveland, Timberwolves center Rudy Gobert attempted to play on Monday against Utah, his former team, but was ruled out after just five minutes of action (Twitter link). The three-time All-Star is dealing with right groin soreness.

Stein’s Latest: Conley, Beasley, Collins, Kuzma, Russell, Walker

January 16th, 2023 at 7:58am CST by Arthur Hill

The Clippers are looking for point guard help and have interest in acquiring Mike Conley from the Jazz, Marc Stein reports in his latest Substack column. After a strong start, Utah has fallen to 10th in the West at 22-24 and there’s a growing belief around the league that the team may try to sell off some of its veteran assets, according to Stein.

Conley has remained effective at age 35, averaging 10.2 points, 2.1 rebounds and 7.5 assists in 34 games while shooting 38% from the field and 34.9% from three-point range. The Clippers will be without John Wall for at least two weeks with an abdominal strain, and Reggie Jackson was recently demoted out of his starting spot. Conley is making $22.68MM this year and has a $14.32MM guarantee on his $24.36MM salary for 2023/24.

League sources tell Stein that the Clippers are also seeking another big man to back up Ivica Zubac, who is averaging a career-high 29.1 minutes per game.

Stein shares more trade rumors from around the league:

The Cavaliers have considered a three-way trade to acquire Malik Beasley from the Jazz and send the Hawks‘ John Collins to Utah. Stein reported in November that the Jazz had interest in Collins, but he states that a deal is being held up because the team is asking Atlanta for extra draft compensation for taking on Collins, who still has three full seasons remaining on his five-year, $125MM contract. Stein cites Caris LeVert, who has an $18.8MM expiring deal, as the most likely Cavalier to be involved in the rumored trade.
The Wizards are denying that they have interest in moving Kyle Kuzma, with sources telling Stein that the team plans to meet Kuzma’s asking price after he turns down his player option for next season. Stein states that many league executives believe Kuzma would like to move on from Washington, but he cautions that rumor may be coming from teams that are hoping to sign him.
Stein confirms a recent report from Jake Fischer of Yahoo Sports that the Heat have expressed interest in Timberwolves guard D’Angelo Russell, who has an expiring $31.4MM contract. However, the Wolves would likely have to take back Kyle Lowry unless another team can be added to the trade, and Minnesota doesn’t want to take on Lowry’s contract.
Kemba Walker, who was waived by the Mavericks prior to the leaguewide salary guarantee date, is focused on finding another NBA opportunity. Stein says a weekend report in Italy that Walker was close to signing with Olimpia Milano was mistaken.

Injury Notes: Doncic, Green, Morant, Gobert, Edwards, Harris

January 15th, 2023 at 9:52pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Luka Doncic didn’t play on Sunday, with the official explanation being left ankle soreness, according to the team’s PR department (Twitter link). According to the Dallas Morning News’ Brad Townsend, the Mavericks superstar was simply being rested in the second game of a back-to-back.

Doncic played a career-high 53 minutes in Thursday’s double-overtime victory of the Lakers, then scored a season-low 15 points in 35 minutes against Portland on Saturday night.

The Mavs’ Josh Green, out since Dec. 9 due to a sprained right elbow, could return to action on Wednesday, Townsend tweets.

We have more injury-related news:

Grizzlies star Ja Morant delivered an electrifying hammer dunk against the Pacers on Saturday but there’s no guarantee he’ll play on Monday. Morant is listed as questionable to play against Phoenix due to left hip soreness, the team’s PR department tweets.
Timberwolves center Rudy Gobert is listed as questionable to play against his former team, the Jazz, on Monday due to right groin soreness, Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic tweets. Anthony Edwards is also questionable due to left hip soreness.
Magic guard Gary Harris started on Sunday despite what the team’s PR department labeled a mallet finger on his shooting hand, Khobi Price of the Orlando Sentinel tweets. It’s an injury to the end of a finger that causes it to bend inward toward the palm. A torn or stretched tendon prevents the finger from straightening out.

Without Towns, Team Doesn't Have Identity

January 15th, 2023 at 5:30pm CST by Dana Gauruder

In his midseason review of the Timberwolves, Chris Hine of The Star Tribune writes that the team hasn’t formed an identity, due to the extended injury absence of Karl-Anthony Towns. Minnesota has gone 10-11 without its biggest star, who is sidelined by a calf injury. “When he comes back we’re going to look different,” guard Anthony Edwards said. “Right now, we’re trying to figure it out still, so when we get him back, it might be a little easier.”

Nowell Displeased With Performance; Edwards Playing Through Hip Bruise

January 13th, 2023 at 10:58pm CST by Rory Maher

Timberwolves guard Jaylen Nowell is set to hit unrestricted free agency in the summer, but he’s not pleased with his season thus far, per Chris Hine of The Star Tribune. “Not going well,” he said. Nowell, who shot 39.4% from deep last season, is shooting just 28.5% from behind the arc through 42 games. Head coach Chris Finch believes the 23-year-old is making things difficult on himself. “I think he’s trying to force himself into the game,” Finch said. “What it’s doing probably is bleeding over into the great looks that he’s getting. He’s trying to get himself going by taking some tough shots out there with a lot of hands in his face and then when the ball comes back, or a different situation where he’s shooting it open, particularly from three, he hasn’t seen that go in.”
In the same story from Hine, Finch said Timberwolves guard Anthony Edwards is dealing with a “deep bruise” in his left hip, but the former No. 1 overall pick has been “cleared of all tests.” Veteran guard Austin Rivers commended Edwards’ willingness to play through the injury, Hine tweets. “It just sets a tone like this dude’s invested. He’s here. This guy’s playing through injuries, no matter. The Houston game, a lot of guys would just sit out, like, ‘Hey, we’ll win without him.’ But Ant came out there and really showed us,” he said.