Minnesota Timberwolves Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Timberwolves, Phillip Wheeler Agree To Exhibit 10 Deal

June 24th, 2022 at 5:43pm CST by Rory Maher

The Timberwolves are signing Phillip Wheeler to an Exhibit 10 deal, his agent Jerry Dianis tells ESPN’s Jonathan Givony (via Twitter).

Wheeler will play for the Puerto Rican national team next week and plans to join Minnesota for Summer League action next month, tweets Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic.

In 28 games (30.6 MPG) with Piratas de Quebradillas of the Puerto Rican BSN league, the forward holds averages of 17.3 PPG, 5.9 RPG and 1.3 SPG on .513/.345/.717 shooting (hat tip to RealGM). The 20-year-old went to Ranney High School in New Jersey and had a brief stint with the Ciudad de Mexico Capitanes during the G League’s Showcase Cup last fall.

Exhibit 10 deals, which are non-guaranteed, can be converted into two-way contracts before the regular season begins and also make a player eligible for a bonus of up to $50K if he’s waived and then joins his team’s G League affiliate.

Kevon Harris Accepts Summer League Invite With Wolves

June 24th, 2022 at 5:11pm CST by JD Shaw

Kevon Harris has accepted a summer league invite from the Timberwolves, his agent Billy Davis of Family of Athletes told Hoops Rumors. Harris, a 6’6″ guard, averaged 14.9 points, 5.8 rebounds, 3.7 assists and 1.5 steals per game for the Raptors’ G League affiliate this season, shooting 49% from the floor and 39% from deep.

Wolves Acquire Wendell Moore From Rockets

June 24th, 2022 at 10:47am CST by Dana Gauruder

JUNE 24: The two future picks the Rockets are receiving in the trade are the Timberwolves’ own 2025 and 2027 second-rounders, according to Jonathan Feigen of The Houston Chronicle. The deal is now official, according to a press release from the Wolves.

JUNE 23: The Rockets are rerouting the first-round pick they’re acquiring from the Mavericks in the Christian Wood deal to the Timberwolves, ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski tweets. Duke guard Wendell Moore, who was chosen at No. 26, is thus headed to Minnesota.

Houston is receiving the No. 29 pick in this year’s draft, plus two future second-rounders, Wojnarowski reports in another tweet. The Rockets used that first-rounder to select Kentucky guard TyTy Washington.

Moore averaged 13.5 PPG, 5.4 RPG and 4.6 APG for the Blue Devils. Washington averaged 12.5 PPG and 3.9 APG for the Wildcats.

Grizzlies Acquire No. 19 Pick Jake LaRavia From Wolves

June 24th, 2022 at 6:27am CST by Dana Gauruder

JUNE 24: The trade is complete, the Grizzlies and Timberwolves announced in a pair of press releases. Officially, LaRavia’s draft rights head to Memphis along with a 2023 second-round pick in exchange for the draft rights to No. 22 pick Walker Kessler and No. 29 pick TyTy Washington.

It’s unclear if that ’23 second-rounder is Minnesota’s own or the Knicks’ second-round pick that the Wolves acquired earlier in the draft.

The Wolves are flipping Washington to the Rockets in a separate trade.

JUNE 23: The Grizzlies have agreed to acquire the No. 19 pick from the Timberwolves and will select Wake Forest forward Jake LaRavia, reports Shams Charania of The Athletic (via Twitter). In exchange, Minnesota will receive the No. 22 and No. 29 selections in tonight’s draft, with the Grizzlies also gaining a second-round pick, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (Twitter links).

It’s apparently a 2023 second-rounder, Chris Hine of the Star Tribune tweets.

LaRavia, who spent two seasons at Indiana State, moved up draft boards in recent weeks after averaging 14.6 PPG, 6.6 RPG and 3.7 APG for the Demon Deacons last season. With Kyle Anderson entering free agency, LaRavia could compete for a rotation spot in his rookie campaign.

He improved his stock during workouts, as he was originally projected as a borderline first-rounder.

Parlaying two first-rounders for the No. 19 selection doesn’t seem like great value, as Chris Herrington of The Daily Memphian notes, but Grizzlies executive Zach Kleiman is unfazed by perceptions as long as he gets the player he wants. Kleiman has traded up for every pick on his watch with the exception of Ja Morant, Herrington adds (Twitter links).

Pistons’ Procida, Cavs’ Diop Among Draftees Expected To Be Stashed Overseas

June 24th, 2022 at 1:28am CST by Luke Adams

Italian wing Gabriele Procida, who was drafted 36th overall on Thursday night after spending last season with Fortitudo Bologna, is expected to be stashed overseas by the Pistons, reports James L. Edwards III of The Athletic (Twitter link).

While Procida is the highest of this year’s draft picks reported to be a likely draft-and-stash prospect, he’s hardly the only one. Here are a few more updates on 2022’s draft-and-stash candidates:

After using the No. 39 pick to draft him on Thursday, the Cavaliers intend to keep 20-year-old center Khalifa Diop overseas for the 2022/23 season, writes Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com. The Senegalese big man won the EuroCup Rising Star award playing for Gran Canaria in Spain this past season.
The Nuggets plan to stash center Ismael Kamagate in Europe next season, a source tells Harrison Wind of DNVR Sports (Twitter link). The No. 46 pick on Thursday, Kamagate had an All-Star season playing for Paris in 2021/22.
Italian shooting guard Matteo Spagnolo, drafted at No. 50 by the Timberwolves, will likely remain overseas next season, per president of basketball operations Tim Connelly (Twitter link via Dane Moore). Spagnolo is still just 19 years old.
Crotian forward/center Karlo Matkovic, selected 52nd overall by the Pelicans, is expected to join New Orleans’ Summer League roster but will continue playing in Europe for another year or two, general manager Trajan Langdon told reporters, including Andrew Lopez of ESPN (Twitter link).
Wizards president of basketball operations Tommy Sheppard said after the draft that No. 54 pick Yannick Nzosa will be a “stash guy” in the Spanish League next season, according to Ava Wallace of The Washington Post (Twitter link).

Pacers Acquire No. 48 Pick Kendall Brown From Timberwolves

June 24th, 2022 at 12:59am CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

JUNE 24: The trade is official, according to the Pacers, who say they’ve acquired Brown’s draft rights from the Timberwolves in exchange for a 2026 second-round pick and cash (Twitter link).

The pick is expected to be the least favorable of the Pacers’, Heat’s, and Spurs’ 2026 second-rounders.

JUNE 23: The Timberwolves are sending out the No. 48 pick, Baylor swingman Kendall Brown, to the Pacers, per Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN (Twitter link).

Brown was a Big 12 All-Freshman Team honoree during his single season for the Bears. The 19-year-old averaged 9.7 PPG, 4.9 RPG, 1.9 APG and 1.0 SPG across 34 contests, all starts, during the 2021/22 NCAA season. The athletic 6’8″ guard/forward posted shooting splits of .584/.341/.689.

Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic tweets that Indiana will be sending the Timberwolves a future second-round selection in exchange for Brown.

Minnesota has been proactive when it comes to dealmaking during this draft. First, the club sent the No. 19 selection in tonight’s draft to the Grizzlies in exchange for the Nos. 22 and 29 picks. The Wolves then sent that No. 29 pick, plus two future second-round selections, to the Rockets for the No. 26 pick, Duke’s Wendell Moore.

Earlier in the second round, the team acquired the draft rights to Memphis wing Josh Minott and a 2023 second-round pick from Charlotte.

Timberwolves Send McGowens To Hornets For Minott, Future Pick

June 23rd, 2022 at 11:53pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

11:53pm: The trade is now official, according to a press release from the Hornets.

10:42pm: The Timberwolves are set to send Nebraska shooting guard Bryce McGowens, selected with the No. 40 pick in the 2022 draft, to the Hornets, per Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN (Twitter link).

The Wolves will receive Memphis wing Josh Minott, the No. 45 pick in this year’s draft, as well as the 2023 second-rounder the Hornets acquired from the Knicks earlier in the draft, per Rod Boone of the Charlotte Observer (via Twitter).

The 6’7″ McGowens appeared in 31 games, all starts, for the Cornhuskers during his lone collegiate season. He averaged 16.8 PPG, 5.2 RPG, 1.4 APG and 0.7 SPG across 33.5 MPG. McGowens converted 40.3% of his 12.8 field goal attempts and 83.1% of his 6.3 free-throw looks during 2021/22.

A Big Ten All-Freshman Team honoree, McGowens was also named to the 2021/22 All-Big Ten Third Team in 2022.

The 6’8″ Minott played more sparingly with Memphis during the ’21/22 season, averaging 6.6 PPG and 3.8 RPG in just 14.6 MPG over the course of his 33 games with the Tigers.

No Headway On Capela Trade; Russell Could Be Traded Soon?

June 23rd, 2022 at 5:31pm CST by Rory Maher

The Timberwolves remain interested in potentially pairing Karl-Anthony Towns with Clint Capela in the team’s frontcourt, but sources tell Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic that the Wolves and Hawks haven’t made any real headway on that front.

The Timberwolves remain interested in potentially pairing Karl-Anthony Towns with Clint Capela in the team’s frontcourt, but sources tell Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic that the Wolves and Hawks haven’t made any real headway on that front.
Sources suggest to Dane Moore of Bring Me The News (Twitter link) that there’s a greater than 50% chance that D’Angelo Russell will be traded by the Timberwolves in the coming days. Russell is viewed as a trade candidate due to his poor playoff showing despite having a solid season with Minnesota. The guard is extension-eligible this summer and his $31.38MM contract expires after next season.

Northwest Notes: Connelly, Booth, Morris, Jazz

June 23rd, 2022 at 11:26am CST by Arthur Hill

New president of basketball operations Tim Connelly has a lot of decisions to make in his first draft with the Timberwolves, writes Chris Hine of The Star Tribune. In addition to the No. 19 pick, Minnesota holds three second-round selections at 40, 48 and 50. Connelly is looking forward to shaping the team, but he admits that whoever is selected might not have a major role next season as the Wolves are planning to be contenders.

“If you look at the final eight teams this year, there’s not many teams that were playing rookies,” Connelly said. “So, we’re drafting for the next three to seven years. If we expect the 19th pick to make an instant impact on a team that was in the playoffs last year, it’s unfair for that player. You want to get on base with 19. How much do you want to swing for the fences? That depends who’s there.”

Connelly adds that the Wolves are “super open” to trading one or more of the picks, but he’s been surprised by how quiet the market has been so far.

“I thought they’d be a bit further advanced than they are today,” he said about trade talks. “But all it takes is one call, and you make a trade in two minutes. A lot of jabbing right now; hopefully there’s some punching starting [Thursday] morning.”

There’s more from the Northwest Division:

The Nuggets could also be active on the trade market as new general manager Calvin Booth runs the team’s draft for the first time, according to Mike Singer of The Denver Post. Booth has two first-round picks to work with after acquiring No. 30 in a trade with the Thunder, and sources close to the team told Singer he might try to move up or swap both selections for veteran help. If the Nuggets keep the picks, Singer expects them to prioritize experienced prospects who can contribute on both ends of the court.
There’s speculation that the Wizards are interested in Monte Morris, but the Nuggets won’t part with the back-up point guard without a “significant return,” Singer tweets.
Jazz owner Ryan Smith said the team has started conducting second interviews in its search for a new head coach, per Sarah Todd of The Deseret News. He added that the organization is taking it slow and he’s trusting CEO Danny Ainge and general manager Justin Zanik to determine the best candidates.

Fischer’s Latest: Turner, Sixers, Thybulle, Jazz, Micic

June 23rd, 2022 at 8:31am CST by Luke Adams

As the Pacers continue to weigh the possibility of trading center Myles Turner, the Timberwolves, Raptors, and Hornets are among the teams believed to be interested, writes Jake Fischer of Bleacher Report.

According to Fischer, the Knicks have showed interest in Turner in recent years too, but the expectation is that they’d only be a serious suitor for the big man if Mitchell Robinson leaves in free agency.

Here’s more from Fischer:

The Sixers have called “a healthy portion” of the teams around the NBA in an effort to gauge their interest in Tobias Harris, Danny Green, and Matisse Thybulle, sources tell Bleacher Report. Fischer suggests Philadelphia has been trying to find teams that would give up a first-round pick for Thybulle as part of a three-team trade that would send an impact veteran rotation to the 76ers.
The Jazz are seeking a first-round pick in exchange for any of their rotation players besides Rudy Gobert and Donovan Mitchell, according to Fischer, who adds that Royce O’Neale is generating significant trade interest around the NBA.
Nikola Jokic is thought to be a “driving factor” in the Nuggets‘ interest in Serbian point guard Vasilije Micic, a draft-and-stash EuroLeague star whose NBA rights are held by the Thunder. The Spurs, Bucks, and Bulls have also been mentioned as potential suitors for Micic, Fischer reports.