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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.
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Zgoda On Wolves, Mayo, Stiemsma, Kirilenko

June 29th, 2013 at 1:32pm CST by Chuck Myron

Andrei Kirilenko's decision to opt out of his contract could be something of a game-changer for the Wolves, since it frees up more than $10MM of salary for next season. That means the team has greater flexibility to pursue a new starting shooting guard or small forward through trade or free agency, writes Jerry Zgoda of the Star Tribune, pointing to O.J. Mayo as a likely target. President of basketball operations Flip Saunders has said that re-signing restricted free agent Nikola Pekovic is the club's primary offseason goal, and Zgoda looks at what could come next for the Wolves:

  • Minnesota will waive Greg Stiemsma before his contract becomes fully guaranteed on July 17th, according to Zgoda. I'd imagine the team will try to find takers for Stiemsma's contract in trades before then, though that's just my speculation. There's no partial guarantee on his deal, so the Wolves won't owe him anything if he's off their roster by the 17th of next month.
  • The Wolves aren't likely to offer more than two seasons in another contract for Kirilenko.
  • Zgoda wrote earlier this month that either J.J. Barea or Luke Ridnour was likely to be traded by draft night, and while that didn't happen, the team was in talks with the Bucks about a Ridnour/Ekpe Udoh swap this week. The Wolves still trying to trade one or both of Barea and Ridnour, according to Zgoda.
  • The Wolves would like to include the minimum-salary deal of Chris Johnson in a Barea or Ridnour trade, too.
  • Saunders is expected to meet with free agent small forward Chase Budinger in San Diego to talk about a new deal.
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Western Notes: Wolves, Mavericks, World Peace

June 13th, 2013 at 10:40pm CST by Ryan Raroque

Jerry Zgoda of the Star Tribune writes that the Timberwolves will likely trade either J.J. Barea or Luke Ridnour by draft night. In the same piece, Zgoda notes that GM Flip Saunders is impressed with Victor Oladipo. Minnesota – currently slated to draft ninth overall – would have to swing a deal into the top five in order to have a chance at the former Hoosier star, though Zgoda doesn't think the team has enough assets to accomplish that. Here are more news and notes from the Western Conference tonight: 

  • The Grizzlies interviewed Ed Pinckney today and are another team among those monitoring Doc Rivers' situation with Boston, says USA Today's Sam Amick (Twitter links). 
  • While recalling the Mavericks' decision to break up their championship roster, coach Rick Carlisle described it as "gut-wrenching." This summer, Dallas will have another chance to reap the rewards from that tough decision, and Carlisle seems determined to get things done: "We're going to be active in free agency…We're an aggressive franchise by nature; our owner (Mark Cuban) is. And that's good. We're going to put together a good team" (A. Sherrod Blakely of CSNNE.com) 
  • Lakers forward Metta World Peace has been working out at the IMG Academy and reportedly looks great, tweets Alex Kennedy of Hoopsworld. 
  • Matt Moore of CBS Sports isn't so sure George Karl would be a good fit with the current Grizzlies roster. Going off of reports that Brian Shaw and Lionel Hollins are in the lead for the Nuggets' job, Moore thinks Shaw would be an ideal fit, whereas Hollins would have more of a challenge with Denver's youth. 
  • Darnell Mayberry of NewsOK explains why Mason Plumlee would be a solid pick for the Thunder with the 12th overall pick. 
  • Janis Carr of the OC Register (Subscribers only) takes a closer look at Mark Madsen's coaching opportunity with the Lakers' D-League affiliate, the Los Angeles D-Fenders.  
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Wolves Rumors: Kahn, Pekovic, Ridnour, Curry

March 8th, 2013 at 1:04pm CST by Luke Adams

Amidst rumors that Flip Saunders might be next in line to run the Timberwolves' basketball operations and owner Glen Taylor's insistence that current GM David Kahn could still be retained beyond this season, Taylor tells Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN Twin Cities to expect a decision no later than the end of April.

"I owe it to David to get going," Taylor said. "I can't go on for a long time."

Here are a few more of the latest Wolves rumblings from Wolfson:

  • Taylor tells Wolfson that he hopes the team can work out an agreement with restricted free agent Nikola Pekovic this summer, but Wolfson continues to hear from team and league sources that Taylor likely won't go up to $12MM+ annually for the big man.
  • Taylor expects Rick Adelman to return to the Wolves' bench as head coach next season.
  • According to Taylor, Adelman had no interest in moving Luke Ridnour at the trade deadline, leading Wolfson to speculate that Kahn was more open to a Ridnour or J.J. Barea trade than the head coach was.
  • As the Wolves debate whether to add a big man on a 10-day contract, Eddy Curry is one name the club has discussed internally, says Wolfson.
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Wolves Rumors: Ridnour, Barea, Butler, Bjelica

March 1st, 2013 at 9:35am CST by Luke Adams

The trade deadline may be behind us, but that doesn't mean Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN Twin Cities won't continue checking in with his weekly Scoops column on Fridays. Wolfson still has a handful of Timberwolves-related notes to pass along, so let's check them out….

  • Louis Amundson told FOX Sports Florida that the Timberwolves nearly traded him and Luke Ridnour to the 76ers for Spencer Hawes, but a source close to one of those players tells Wolfson that's "not true." Still, as Wolfson has previously reported, the Sixers did talk to Minnesota about Ridnour and J.J. Barea.
  • Given how heavily the T-Wolves shopped Ridnour and Barea prior to the deadline, one of them will be moved this summer, says Wolfson.
  • One source tells Wolfson to expect the Wolves to pursue a trade for Caron Butler in the summer. Butler, who will be entering the final year of his contract next year, was nearly sent to the Wizards on deadline day.
  • Nemanja Bjelica, the 35th overall pick in the 2010 draft, is likely to come over to the NBA next season, a source tells Wolfson. Bjelica, whose rights the Wolves hold, signed a five-year contract with Spanish club Caja Laboral in 2010, but the deal included an NBA opt-out.
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Western Notes: Kings, Garnett, Mavs, Wolves

February 20th, 2013 at 9:31pm CST by Chuck Myron

Most around the league are surprised by the Kings' involvement in a cost-cutting deal that sent away Thomas Robinson, the fifth pick of this past June's draft this evening, Grantland's Zach Lowe hears (Twitter link). It's just the fifth time a team has traded a top five pick in his rookie season, ESPN Stats and Info tweets. The Kings weren't expected to be involved in any deals as their ownership situation is resolved, but ultimately they didn't hesitate to jump in at the last moment. Here's more on that trade and from around the West as the hours tick down until tomorrow's 2:00pm Central time deadline:

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Wolves Rumors: Kirilenko, Mayo, Mozgov, Redick

February 20th, 2013 at 10:59am CST by Luke Adams

Here's the latest on the Timberwolves from Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN Twin Cities….

  • General manager David Kahn isn't convinced he'll be able to make a deal by tomorrow's deadline, but it won't be from lack of trying, says Wolfson. The T-Wolves have made Luke Ridnour, J.J. Barea, Derrick Williams, and Brandon Roy available as they explore trade options.
  • The Wolves have received more calls about Andrei Kirilenko than anyone else, but the club won't move the Russian forward, barring a "too-good-to-be-true offer."
  • Minnesota's top priority is a wing player with size. The team reached out to the Mavericks about O.J. Mayo, but was rebuffed, according to Wolfson.
  • The Wolves like Timofey Mozgov and view him as a good value in free agency this summer, but are unlikely to reach a compromise on a trade with the Nuggets.
  • To acquire J.J. Redick or Avery Bradley, the Wolves would have to give up Williams and a first-round pick, according to Wolfson. That's not happening for Bradley and is very unlikely for Redick.
  • Rick Adelman and the Wolves like Courtney Lee and are keeping an eye on him, but they didn't want to offer four years in free agency last summer, so the contract could bother them.
  • Adelman told season ticket holders that the Wolves' goal is to re-sign Nikola Pekovic this summer. However, some team sources aren't sure Pekovic is worth $11MM annually, and question his ability to stay healthy, says Wolfson.
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Sixers’ DiLeo Denies Bynum Trade Talk

December 16th, 2012 at 6:02pm CST by Zachary Links

Before the tipoff of tonight's Sixers-Lakers game, Philadelphia GM Tony DiLeo made it known that the club has not had trade discussions about center Andrew Bynum, according to Tom Moore of Calkins Newspapers.  DiLeo also rejected the notion that the Sixers have talked to the Timberwolves about swapping forward Dorell Wright for point guard J.J. Barea.

A recent piece by Marc J. Spears of Yahoo Sports intimated that the 76ers have talked about trading the injured big man and cited one source as saying that the club was fishing for a starting caliber center.  When asked if the Sixers are looking to make a move prior to the February 21 trade deadline, DiLeo said management would do something, “if we can improve our talent level.”  DiLeo also said they aren’t targeting a specific position and that the club wants to see what the team looks like when healthy.

Meanwhile, the idea that the Sixers have discussed a Wright-Barea swap with the Mavs comes from an NBA source who spoke with Moore.  Wright, 27, was acquired by Philly in a three-way deal this summer that sent Jarrett Jack to the Warriors and the rights to Edin Bavcic to New Orleans.  Wright started every game he played in for Golden State over the last two years, averaging 13.8 PPG and 5.0 RPG in 33.5 minutes per contest.  However, he has seen his playing time dip to just over 20 minutes per game with averages of 6.9 PPG and 4.2 RPG.

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Stein On Pau, Raptors, Varejao, Jazz, Gentry

December 14th, 2012 at 3:49pm CST by Luke Adams

ESPN.com's Marc Stein has published his Weekend Dime, and leads off the jam-packed column with a look at a handful of players that are candidates to be dealt before February 21st's trade deadline. Here are the highlights on those guys, and from the rest of Stein's piece:

  • The Lakers continue to recognize that they're unlikely to get fair value for Pau Gasol, given his health, salary, and performance, and would prefer to avoid another major shakeup anyway. So for now, they're still not seriously considering a Pau trade.
  • Multiple front-office sources view the Raptors as the team most motivated to make a move. The team would like to make Andrea Bargnani and Jose Calderon in tandem, but Bargnani's elbow injury may force Toronto to deal Calderon on his own. The Lakers and Mavericks have interest, though neither team is an obvious match for Calderon's $10.5MM+ salary.
  • NBA teams believe Anderson Varejao is "highly available," but are skeptical he'll be dealt, since the Cavaliers' high asking price is only increasing. Cleveland is seeking multiple young assets for Varejao, according to Stern, who says the Thunder, a potential match, have exhibited little interest.
  • Teams around the league aren't sure whether the Jazz would be more inclined to trade Paul Millsap or Al Jefferson, but the general consensus suggests one of the two will be dealt by the deadline for a front-line point guard.
  • Stein lists a few other names that come up repeatedly in talks with sources as trade candidates: Monta Ellis, Brandon Jennings, Derrick Williams, Luke Ridnour, J.J. Barea, Michael Beasley, Courtney Lee, and D.J. Augustin.
  • Former Grizzlies owner Michael Heisley may already be interested in buying another team, with the Bucks as a potential target, according to Stein.
  • Robert Sarver's assurances that Alvin Gentry will keep his job as Suns head coach shouldn't be viewed as a "dreaded" vote of confidence. Sources tell Stein that Sarver likes Gentry "too much personally to make an in-season change."
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Northwest Notes: Wolves Injuries, Blazers, Williams

November 20th, 2012 at 9:13pm CST by Sean Highkin

The latest news and notes from the Northwest Division on Tuesday night:

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