Minnesota Timberwolves Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Wolves, Nemanja Bjelica Have Mutual Interest

March 16th, 2015 at 5:08pm CST by Chuck Myron

5:08pm: Bjelica is ready to sign with Minnesota if the Wolves hold on to his rights, a source tells Cauchi. Several NBA teams are interested in trading for those rights, but Minnesota has set a high bar for such proposals, sources also indicated to Cauchi. In any case, the Timberwolves plan to either sign him this summer or trade his rights, Wolfson tweets. There is the matter of a buyout worth 1.2 million euros, as Cauchi points out. That would be the equivalent of about $1.268MM at the current exchange rate. Minnesota or another NBA team would only be able to foot the bill for about half of that.

12:05pm: Draft-and-stash power forward Nemanja Bjelica has interest in signing with the Timberwolves this summer, according to Sportando’s Orazio Cauchi (Twitter link), who confirms an earlier report from Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN Twin Cities that the Wolves also want a deal with him. Wolfson wrote in February that Minnesota is planning a strong push for the 26-year-old whose rights the Wolves acquired on draft night in 2010 shortly after the Wizards made him the 35th overall pick. His contract with Turkey’s Fenerbahce Ulker runs until 2016, as Mark Porcaro notes in our Draft Rights Held Players Database, but there’s an opt-out that would allow him to jump to the NBA this summer, sources tell Cauchi (Twitter link).

Bjelica signed with agent Arn Tellem’s Wasserman Media Group prior to the season, and the Wolves have a strong relationship with Tellem, as Wolfson noted. Wolfson speculated that signing Bjelica would require an offer similar to the three-year deal worth more than $16.6MM that fellow draft-and-stash prospect Nikola Mirotic inked with the Bulls this past summer. The starting salary in Mirotic’s contract is equivalent to the full value of the non-taxpayer’s mid-level exception, seemingly a high price tag for a player who’s putting up solid but unspectacular averages of 12.4 points and 8.3 rebounds in 26.6 minutes per game overseas.

The Wolves have about $51MM in guaranteed salary for next season against a salary cap that’s projected to come in at around $68MM, not including a $5MM player option for Chase Budinger or the cap hold for what’s sure to be a high lottery pick. Minnesota would be hard-pressed to open significant cap room, making it more likely that at least a portion of the mid-level, or the biannual exception, would go toward signing Bjelica if the sides were to reach a deal.

Northwest Notes: Hunt, Neal, Gasol, Tomic

March 16th, 2015 at 10:48am CST by Chuck Myron

The Trail Blazers have never won a Northwest Division title, but they’re seemingly destined to do so this year, since they’re up nine games in the loss column on the Thunder with less than a month to go in the regular season. The last time Portland won a division title, in 1999, the team was in the Pacific Division. Here’s the latest on the teams looking up at the Blazers in the standings:

Nuggets players, and Kenneth Faried in particular, are ecstatic about interim coach Melvin Hunt and would unanimously vote to remove the interim tag from his title, observes Christopher Dempsey of The Denver Post. However, owner Stan Kroenke is still dissatisfied with a team far from playoff contention, Dempsey also notes.
Timberwolves guard Gary Neal doesn’t regret chasing the money and leaving the Spurs to sign a two-year, $6.5MM deal in 2013 in part because he saw DeJuan Blair go from a starter to signing a minimum-salary contract in short order, as Neal tells Jerry Zgoda of the Star Tribune. Neal will be a free agent again at season’s end.
Kevin Durant has posited that Oklahoma City’s lack of “orchestras and plays” dissuaded Pau Gasol from signing with the Thunder this past summer, but Gasol said this weekend that such cultural attractions weren’t a factor, according to The Oklahoman’s Darnell Mayberry. The Bulls big man instead said it was a matter of on-court fit that led him to choose Chicago, as Mayberry relays.
Jazz draft-and-stash prospect Ante Tomic believes the offseason ahead is his last legitimate opportunity to join the NBA, and while he acknowledged that he’s in talks about a new deal with his Spanish team, he won’t rule out a jump to Utah. The 7’2″ center made his remarks to Jesús Pérez Ramos of Mundo Deportivo (translation via HoopsHype). FC Barcelona has a team option on the 28-year-old for next season, but the Jazz are reportedly willing to pay to buy Tomic out of his contract.

Atlantic Notes: Young, Jackson, Sixers

March 16th, 2015 at 9:46am CST by Chuck Myron

Thaddeus Young said Saturday that he wants to remain with the Nets even though he hasn’t decided on his early termination option for next season, worth as much as nearly $10.222MM, observes Andy Vasquez of The Record. Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN Twin Cities can’t envision Young turning down that option and pointed to his earlier report that the forward had requested a trade from the Timberwolves through his agent (Twitter links). Young spoke of a mutual feeling of interest in a continued relationship with Brooklyn, and indeed Nets GM Billy King has said the team will do what it can to retain him, as King apparently sees him as a building block for the team’s future. While we wait to see exactly how Young and the Nets proceed, here’s more from the Atlantic Division:

Marc Berman of the New York Post sees signs that Knicks president Phil Jackson will choose to leave the team before his five-year contract is through. The Knicks have fallen flat in Jackson’s first year at the helm, and he hinted to Harvey Araton of The New York Times earlier this season that he isn’t planning a long-term stay in New York.
Veterans Luc Mbah a Moute and Jason Richardson are favorites of Sixers coach Brett Brown, notes Bob Cooney of the Philadelphia Daily News, who takes a shot at sizing up the chances that many of the Sixers have of returning to the team next season. Richardson and Mbah a Moute are both set for unrestricted free agency this summer.
Celtics assistant coach Jay Larranaga has drawn the eye of George Mason University, which plans to make him a focus of its search for a new head coach, reports Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports. Larranaga has surfaced as an NBA head coaching candidate in the past and interviewed for the C’s and Sixers head coaching jobs, Wojnarowski notes.

Northwest Notes: Durant, Kanter, Gasol

March 15th, 2015 at 11:12am CST by ChrisCrouse

Kevin Durant has returned to practice for the first time since his latest surgery, Anthony Slater of the Oklahoman reports. “ [Durant] Went through some of the practice today,” coach Scott Brooks said. “Did some 3-on-3.” Oklahoma City is 18-20 on the season without Durant in the lineup. Russell Westbrook has played in 22 of those games and the team has gone during 12-10 during those contests.

Here’s more from the Northwest Division

Since his arrival in Oklahoma City, Enes Kanter is playing more minutes at the center position and the big man is happy with his role, Slater notes in the same piece. “Only thing I want to do is give confidence to my teammates,” Kanter said. “Every time down the court I want them to take those shots. I want the point guards, the forwards to feel free to take those shots and know that the big is down there trying to get that rebound.” Kanter is averaging 4.4 offensive rebounds per game since becoming a member of the Thunder.
The Thunder made a hard push to sign Pau Gasol last offseason. Russell Westbrook, Kevin Durant and Scott Brooks all met with Gasol in Los Angeles in an attempt to recruit him to Oklahoma City, but, as the big man tells Darnell Mayberry of the Oklahoman, he’s happy with the decision he made. “At some point I had to make a decision on where I thought I would fit better as a basketball player,” Gasol said. “And I think so far it’s been proven that I made a pretty good choice.” The 34-year-old ended up signing a contract with the Bulls that will pay him roughly $22MM over three years.
Justin Hamilton has fit in well since arriving in Minnesota, writes Jerry Zgoda of the Star Tribune. “He knows how to play,” President of Basketball Operations and coach Flip Saunders said. “Sometimes you need to put some guys in there who won’t screw it up for somebody else. Sometimes you just need a guy you can put in there. He’s a 7-foot Robbie Hummel. He’s going to go in there, know every coverage and what he needs to do. If he gets beat, it won’t be because he made a mental mistake.” The Wolves claimed Hamilton after the Pelicans waived him earlier this month.

Western Notes: Conley, Powell, Gentry

March 13th, 2015 at 7:15pm CST by Eddie Scarito

The five-year, $45 million deal that the Grizzlies inked Mike Conley to is looked upon as one of the great bargains around the league, and has allowed Memphis to add high-level role players to its roster without entering luxury tax territory, Amin Elhassan of ESPN.com (Insider subscription required) writes. His deal will also allow the team to offer Marc Gasol a max contract this summer when he hits free agency, Elhassan adds. But it’s when Conley’s contract expires in 2016 that he’ll be expensive to retain, and the veteran could command a salary in the $25MM per season range, the ESPN scribe notes.

Here’s more from the Western Conference:

The Mavericks have once again recalled big man Dwight Powell from the Texas Legends, their D-League affiliate, Earl K. Sneed of Mavs.com reports (Twitter link). This concludes Powell’s ninth journey of the season to the D-League.
Bojan Dubljevic extended his contract with Valencia of Spain for three more seasons, his agent Misko Raznatovic announced via Twitter. The final season of the deal includes a mutual option, Raznatovic added. Dubljevic, 23, is a draft-and-stash pick who was selected with the No. 59 overall pick in the 2013 NBA draft by the Wolves, who still hold his rights.
The success that the Warriors have enjoyed this season could lead to another head coaching opportunity for Golden State associate coach Alvin Gentry, Diamond Leung of The Bay Area News Group writes. Gentry has coached four different teams and owns a lifetime record of 335-370.
Gentry admits that he would like another opportunity to be a head coach, but added that he is very happy with the Warriors organization, Leung notes. “If there’s a good situation, yeah, I would like to be a head coach again,” Gentry said. “But it would have to be a situation that would have to be very good. What we got here is very special, and I’ve been in the league long enough to know that I wouldn’t want to go into a situation that I didn’t think had potential to be this way.“

Eastern Notes: Knicks, Jackson, Robinson III

March 12th, 2015 at 9:30pm CST by Eddie Scarito

Even though the Pistons have dropped eight of the nine games that they have played since acquiring Reggie Jackson, the point guard is optimistic about the team’s future and loves the young talent that’s around him, Alex Kennedy of Basketball Insiders writes. Jackson is also a fan of playing for coach/executive Stan Van Gundy, Kennedy adds. “Playing for Stan has been a change,” Jackson said in an interview with Pistons.com (video link). “He’s a great basketball mind, he sees a lot of what’s going on in the game and how to take advantage of things. He knows what it takes to get everyone involved and going, and we constantly talk about what we see on the court. I think he can only help my game expand that much further and help me on this journey to be one of the best point guards ever.”

Here’s more from the Eastern Conference:

Given the advancing age of Carmelo Anthony and a lottery pick not being guaranteed to turn into a star player, Knicks president Phil Jackson would be wise to try and deal away the team’s first-rounder this year for an established star, Howard Beck of Bleacher Report writes.
An Eastern Conference scout gave Beck another reason the Knicks should consider dealing their first round pick — the lack of a true superstar player in this draft. “I’m not sure either guy [Jahlil Okafor or Karl-Anthony Towns] is a franchise player,” the scout said. “Is it LeBron James, Kobe Bryant, Russell Westbrook, Kevin Durant, Tim Duncan? I’m not sure about that. But they should be very good players. The downside would be above-average starters, just based on [their] talent. And they’re only 19. You’d think they’re going to get better.“
The Sixers are in no hurry to play Glenn Robinson III, whom they claimed off of waivers from the Wolves last week, Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer writes. “I got a gut feel to what we are going to do,” coach Brett Brown said, “and I don’t see Glenn being a part of it tomorrow. As I said right when we got him, my plan is to get him a little bit more comfortable. I don’t feel the need [to play him], because I do have an abundance of wings.”

Pacific Notes: Rivers, Granger, Divac

March 10th, 2015 at 12:00pm CST by Chuck Myron

Doc Rivers and Flip Saunders hold the dual titles of coach and president of basketball operations for the Clippers and Timberwolves, respectively, but they’ve encountered vastly different jobs, as Jerry Zgoda of the Star Tribune explores.

“It’s not been hard, Flip’s had to do a lot more,” Rivers said. “They have a lot more work, far more assets than they have to try to get in and out. He has a ton of [financial] flexibility. When I came here, I looked at our roster and flexibility and there was not a lot we could do. We were more in the minimum contract and mid-level [exception] stuff. You’ve got to have assets and we do, but none that we want to trade. He has had a lot more work to do than I have. He’s trying to rebuild an entire team.”

Rivers signed a new deal worth more than $50MM over five years with the Clippers this past summer. Here’s more from the Pacific Division:

Danny Granger says he considered retirement after undergoing knee surgery when he was with the Pacers in 2013, according to Paul Coro of the Arizona Republic. He’s never been the same since missing all but five games of the 2012/13 season, but the Suns trainers have told him “it can be fixed,” as Coro details. The 31-year-old with a player option of more than $2.17MM for next season explored options to buy his way off the Suns and join a contender shortly after the deadline-day trade that sent him from Miami to Phoenix, but he decided against it, Coro writes.
Granger added that he wants to get “extremely healthy” before playing again, and while Suns coach Jeff Hornacek wouldn’t rule out his return before season’s end, as Coro relays in the same piece, the chances don’t appear overwhelmingly strong. “As we go on, if we’re still in the race, yeah, why not get a veteran guy like that in there?” Hornacek said. “If somehow we’re out of it, then maybe it makes more sense to play the young guys. Our thoughts right now are we’re still in the playoff hunt and we’re still going to go after it. If he can give us something toward the end there, maybe that happens.”
Vlade Divac turned down other opportunities to work in NBA front offices before he joined the Kings as vice president of basketball and franchise operations last week, as he tells USA Today’s Sam Amick.

Northwest Notes: Malone, Wiggins, Afflalo, KD

March 9th, 2015 at 9:41pm CST by Charlie Adams

Former Kings coach Michael Malone will be traveling with the Wolves during their next two games, notes Jerry Zgoda of the Star Tribune (on Twitter). This will mark at least the third time this season that Malone has spent time with Minnesota, but Flip Saunders described his presence as merely a “professional courtesy,” according to Zgoda. We’ll round up the latest on the Wolves and the Northwest Division below:

There are those around the league who feel that the Canadian-born Andrew Wiggins might one day join the Raptors, according to Ryan Wolstat of the Toronto Sun (via Twitter). Of course, the Wolves have control of the Kansas product until at least 2019, and likely beyond, but Toronto GM Masai Ujiri still hinted at interest in eventually luring Wiggins away from Minnesota, as Eric Koreen of the National Post relays (on Twitter).
Arron Afflalo doesn’t think Brian Shaw can be blamed for all of the problems that the Nuggets found themselves with this season, as the now-Blazer said in an interview with ESPN’s Jim Rome (link via ForwardCenter). “I’m the type of person who feels like everybody should look in the mirror first and hold their own in terms of responsibilities,” said Afflalo. “Obviously Coach Shaw had some responsibilities, but us as players, we have to find a way to connect with each other. It wasn’t all his fault.”
In a piece for DailyThunder.com, ESPN’s Royce Young insists there’s no chance the Thunder trade Kevin Durant next season in spite of Russell Westbrook‘s recent dominance and rumors that Durant might walk from OKC in the summer of 2016.

Western Notes: Rondo, Neal, Lakers

March 9th, 2015 at 6:57pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Rajon Rondo is willing to return to Mavs but probably will not get a contract offer he expects from the club heading into unrestricted free agency, Tim MacMahon of ESPNDallas.com tweets. In fact, McMahon doubts the Mavs will come close to his asking price. Rondo said recently he would consider re-signing with Dallas despite a verbal altercation with coach Rick Carlisle late last month that led to a one-game suspension. Rondo will be one of the biggest names on the free-agent market this summer but he hasn’t improved his stock since he was traded by the Celtics in December. Rondo has struggled running Carlisle’s offense, averaging 9.4 points and 6.2 assists, compared to his career averages of 10.9 PPG and 8.4 APG. He’s also shooting 41.5% from the field, well below his career average of 46.9%.

In other news around the Western Conference:

The Timberwolves are interested in re-signing Gary Neal thanks to his strong play and veteran leadership, according to Alex Kennedy of BasketballInsiders.com. Neal, who becomes an unrestricted free agent this summer after making $3.25MM this season, was acquired from the Hornets at the trade deadline. He has averaged 18.8 points over the last four games and coach Flip Saunders said that Neal has been a good influence on his young players, Kennedy adds.
Julius Randle has been cleared to begin non-contact basketball activities but Lakers coach Byron Scott reiterated the rookie forward will not return this season, Eric Pincus of the Los Angeles Times reports. The lottery pick broke his right leg on opening night and also had a surgical procedure on his right foot in January. “This is all in preparation for getting him ready for summer league,” Scott said to Los Angeles beat reporters.
Danny Granger has been impressed by the Suns trainers and their ability to manage his knee issues, according to Paul Coro of the Arizona Republic (Twitter link). Those same trainers helped Grant Hill extend his career and Granger, who has a player option of approximately $2.17MM on his contract for next season, could take that into consideration when deciding whether to exercise that option. He has not appeared in a game with Phoenix since the Heat dealt him at the trade deadline.
Kyle Anderson was recalled by the Spurs from their D-League affiliate in Austin on Monday, the team announced. Anderson has bounced between the two leagues in his rookie season, appearing in 27 games with San Antonio this season and 19 games in Austin, where he averaged 22.2 points, 9.1 rebounds and 4.9 assists. Anderson provides some depth at the wing positions, though the Spurs do not have any reported injuries.

Western Rumors: Rondo, Knight, Neal

March 9th, 2015 at 10:59am CST by Chuck Myron

Rajon Rondo considers it an “honor and a compliment” that Kobe Bryant is trying to recruit him to the Lakers, but the point guard said Sunday that his focus is on the present day with the Mavericks, notes Baxter Holmes of ESPNLosAngeles.com. Rondo on Sunday didn’t deny interest in playing for the Lakers, Holmes adds in a separate piece, but Bryant downplayed the significance of his conversations with Rondo on Sunday when the Lakers star chatted with Mark Medina of the Los Angeles Daily News. There’s more on the Mavs’ most significant in-season acquisition amid the latest from around the West:

The Celtics had “serious doubts” about whether Rondo was worth the max before trading him in December, and that was one of the reasons Boston pulled off the swap, sources told Holmes for the second of his two pieces linked above. That echoes a recent dispatch from Steve Kyler of Basketball Insiders, who heard that it’s unlikely the Mavs point guard receives a full max deal in free agency this summer.
Several GMs who spoke with Michael Scotto of SheridanHoops believe Brandon Knight is worth $12MM a year. The Suns traded for Knight, a restricted free agent at season’s end, at last month’s deadline.
Gary Neal was reportedly angling for a buyout from the Timberwolves last month, but he said this weekend that he’d love to stay with Minnesota, observes Sid Hartman of the Star Tribune. Wolves coach/executive Flip Saunders hinted at interest in a long-term future with the guard whose deal expires this summer, as Hartman also relays. “A lot of people questioned whether we were going to keep him, but I said from the beginning he was a guy that we traded for that we liked,” Saunders said. “We wanted him to come in and we were hoping it could be a long-term-type situation, but we’ll wait and see.”