Minnesota Timberwolves Rumors | Hoops Rumors

And-Ones: Barea, Bledsoe, Bonner, Beasley

August 25th, 2014 at 2:42pm CST by Chuck Myron

The Cavs are probably better off for having lost LeBron James in 2010 than they would be if he had never gone to Miami since it gave them the chance to accumulate assets through rebuilding, SB Nation’s Tom Ziller argues. That helps explain why the Sixers, one of the other teams in the Kevin Love deal, are so aggressively stripping their roster, Ziller suggests. Still, Cleveland was remarkably lucky in the lottery, nabbing three No. 1 overall picks in four years, so it’s tough to say that another team can easily mimic the path of the Cavs. Here’s more from around the league:

The only players on the Wolves who are off-limits for a trade are the ones who just came aboard in the Love deal, as Jerry Zgoda of the Star Tribune writes within a chat with readers. J.J. Barea remains on the block after the Wolves failed to convince the Sixers to take him on in the Love trade, Zgoda also writes.
The Wolves like Eric Bledsoe quite a bit, but it’s tough to see a scenario in which they’d sign-and-trade for the Suns restricted free agent, tweets Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN Twin Cities. Phoenix reportedly made a last-ditch effort at a Bledsoe-for-Love swap, but Minnesota rejected that idea.
Backcourt mate Goran Dragic is hopeful that Bledsoe will be back with the Suns next season, as he tells Erildas Budraitis of RealGM.
Matt Bonner says there were several teams that inquired about him during his free agency this summer, but he let all of them know that he was waiting to see about a deal with the Spurs first, as he tells Dan McCarney of the San Antonio Express-News. Bonner re-signed with the Spurs last month to a one-year deal for the minimum.
The Heat let Michael Beasley know they wouldn’t rule out re-signing him, but that’s standard practice for the team, which hasn’t made any offer to the forward, according to Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald. The Heat isn’t high on bringing him back for several reasons, Jackson hears.

Western Notes: Bennett, Jazz, Bost, Kobe

August 25th, 2014 at 12:00pm CST by Chuck Myron

No one is ever going to mistake the Twin Cities for Los Angeles or Miami, but Wolves executive/coach Flip Saunders believes geography is overrated when it comes to attracting free agents, as Michael Rand of the Star Tribune notes.

“Our NBA has become, instead of destination city, it’s become destination players,” Saunders said. “Around our league it seems players gravitate toward other players to play with. We feel with some of the players that we have that we’re going to have the ability to get players to gravitate towards our organization because of that.”

It remains to be seen whether Andrew Wiggins and fellow No. 1 overall pick Anthony Bennett will develop into the sorts of players that others will want to team with, but whether one or both of them does could tell the tale of the Kevin Love trade for the Wolves, Rand argues. There’s more on the Wolves amid the latest from the Western Conference:

Minnesota’s 2015/16 team option on Bennett’s contract is a “lock” to be exercised, as Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN Twin Cities writes (Twitter links), though the Wolves have yet to make their final decision, one that’s due at the end of October.
Jazz GM Dennis Lindsey says he plans to keep one or two roster spots open for competition among the players the team invites to camp, as Aaron Falk of The Salt Lake Tribune observes. That suggests the team won’t add to its total of 13 players on fully guaranteed deals and is a positive development for Dee Bost, Jack Cooley and Kevin Murphy, the trio of players with whom the team has pacts that aren’t fully guaranteed. Still, a source tells Falk that Bost, who reportedly has a partial guarantee of $65K, still faces long odds to stick with the team.
The Lakers aren’t about to trade franchise icon Kobe Bryant, but even if they wanted to, one NBA GM tells Chris Ballard of SI.com that they’d meet a dead end, deeming Bryant’s trade value as “zero,” based on his bloated two-year, $48.5MM extension.

And-Ones: Love, Wolves, Ayon

August 24th, 2014 at 10:06pm CST by Zachary Links

Trading Kevin Love may have been an inevitability, but Wolves General Manager Milt Newton is glad that the team didn’t jump at the first offer they got, writes Jon Krawczynski of The Associated Press. “We told all the teams from Day 1, we’re happy to coach him for this last year,” Newton said. “They realized we weren’t going to give him away. What that did was made teams put their best foot forward to start with and see if it could get better from there.” More from around the NBA..

Gustavo Ayon previously hinted that he had his eye on an NBA deal, but it doesn’t sound like that’s in the cards, at least so far. The big man told Basket4US (translation courtesy of HoopsHype) that he only has an offer from China at the moment. Late last week he told another Spanish outlet, Récord, that he had no NBA offers.
There are still a few notable players left on the free agent market, and Eric Pincus of Basketball Insiders runs down the remaining salary cap room for each franchise.
Ojars Silins had his contract with Grissin Bon Reggio Emilia of the Euroleague extended until June 2015, reports Emiliano Carchia of Sportando. Silins went undrafted this year despite being projected as a possible second round pick. This extension will still allow Silins to try and catch on with an NBA team next summer.

Eddie Scarito contributed to this post.

Wolves Notes: Rubio, Young, Saunders

August 24th, 2014 at 2:07pm CST by Eddie Scarito

In an interview with Enea Trapani of Sportando, Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN Twin Cities discussed the impact the Love trade would have on Ricky Rubio. Wolfson said, “Rubio is on notice. The Wolves are trying to sign him to an extension, and so far his agent, Dan Fegan, is balking at the idea of a four-year, $43MM deal. That’s plenty for a player of Rubio’s caliber. It’s a lot more than Atlanta point guard Jeff Teague makes — maybe a better player — and is what Golden State All-Star guard Stephen Curry makes. But Fegan is seeking the five-year max. That’s not happening. The situation is pointing toward Rubio being a restricted free agent next summer. In other words, the 2014/2015 season is huge for Rubio. He should improve his shooting under Flip and we know he has unbelievable athletes to cut to the hoop and catch alley-oop passes.“

Here’s more out of Minnesota:

With the trade of Thaddeus Young, there are no players left from the Sixers‘ last playoff team, writes Bob Ford of the Philadelphia Inquirer. Young isn’t heading into an ideal situation in Minnesota, notes Ford, with both Andrew Wiggins and Anthony Bennett figuring to cut into his minutes.
Timberwolves GM Milt Newton believes that Young’s production will improve in Minnesota, tweets Jon Krawczysnki of the Associated Press. Newton said, “I think he will be better statistically than he’s ever been based on all the options he will have in the offense.”
Timberwolves President and coach Flip Saunders relayed his thoughts on the franchise’s new acquisitions in an interview with NBA.com (video link).

Sixers Likely To Keep Shved, Mbah a Moute

August 24th, 2014 at 8:56am CST by Eddie Scarito

The Sixers shipped away Thaddeus Young as their contribution to the three-way trade that sent Kevin Love to the Cavaliers on Saturday. In return for Young, who was arguably the franchise’s best player, Philadelphia received Alexey Shved, Luc Mbah a Moute, and the Heat’s top-10 protected 2015 first-round pick. While Sixers GM Sam Hinkie‘s primary motivation to make the deal was to acquire an additional first-round pick, writes Tom Moore of Calkins Media, Philadelphia is likely to retain both Shved and Mbah a Moute for the 2014/15 season, rather than try to buy out their contracts. Philadelphia is carrying only seven players on fully guaranteed contracts, fewest in the league.

Hinkie was unable to get a first-rounder in the trade-deadline deals involving Evan Turner and Spencer Hawes this past February, but now the Sixers are on course to have a pair of first-rounders for the third consecutive draft, notes Moore. By trading away Young, the Sixers appear lottery bound once again, and if the Heat don’t free fall in the standings in the wake of LeBron James‘ departure, then Philadelphia looks to be in line to add two more significant pieces in next year’s NBA Draft.

As for the players they acquired, Shved is scheduled to make $3.2MM next season, and Moore believes that the Sixers will try to determine if the 6’6″, third-year player from Russia could help beyond the coming season as the franchise continues its rebuilding process. Shved’s career numbers are 6.5 PPG, 1.8 RPG, and 2.5 APG. He figures to compete for playing time off the bench with Casper Ware and Elliot Williams.

Mbah a Moute is on the books for a salary of $4.4MM for the coming season, and while regarded as a good defender, the 6’8″, 27 year-old’s biggest value might be to continue as a mentor for Joel Embiid, a fellow native of Cameroon, and the Sixers’ first-round draft choice this year. Mbah a Moute’s career numbers are 6.3 PPG and 4.9 RPG.

And-Ones: Gilbert, Nowitzki, Parsons

August 23rd, 2014 at 10:46pm CST by Cray Allred

Team USA’s roster is set, with every frontcourt player surviving the final cut. Brian Mahoney of The Associated Press reports on the decision-making that led to the big roster for international competition. Here’s more from around the league:

Cavs owner Dan Gilbert tweeted well wishes to Anthony Bennett and Andrew Wiggins, both of whom Cleveland dealt to the Wolves to acquire Kevin Love. “Wishing [Bennett and Wiggins] nothing but the best this season and beyond,” read Gilbert’s tweet. “Two class acts who both have bright futures in our league.”
In an interview on 105.3 FM The Fan, Mavs owner Mark Cuban said that Dirk Nowitzki re-signed at a discount rate without the assurance that Dallas would net any particular free agent with the savings (transcription via The Dallas Morning News). “Dirk is the man. It wasn’t that type of conversation at all,” said Cuban. “Dirk and I sit and talk about all of this stuff. He knows the strategy, what we’re trying to do, why we’re doing it. He realizes that if he [hadn’t taken a discount] the chances of him being in a championship position weren’t nearly as good.”
Cuban also said he isn’t concerned about Chandler Parsons‘ increasingly high-profile lifestyle after signing his huge contract. “Every guy who is good goes through that though because you go off your rookie contract and if you’re good, you’re getting paid,” said the Mavs owner. “I think it’s rare to find a guy who takes the money and is out. I think in Chandler’s case in talking to him, he wants to prove that he’s worth it. He’s working his butt off to do it. You never know until you know. It’s not like he was only good for one or two years, he was good for three years.”

Wolves Notes: Trade Reactions

August 23rd, 2014 at 9:07pm CST by Cray Allred

Ben Golliver of SI.com grades out the Kevin Love blockbuster trade, giving the Wolves a lower score than either the Cavs or Sixers. Meanwhile, Ryan Wolstat of the Toronto Sun sees Minnesota as the clear victor of the trade, and Philadelphia the biggest loser. Plenty more will be written about the trade as the teams and players involved meet, exceed, or fall short of shifting expectations. Here’s a roundup of some early reactions:

At the press conference addressing the trade (video link), Wolves president of basketball ops Flip Saunders said that he was prepared to enter the season without trading away Love if he hadn’t received an offer that would significantly benefit Minnesota.
Saunders added that he believes the Wolves now have an exciting identity with the reconstructed roster. “We’ve all of a sudden become athletic, exciting and fast, instead of being maybe a little bit slower and more plodding,” said Saunders. Trade acquisition Andrew Wiggins pairs with fellow lottery pick Zach LaVine as two of the most elite athletes to be drafted in recent years.
GM Milt Newton summed up how Minnesota was able to acquire such a large package for Love to Jon Krawczynski of The Associated Press (Twitter link). “They realized we weren’t going to give him away,” said Newton.
J.A. Adande of ESPN.com writes that the Wolves have escaped the dregs of NBA mediocrity with the Love deal, giving themselves a chance to build a stronger future than they might have had with Love in town.
Since the Wolves aren’t likely to make the playoffs with Thaddeus Young replacing Love in the starting lineup this season, Jim Souhan of the Star Tribune thinks it was a mistake for Saunders to send the 2015 first-round draft pick they could have netted from the Cavs to the Sixers. Minnesota will likely still be rebuilding next season, and would be better served acquiring more young talent, surmises Souhan.

And-Ones: Wiggins, Shved, Mbah a Moute

August 23rd, 2014 at 4:50pm CST by Charlie Adams

Now that Andrew Wiggins is in Minnesota, Scott Howard-Cooper of NBA.com thinks there’s a decent shot the Kansas product ends up winning Rookie of the Year. Howard-Cooper didn’t like Wiggins’ chances to take in the award as a member of the stacked Cavs but sees him as one of the five most likely candidates as a result of his move to Minnesota. Here’s more from around the NBA:

It’s unlikely that the Sixers buy out the recently acquired contracts of Alexey Shved and Luc Mbah a Moute, a source tells Tom Moore of Calkins Media (Twitter links). The duo was shipped to Philly in the Kevin Love deal.
Acquiring Wiggins is an important step in the right direction, but Bradford Doolittle of ESPN.com identifies the needs he thinks the Wolves should address if they want to become true title contenders one day (Insider link).
The Wolves are close to bringing a Canadian player into training camp, says Ryan Wolstat of the Toronto Sun (on Twitter), but he doesn’t specifically identify who that player is. Brady Heslip, a Canadian out of Baylor, played on Minnesota’s Summer League squad and could be the player being referenced, but that’s just my own speculation.
Chris Andersen is disappointed that LeBron James isn’t returning to the Heat, but the four-time MVP’s decision to leave Miami didn’t affect Andersen’s plans to return to South Beach, as he explains to Ira Winderman of the Sun Sentinel.

Wolves Notes: Love, Cavs, Bennett, Young

August 23rd, 2014 at 2:50pm CST by Charlie Adams

The “Summer of Love” has finally concluded, with Kevin Love officially being shipped to the Cavs after months of rumors and speculation. Plenty of new details and strong reactions to the blockbuster deal have emerged, so let’s have a look at the latest on the Wolves..

Prior to the two teams reaching an agreement, the Wolves gave Cavs owner Dan Gilbert permission to meet with Love during Summer League play, reveals Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports (on Twitter).
The Wolves regularly fielded calls from the Cavs front office, who frequently inquired about the availability of Love, writes Brian Windhorst of ESPN.com. In all, more than 12 teams made an offer for the former Wolves All-Star, according to Windhorst.
Flip Saunders reiterated in a press conference that it was a difficult decision to move Love, but explained that any player can be traded if the return has a net benefit on either the short- or long-term quality of the team (video link).
Early reports suggested Anthony Bennett would be heading to the Sixers in the Love deal, but Jerry Zgoda of the Star Tribune dismisses such a scenario would’ve occured, saying Saunders wouldn’t have agreed to move Bennett in exchange for Thaddeus Young (video link).
Chip Scoggins of the Star Tribune provides an overview of Love’s tenure in Minnesota and breaks down the various character issues that the big man has been accused of carrying.
It could be the beginning of a new era in Minnesota, opines Jesse Blancarte of Basketball Insiders, who thinks that the young and athletic core of the Timberwolves should provide for exciting basketball in upcoming seasons.

Cavs Officially Acquire Kevin Love

August 23rd, 2014 at 1:07pm CST by Chuck Myron

The Cavaliers have officially acquired Kevin Love in a three-team deal that’s the blockbuster trade of the summer, the Wolves announced. The Wolves receive Andrew Wiggins and Anthony Bennett from Cleveland and Thaddeus Young from the Sixers as part of the deal, while Philadelphia comes away with Luc Mbah a Moute and Alexey Shved from Minnesota and the Heat’s 2015 first-round pick from Cleveland. The agreement has reportedly been in place for weeks, but the inclusion of Wiggins kept it from becoming official until today. That’s because Wiggins, this year’s No. 1 overall draft pick, couldn’t be traded within 30 days after the Cavs signed him to his rookie scale contract on July 24th.

Love is the only asset going Cleveland’s way in the deal, but the Second-Team All-NBA power forward is the centerpiece of the trade. He joins LeBron James as the marquee additions for Cleveland in a landmark offseason, one that’s left them the favorites to win the Eastern Conference championship after four straight seasons outside the playoffs. Love is expected to opt out of his contract next summer after making more than $15.7MM this season, but the Cavs will have his Bird Rights and are heavy favorites to re-sign him, just as they are with James, who also possesses a player option for 2015/16. Love’s ability to hit free agency in 2015 helped precipitate the trade, as he’s made it clear that he had no intention of staying with Minnesota beyond the coming season.

The Warriors, Bulls, Celtics, Nuggets, Lakers, Kings, Knicks, Rockets, Wizards and Suns have all been linked to Love in various reports at one point or another since mid-May, when the Wolves ramped up their efforts to trade him. It appeared even before James decided to sign with Cleveland that Love would like to join the Cavs if it meant he could play with James, and James reportedly reached out to Love to reciprocate his interest in becoming teammates. The Warriors appeared to come closest to beating out Cleveland for Love, but Golden State’s unwillingness to include Klay Thompson left the sides at a stalemate, particularly once the Cavs relented to Minnesota’s insistence that Wiggins be part of any deal that would ship Love to Cleveland.

Still, others made strong pushes, including the Celtics, particularly in the wake of Love’s weekend visit to Boston around the beginning of June, but the Wolves showed disinterest in dealing with the C’s. The Suns reportedly made a call Friday to see if Minnesota would send Love their way in a sign-and-trade arrangement involving Eric Bledsoe, but the Wolves were unmoved.

Wiggins is the marquee attraction for Minnesota, and he joins Chris Webber as the only No. 1 overall picks since the merger to change teams before playing a single regular season game for the franchises that drafted them. Wiggins had a somewhat disappointing season at Kansas after having been the consensus favorite a year ago to become the top pick, creating doubt that lingered almost until the draft began about whether he, fellow Jayhawk Joel Embiid, or Jabari Parker would go No. 1 overall. Still, Wiggins possesses superstar potential, some of which he put on display in the summer league last month, when he showed off his athleticism as part of Cleveland’s squad.

There were conflicting reports about whether Bennett would join Wiggins in heading to Minnesota or be rerouted to Philadelphia, but it became clear on Thursday that Bennett would become a Timberwolf. Bennett’s performance as a rookie was thoroughly underwhelming and he’ll have a tough time living up to having been the No. 1 overall pick in 2013. Still, there’s hope that he can become a key component on a winning team after having been widely projected as a mid-lottery selection before the Cavs surprisingly took him with the top pick.

The Wolves have reportedly been enamored with Young for a while, and they’ll have a chance to plug him into the starting lineup as Love’s replacement at power forward for at least one season. Young, like Love, can opt out of his contract and become a free agent next summer, but he probably wouldn’t draw nearly as many suitors, and he’s never expressed unwillingness to play in Minnesota. Young will make more than $9.4MM this season, and if he opts in, he’ll receive almost $10MM in 2015/16.

The Sixers, having shed other well-paid veterans in an aggressive rebuilding effort over the past 15 months or so, had reportedly sought a future first-round pick for Young in advance of the trade deadline in February, so this deal facilitates that apparent desire. The Heat’s 2015 first-round pick that’s coming from the Cavs is protected for the top 10 picks the next two years, but it would become unprotected for 2017, according to RealGM. In a coincidental twist, the Heat originally traded that pick to Cleveland in the sign-and-trade that brought LeBron to Miami in 2010.

Philadelphia also reaps Mbah a Moute, who’s already close with Embiid, whom the Sixers drafted third overall in June. Mbah a Moute has mentored Embiid, a fellow native of Cameroon. Mbah a Moute is on the books at nearly $4.4MM for the upcoming season, but he, like Shved, who’ll make nearly $3.3MM, is on an expiring contract, ensuring the Sixers won’t be stuck with their salaries past next summer. That wouldn’t have been the case with Young, who might have opted in.

The Wolves had sought to unload Mbah a Moute, Shved, as well as J.J. Barea, all of whom are on fairly player-friendly deals. Minnesota can create a trade exception worth $4,644,503 as part of the transaction, with the figure equivalent to the difference between Love’s salary and the combined salaries of Wiggins and Bennett. The trade appears to leave the Wolves with a haul that’s about as impressive as possible for a team that’s surrendering the only established superstar in the deal, and most Hoops Rumors readers gave the team high marks for the package it’s receiving.

The move drops Cleveland’s roster count by one, to 17, while the Sixers net one more player to reach a total of 15. Still, Philadelphia is carrying only seven players on fully guaranteed contracts, fewer than every other team in the league. Minnesota remains at 15 players, all of whom have fully guaranteed deals, meaning the Wolves are no closer to creating an opening for second-round pick Glenn Robinson III, as they’ve hoped to do, or finding a spot for Dante Cunningham, with whom talks have picked up.

Photo courtesy USA Today Sports Images. Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports originally reported that Cleveland and Minnesota had an agreement in principle. Mark Perner of the Philadelphia Daily News wrote of the Sixers’ involvement in the swap and Jerry Zgoda of the Star Tribune nailed down the final structure of the trade. Wojnarowski also noted Minnesota’s interest in unloading Mbah a Moute, Shved and Barea. Ken Berger of CBSSports.com, Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN Twin Cities (Twitter links), Ryan Wolstat of the Toronto Sun (Twitter links), Dan Barreiro of KFAN Sports Radio (Twitter link) and Jon Krawczynski of The Associated Press (Twitter link) provided additional detail.