Kevin Love Unsure About Future With Wolves
12:29pm: In a follow-up tweet, Wojnarowski says it's clear that Love feels "deeply connected" to the T-Wolves' fanbase, loves Minnesota as a sports town, and badly wants to win a championship there. As Wojnarowski's original column suggested, however, it seems that Love isn't sure whether Wolves management is as committed to him long-term.
WEDNESDAY, 11:58am: Love spoke to the media today to clarify some of the comments he made to Wojnarowski. Here's a recap of what he said, according to Jerry Zgoda of the Star Tribune (all links go to Twitter):
- While he meant everything he said, Love added that he also said many positive things about the Timberwolves that weren't included in the piece.
- Love has spoken to Rick Adelman and David Kahn about his comments, and plans to speak to Glen Taylor as well.
- Love didn't intend to alienate the team or T-Wolves fans with his comments.
- Love would "love to" end his career with the Timberwolves.
TUESDAY, 2:44pm: Adrian Wojnarowski's latest piece at Yahoo! Sports features plenty of discussion with Kevin Love about his current contract, his future with the Timberwolves, and the team's roster decisions. The story includes plenty of eyebrow-raising quotes from Love, so let's dive right in and check out a few of the highlights from the All-Star forward….
On the T-Wolves' perception of him, and the team's decision not to offer him a five-year contract extension:
"I don't know who labels people stars, but even [Timberwolves owner] Glen Taylor said: I don't think Kevin Love is a star, because he hasn't led us to the playoffs. I mean, it's not like I had much support out there…. That's a tough pill to swallow."
On questions about whether his broken hand happened in the way he described:
"Even people in my own organization were asking if it was a legitimate injury, people calling my honesty and integrity into question. And that's what really hurt me."
On the T-Wolves' frequent roster changes:
"You walk into the locker room every year, and it's completely turned over. There's new guys everywhere. And then it happens again and again. You start to wonder: Is there really a plan here? Is there really any kind of a… plan?"
On his future:
"I have a very, very good memory, and I always remember the people who have done right by me, and the people who have done wrong by me. It will be embedded in my brain, and something I won't forget about. There's no telling what will happen. I would love to compete for a championship in Minnesota, but….
"I haven't been in the playoffs yet. I'm looking at my contract in the eye of two years from now, and if I haven't been to the playoffs – or it's been one playoff berth – well, it's going to be tough to say, 'Oh well, I'm going to stay here and continue to rebuild.'"
On Minnesota's decision to trade Al Jefferson after Love's second season:
"We should've at least tried [making it work with Jefferson], especially with way things were going. I was beginning to figure things out in my second season. Everybody knew what Al was capable of, and is still capable of. It was definitely worth the risk of seeing what would happen. If it didn't work, then go another way. But we never tried it."
On how feeling slighted by members of the Wolves' organization has fueled him:
"That's the crazy thing about this: There's this whole [expletive]-up, cynical thing going on in my head, where I love people telling me what I can't do, telling me this what you're going to be, this is your ceiling. Just everybody projecting for me. I'm not breaking any bounds or barriers saying this, but I think all kids – white, black, purple, whatever color – in basketball should never put a limit on themselves. I've had plenty of people tell me who I was going to be, and I feel like, for the time being, I've exceeded that."
Northwest Notes: Love, Lindsey, Blazers, Lawson
The most significant news coming out of the Northwest today was Kevin Love's criticism of the Wolves, and there's plenty of reaction to that along with other notes from the division.
- Matt Moore of CBSSports.com surmises that Wolves GM David Kahn is at the center of Love's frustration with the franchise, and believes owner Glen Taylor may be forced to choose between the two at some point.
- Taylor remains a fan of Kahn, tweets Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN, who points out the team holds an option on Kahn's contract for next season.
- The timing of Love's comments could have been much better for a team on the verge of creating excitement in Minnesota for the first time in a while, opines Tom Powers of the St. Paul Pioneer Press.
- Jim Souhan of the Star Tribune agrees with Love's remarks, based on what he's heard from others inside the Wolves organization, and believes that if Love departs in the summer of 2015, it will represent the most significant mistake of Kahn's tenure.
- New Jazz GM Dennis Lindsey is slowly implementing some of the principles he learned while working with the Spurs, but plenty of similarities already existed between the two franchises, as Bill Oram of The Salt Lake Tribune examines.
- Blazers GM Neil Olshey hinted at a move around the trade deadline that would help the team's rebounding, but The Oregonian's Jason Quick doesn't think the Blazers have enough assets for a swap, believing the team must instead look to the draft and free agency (Twitter links).
- Jim Cavan of The New York Times examines how Jrue Holiday, who got a four-year, $41MM extension from the Sixers before the season, has outplayed fellow point guard Ty Lawson, who's fresh off a four-year, $48MM extension from the Nuggets.
Odds & Ends: Williams, T’Wolves, Mirotic, Gasol
On this date in 1995, the (Vancouver) Grizzlies lost to the Raptors 93-81 in the first ever meeting between Canadian NBA franchises. That Grizzlies squad went 15-67 on the year and finished 14-68 in their sophomore campaign. Today, they play 2,500 miles away from Vancouver and are lightyears ahead of where they once were as they boast the third-best record in the Western Conference. Here's more from around the Association..
- T'Wolves forward Derrick Williams says that president David Kahn hasn't mentioned talk of a Pau Gasol trade to him, tweets Jerry Zgoda of the Star Tribune. "I don’t think we necessarily need to talk like that. Myself and [Nikola Pekovic] are big part of the team," said Williams.
- The Bulls should make Nikola Mirotic untouchable as one NBA front office source says that he is the best prospect still playing in Europe, writes Nick Gibson of Sheridan Hoops. The Hornets have so far rejected the idea of parting with 24-year-old Ryan Anderson and Gibson opines that Chicago should take the same stance on the Real Madrid star.
- Kyrie Irving will have a greater impact for the Cavs upon his return than Pau Gasol will for the Lakers, opines Chris Sheridan of Sheridan Hoops. GM Mitch Kupchak recently told Gasol's representatives that he will be forced to explore a trade if things do not improve for the forward and the team as a whole.
- The Lakers are playing about as well as they can given what they have available, writes Eric Pincus of the Los Angeles Times.
Odds & Ends: D-League, Odom, World Peace
- Lamar Odom is starting to get in shape and is displaying flashes of his old Sixth Man of the Year form, as Elliott Teaford of the Los Angeles Daily News observes.
- The Lakers' decision not to amnesty Metta World Peace before last season is paying off, writes Mark Medina of the Los Angeles Daily News, who adds that this summer's discovery and treatment of a nerve issue that had been bothering World Peace for four years has reinvigorated his play.
- Nuggets guard Ty Lawson admits he can do better than his slumping performance this season, and Benjamin Hochman of the Denver Post outlines what the point guard must do to return to the form that netted him a four-year, $48MM extension in October.
- Despite GM David Kahn's denial of Pau Gasol trade rumors, the Timberwolves "would love" to acquire the big man and play him at center, according to Bob Finnan of The News-Herald.
- Finnan also hears from sources within the ranks of media, agents, assistant coaches, GMs and scouts who tell him they are convinced LeBron James will opt out of his contract in 2014.
- Center Solomon Alabi is close to a deal with a Chinese club, tweets Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports. The 7'1" Alabi was let go by the Hornets at the end of training camp. He spent the last two seasons with the Raptors, but saw little playing time, averaging 1.5 points, 2.3 rebounds and 7.0 minutes a game over 26 total contests.
Odds & Ends: Cavs, Bargnani, Green, Wolves
Now is not the right time for the Raptors to trade Andrea Bargnani, but it might be the right move to make anyway, writes Eric Koreen of the Toronto Star. The big man doesn't fit the culture that Dwane Casey is trying to instill in Toronto and moving him could help get the locker room back on track. The Raptors have spent years trying to make the team work around Bargnani and Koreen argues that the relationship should have been working the other way around. Here's more from around the league..
- Keith Schlosser of Ridiculous Upside wonders if the Cavaliers made the right call in sending Jon Leuer to the D-League. The move should give Leuer plenty of playing time but the 4-16 Cavs can probably afford to give him significant minutes at the NBA level.
- The Celtics need more efficiency from Jeff Green this season, writes Rich Levine of CSNNE.com. The C's re-signed Green to a four-year, $36MM deal this summer, a surprising commitmentgiven his health concerns.
- The Timberwolves got the short end of the stick in last year's three-team Carmelo Anthony trade, tweets Mark Deeks of Sham Sports. The Wolves gave up Corey Brewer and Kosta Koufos and received Eddy Curry and Anthony Randolph in return. Minnesota also took on a great deal of salary in the trade.
- Ira Winderman of the Sun Sentinel doesn't think that the Heat need to make a trade to return to the form of last season.
Odds & Ends: Raptors, Blatche, Rubio, Kings
While the Raptors might not be willing to part with Andrea Bargnani just yet, Ken Berger of CBSSports.com notes that there is plenty of pressure on Bryan Colangelo to win, which might fuel him to pull the trigger on a deal. The Raptors have a lot that makes sense for the Lakers in a Pau Gasol deal beyond the forward too in Jose Calderon and Linas Kleiza. The question is whether Raptors believe Gasol will make them contenders and whether he’s worth taking on $19MM next season. Here’s more Friday night linkage..
- In this week’s mailbag, CSNNE’s Tommy Heinsohn said that Jason Terry knew that he would have a significant role with the Celtics when he signed on this summer.
- Nets forward Andray Blatche is clearly one of the best late offseason signings in the entire league, tweets Bill Ingram of HoopsWorld. The athletic big man signed a minimum salary deal with the Nets over the summer and earlier today he said that he would like to re-sign with Brooklyn.
- T’Wolves guard Ricky Rubio said that if he had to rate his happiness in Minnesota on a scale from 1-10, he’d give it a ten, tweets Jon Krawczynski of the Associated Press. Rubio will be extension-eligible in 2014 and can become a restricted free agent in 2015.
- Kings assistant coach Bobby Jackson wondered aloud if the club should thinking about breaking up their logjam of guards with Aaron Brooks, Isaiah Thomas, and Jimmer Fredette in the fold, writes Blake Ellington of Bleed Black and Purple
Latest On Pau Gasol
As we noted in our round-up of Timberwolves rumors earlier today, president David Kahn spoke to reporters at the team's shootaround today, something that doesn't happen often. Kahn wanted to clear the air on recent trade rumors, telling the media that he hasn't spoken to the Lakers about a deal since the summer, and that he was concerned about the players whose names had been involved — Kahn intends to speak to Derrick Williams and Nikola Pekovic, tweets Ray Richardson of the St. Paul Pioneer Press.
Whether Kahn's comments were made for the sake of P.R. or whether he was telling the truth, Gasol rumors involving Minnesota and other clubs continue to circulate. Here's the latest:
- The buzz around the NBA suggests that teams aren't eager to trade for Gasol and his $19MM annual salary, according to Sam Amico of FOX Sports Ohio (via Twitter). One team exec tells Amico that the Heat are the only team that would trade for Gasol, while Amico adds that clubs may be more willing to give something up for Andrea Bargnani. This strikes me as a little odd, since it's not clear what Miami could give up for Gasol beyond one of its Big Three, and as ineffective as Pau has been so far, Bargnani has been even worse for the Raptors.
- In his latest mailbag, Sam Smith of Bulls.com addresses a few questions on Gasol, writing that he thinks it's "inevitable" that the Lakers trade the big man.
- Following up on his report about Gasol drawing interest from the T-Wolves and Raptors, ESPN.com's Marc Stein discusses potential suitors for Pau on TrueHoop TV. According to Stein, the Lakers seem committed to making things work with the Spaniard, so they'll take their time assessing how the lineup looks when Steve Nash returns before making any decisions.
Wolves Rumors: Williams, Gasol, Roy, Pekovic
Although Ricky Rubio had been angling to make his return to the court for the Timberwolves tonight, the team has announced that he won't play against the Cavs (Twitter link). Still, even though Rubio's debut won't happen today, it seems it's getting close, which is good news for the T-Wolves. Here are a few more items out of Minnesota:
- Speaking to the media today, David Kahn said there was no truth to any trade rumors involving the Lakers and that he hasn't spoken to them since the summer (Twitter link).
Earlier updates:
- Rob Pelinka, Derrick Williams' agent, has "voiced his displeasure" about his client's lack of playing time, reports Wolfson. According to Wolfson, Pelinka hasn't requested a trade, but has asked about the likelihood of a deal, and was told the Wolves want to see Williams on the court with Rubio first, since the two worked well together last season.
- David Kahn has spoken to other general managers, but there's nothing serious in the works yet, says Wolfson. A team source tells ESPN 1500 that the Wolves are interested in Pau Gasol, but that a deal would likely have to include a third team.
- The T-Wolves are open to going into luxury-tax territory next season if it's necessary, according to Wolfson.
- The doctor who performed Brandon Roy's latest knee procedure would be surprised if the former Blazer retired, though it's been "loosely discussed."
- A team source hints to Wolfson that there's a "healthy internal debate" about whether the Wolves want to commit a big, long-term deal to Nikola Pekovic.
- Jerry Zgoda of the Star Tribune explores the Pau rumors, and writes that the T-Wolves figure to be interested in Gasol right up until he's traded somewhere. Zgoda also outlines a few reasons why Minnesota would have interest in acquiring the Spaniard.
Raptors, Wolves Interested In Pau Gasol
10:51pm: The report connecting Gasol and the Timberwolves is news to the T-Wolves, tweets Charley Walters of the St. Paul Pioneer Press.
8:07am: The Raptors and Timberwolves recently attempted to initiate trade discussions with the Lakers about Pau Gasol, but Lakers GM Mitch Kupchak has convinced the club to continue to take a pass on offers until Steve Nash returns, as Marc Stein and Ramona Shelburne report for ESPNLosAngeles.com.
Andrea Bargnani, Jose Calderon and Linas Kleiza are among those the Raptors are talking about including in a Gasol deal, according to Stein and Shelburne. Ken Berger of CBSSports.com, who's told by rival executives that the Raptors are the most likely destination for Gasol, hears that Raptors GM Bryan Colangelo is currently unwilling to include Bargnani in a deal. That could change, however, if Colangelo starts to feel pressure to win now.
It's an "open secret" that Wolves GM David Kahn has been after Gasol since last season in attempts to put together a core of Kevin Love and Spaniards Gasol and Ricky Rubio, Stein and Shelburne write. Kahn's trade offers have been built around Derrick Williams and Nikola Pekovic, packages that continually meet with rejection from the Lakers.
Hornets power forward Ryan Anderson, reportedly L.A.'s No. 1 target in a Gasol deal, is a "virtual untouchable" as far as New Orleans is concerned, according to the ESPNLosAngeles.com story. The Hawks, Rockets and Nuggets have no interest in obtaining Gasol, reports Chris Broussard of ESPN.com.
The 32-year-old Gasol is making $19MM this year and is due $19.286MM next season in the final year of his deal. He's averaging 12.6 points per game on 42% shooting, both career lows, and has missed the last two games because of tendinitis in both knees.
Western Notes: Evans, Wolves, Williams, Davis
There's only one game on the Western Conference schedule tonight, so as we wait for the Mavericks and Suns to tip off in Phoenix, let's round up a few notes out of the West….
- Tyreke Evans' play of late shows why he could either be an integral part of the Kings' rebuild or a valuable trade chip later in the season, writes Scott Howard-Cooper of NBA.com.
- The Timberwolves are finding success with bringing in international players from overseas, as an Associated Press report details (link via NBA.com). "To me, it's just a natural extension of scouting," said team president David Kahn. "Just as you can't afford to be negligent about the domestic side, you can't afford to not be on top of matters internationally."
- Andrew Perna of RealGM.com spoke to Derrick Williams about trying to live up to the expectations of being a second overall pick.
- In an Insider-only piece, ESPN.com's John Hollinger takes a look at some long-term deals signed this summer that have been money well spent so far. Ryan Anderson, Omer Asik, and Alexey Shved are among the names on Hollinger's list.
- Anthony Davis tells Alex Kennedy of HoopsWorld that he's looking forward to a bright long-term future with the Hornets.