2018 Minnesota Timberwolves Off-Season Thread

Why wouldn't Toronto keep Leonard for all of next year? If he's healthy, they'll likely be a 1 or a 2 seed, and have a legitimate shot at the finals.

It depends on if he'll play for them or not. I agree with you they should if he plays. But I can see the scenario where they trade him ASAP to the lakers or whoever and get a lot for him.
 

It depends on if he'll play for them or not. I agree with you they should if he plays. But I can see the scenario where they trade him ASAP to the lakers or whoever and get a lot for him.

I would imagine Toronto would want something similar to SA and the Lakers weren’t willing to give up the young core for a player they are 90% likely to sign next year.


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I would imagine Toronto would want something similar to SA and the Lakers weren’t willing to give up the young core for a player they are 90% likely to sign next year.


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SA wasn't willing to trade him to anyone in the West supposedly they wouldn't even take the lakers calls. If Lebron wants him this year (doesn't want to waste 1 year of his career that doesn't have a lot of years left) they can get him.
 

It depends on if he'll play for them or not. I agree with you they should if he plays. But I can see the scenario where they trade him ASAP to the lakers or whoever and get a lot for him.

He can't be traded now, and they can fine him most if not all of his money if he doesn't play. They'll keep him and see how far they can go this year. Then he'll walk next summer and they'll have the cap space to rebuild or go after someone else.
 

He can't be traded now, and they can fine him most if not all of his money if he doesn't play. They'll keep him and see how far they can go this year. Then he'll walk next summer and they'll have the cap space to rebuild or go after someone else.

Yeah, it will be interesting to see what happens. Kawhi doesn't seem like missing out on money will bother him, knowing he can get paid big time next year but if he doesn't play that's almost 2 full seasons which you would think would lower his stock some? I'm just saying I can see a scenario where he's so butt hurt about not getting to pick his destination like all of the other big names in the NBA he just shuts down and pouts or throws a temper tantrum like a 3 y/o in target.

In the end none of this matters, no one in the East (well except maybe a healthy boston) has a chance of winning the finals and after this year he'll be free and can sign with the lakers making the west even stronger and the East even more irrelevant.
 


STrib: Wolves guard Jimmy Butler has hand surgery

The Timberwolves announced guard Jimmy Butler had minor surgery on his shooting hand this week, a procedure that should not sideline him for any length of time.

According to the Wolves, Butler “underwent a successful, elective right hand procedure on Tuesday, July 24, 2018. Butler has already returned to offseason activities.”

Butler, who missed 21 games last season with an injury to his right knee, averaged 22.2 points per game for the Timberwolves after arriving in a trade with Chicago. He helped lead the Wolves to their first postseason appearance since 2004. Butler can opt out of his contract and become a free agent after the upcoming season.

http://www.startribune.com/wolves-guard-jimmy-butler-has-hand-surgery/489261841/

Howl Wolves!!
 


Solid pick-up:

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Howl Wolves!!
 

per Sid:

Wolves contract

Timberwolves owner Glen Taylor knows the franchise is at a key moment as they try to re-sign Jimmy Butler and Karl-Anthony Towns.

While the team is coming off a competitive season and reached the playoffs for the first time in over a decade, the fate of those two stars remains a big question mark.

Taylor, who also owns the Star Tribune, broke down Butler’s situation.

“We made him a max offer so that he would have the [opportunity] to sign that,” Taylor said. “That was the most we could do. He said he was appreciative, but he wanted to wait until next year because he thought next year, as a free agent, he might have the opportunity to earn more money.”

There’s no doubt that typically if a star player was as close to unrestricted free agency as Butler is, the Wolves would consider trading him — as they did with Kevin Love in 2014. But they just traded two first-round draft picks, Zach LaVine and Kris Dunn, to the Bulls for Butler, and that means there’s almost no chance they would deal him.

“I think at this point we’re just going to concentrate on getting [Towns] signed and then just go forward and see what type of year we have,” Taylor said when asked about trading Butler. “And then wait until next year, and we’ll make our decision based upon where we’re at next year.”

Taylor added that the Wolves can offer Butler more money than any other team, but that might not be a motivating factor for Butler.

“You still want us to really improve as a team and we expect that he will be part of that help that we need [to achieve] a better record and to go into the playoffs further,” he said.

Money and chemistry

Taylor dismissed rumors that Butler and Towns are not getting along.

“They both want to win. They both want to improve,” Taylor said. “And they know that helping each other will only make each of them individually better. I’m not sure there’s any particular problem here. A lot of it is just based on a story that a Chicago reporter put out and as far as I know, the players have denied any knowledge of that article.”

A bigger concern for Taylor is whether or not keeping Andrew Wiggins, Butler and Towns is financially possible with the current NBA salary cap structure.

If Towns and Butler were to sign max contract extensions, Towns could earn somewhere around $32 million per season and Butler around $37 million.

That means for the 2019-2020 season, the Wolves could be spending north of $90 million on three players. Can the team afford that?

“That’s a good question. I think you know it’ll depend upon some other players that we have on our team, too,” Taylor said. “It’s going to be a stretch. We have Wiggins in there, too. We’d have three highly paid players that would use up most of the salary.”

http://www.startribune.com/twins-goal-of-making-playoffs-turns-into-rebuilding-plan/489821421/

Howl Wolves!!
 





Over/Under Predictions for NBA '18-'19 Season - ESPN

The Westgate Las Vegas SuperBook(the former Hilton) released its win totals on Sunday for the 2018-19 NBA season, two days after we published our real plus-minus (RPM) projections. As expected, the two measures are quite similar. More than half of the league's teams have a Vegas total within two games of their expected average wins total from RPM.


Minnesota Timberwolves

Westgate total: 44.5 wins
RPM projection: 49.6 wins

Minnesota's total was the most surprising to me. The Timberwolves won 47 games last season despite star Jimmy Butler sitting out 23 contests due to injury, and they bring back largely the same roster this season. So I think a similar outcome is a reasonable baseline. RPM likes Minnesota to do even better than that in part because of the departure of guard Jamal Crawford, whose minus-5.4 rating ranked among the league's bottom 10 players.


Utah Jazz

Westgate total: 48.5 wins
RPM projection: 53.4 wins

Utah's total is in line with last season's 48 wins, but there are a few reasons to believe the Jazz could beat that number. The first is potentially better health for center Rudy Gobert, who missed 26 games last season, during which Utah went 11-15. The other is the way the Jazz upgraded their roster at the trade deadline, turning Rodney Hood and Joe Johnson into longtime RPM standout Jae Crowder. Utah went 22-6 after the deadline. Keeping up that 64-win pace is not realistic, but winning 50-plus games certainly is.


http://insider.espn.com/chalk/insid...-real-plus-minus-including-los-angeles-lakers
 

The Athletic has an interview with Westgate Oddsmaker Jeff Sherman where he talks about setting those Over/Unders.

"Sherman: The whole goal is obviously to try and create equal action on the betting number that we put, just like anything else that we take.
So it’s not a predictor of how many wins they’re supposed to get. It’s based on what we think people’s perception is to get two-way volume on that number.
We’ve looked at things as far as what their wins were the last couple years, changes in personnel, strengths in relation to conference, things like that, just to try to arrive at what is going to shape people’s perception"


https://theathletic.com/460997/2018...-set-and-what-factored-into-bulls-over-under/
 



The Athletic has an interview with Westgate Oddsmaker Jeff Sherman where he talks about setting those Over/Unders.

"Sherman: The whole goal is obviously to try and create equal action on the betting number that we put, just like anything else that we take.
So it’s not a predictor of how many wins they’re supposed to get. It’s based on what we think people’s perception is to get two-way volume on that number.
We’ve looked at things as far as what their wins were the last couple years, changes in personnel, strengths in relation to conference, things like that, just to try to arrive at what is going to shape people’s perception"


https://theathletic.com/460997/2018...-set-and-what-factored-into-bulls-over-under/

Can't be a coincidence; is this "THE" Jeff Sherman? As in, the best sports writer that ever wrote in MSP? Coverage of MN sports has largely been in the toilet since he left. If that's him and he's writing for The Athletic, just one more good reason to subscribe.
 

Can't be a coincidence; is this "THE" Jeff Sherman? As in, the best sports writer that ever wrote in MSP? Coverage of MN sports has largely been in the toilet since he left. If that's him and he's writing for The Athletic, just one more good reason to subscribe.

Jeff Sherman, is the Race and Sports manager at the Westgate. He was the one being interviewed.
 

Can't be a coincidence; is this "THE" Jeff Sherman? As in, the best sports writer that ever wrote in MSP? Coverage of MN sports has largely been in the toilet since he left. If that's him and he's writing for The Athletic, just one more good reason to subscribe.

Uhhhh, I don’t think so. Ice nailed it, Sherman is being interviewed here, not the writer. Good blast from the past though! Sherman was the man, for sure.
 



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Howl Wolves!!
 


Yep, I'm surprised.


Shams Charania: Free agent Shabazz Muhammad has agreed to a deal with the Milwaukee Bucks, league sources tell Yahoo
 

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Howl Wolves!!
 

Manu Ginobili Retires

Manu Ginobili

Verified account @manuginobili

Today, with a wide range of feelings, I'm announcing my retirement from basketball. IMMENSE GRATITUDE to everyone (family, friends, teammates, coaches, staff, fans) involved in my life in the last 23 years. It's been a fabulous journey. Way beyond my wildest dreams.
 

Manu Ginobili

Verified account @manuginobili

Today, with a wide range of feelings, I'm announcing my retirement from basketball. IMMENSE GRATITUDE to everyone (family, friends, teammates, coaches, staff, fans) involved in my life in the last 23 years. It's been a fabulous journey. Way beyond my wildest dreams.

Top ten "cool" players of all-time imo. Cool as in Dr.J, Pistol Pete, World B Free, Daryl Dawkins...cool
 

Wolves coach Tom Thibodeau reassures nervous fans - Strib

Thibodeau said “I respectfully disagree” when a fan questioned the unity and culture of a team that won 47 games last season — its first winning season since the Kevin Garnett era — and made the playoffs for the first time since 2004.

He ticked off facts and statistics: The Wolves went 27-10 against the mighty Western Conference when Butler and young teammates Karl-Anthony Towns and Andrew Wiggins played together last season. The Wolves broke 14 franchise records last season, won 13 consecutive games at home and had 18 sellouts at Target Center.

The team’s starting five — which includes all three players together — ranked third in offensive efficiency and seventh defensively last season on a team whose second unit ranked 30th defensively. The Wolves have signed Derrick Rose, Anthony Tolliver and James Nunnally to address both the bench’s defense and the team’s three-point shooting.

Media reports throughout the summer have, using unnamed sources, suggested Butler is unhappy with his young teammates’ will and dedication and has decided he won’t play in Minnesota after this season and wants to unite with pal Kyrie Irving or other stars elsewhere.

“I’ve been around a long time; I don’t buy into any of that stuff,” Thibodeau said. “You have to distinguish what’s real and what’s not real. You never heard any of that come from Jimmy’s mouth. It’s always a source close to Jimmy. If Jimmy has something to say to someone, he usually says it directly …

“The biggest thing is chemistry on the floor and winning. How efficient they are tells you there’s strong chemistry on the floor.”

http://www.startribune.com/wolves-coach-tom-thibodeau-reassures-nervous-fans/491839991/
 

Thibodeau said “I respectfully disagree” when a fan questioned the unity and culture of a team that won 47 games last season — its first winning season since the Kevin Garnett era — and made the playoffs for the first time since 2004.

He ticked off facts and statistics: The Wolves went 27-10 against the mighty Western Conference when Butler and young teammates Karl-Anthony Towns and Andrew Wiggins played together last season. The Wolves broke 14 franchise records last season, won 13 consecutive games at home and had 18 sellouts at Target Center.

The team’s starting five — which includes all three players together — ranked third in offensive efficiency and seventh defensively last season on a team whose second unit ranked 30th defensively. The Wolves have signed Derrick Rose, Anthony Tolliver and James Nunnally to address both the bench’s defense and the team’s three-point shooting.

Media reports throughout the summer have, using unnamed sources, suggested Butler is unhappy with his young teammates’ will and dedication and has decided he won’t play in Minnesota after this season and wants to unite with pal Kyrie Irving or other stars elsewhere.

“I’ve been around a long time; I don’t buy into any of that stuff,” Thibodeau said. “You have to distinguish what’s real and what’s not real. You never heard any of that come from Jimmy’s mouth. It’s always a source close to Jimmy. If Jimmy has something to say to someone, he usually says it directly …

“The biggest thing is chemistry on the floor and winning. How efficient they are tells you there’s strong chemistry on the floor.”

http://www.startribune.com/wolves-coach-tom-thibodeau-reassures-nervous-fans/491839991/

I want to believe him with all of my being. Instead will become needlessly stressed until after Butler and/or Towns sign an extension.
 

I want to believe him with all of my being. Instead will become needlessly stressed until after Butler and/or Towns sign an extension.

Man just get over it now, butler isn't going to sign an extension.
 


Lol if I could just come to terms with that on my own volition, I would've done so months ago :p

Fair enough, feel bad for you though. Seems like a fairly pointless thing to stress over. I'm in the boat that i'm just expecting him to leave, if by the slightest of slight chances he does extend I'll just be excited/happy but by no means is it worth stressing over.
 

Fair enough, feel bad for you though. Seems like a fairly pointless thing to stress over. I'm in the boat that i'm just expecting him to leave, if by the slightest of slight chances he does extend I'll just be excited/happy but by no means is it worth stressing over.

All in jest my friend. Sports are just sports.

But man would I love to see the national narrative be completely wrong and see them both re-sign. I love pro basketball when your team is relevant.
 




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