Archives For Transactions

Kevin Love awaits an extension

Benjamin Polk —  January 7, 2012 — 8 Comments

You have perhaps seen this Peter Vecsey report about the  impending deadline to offer Kevin Love a contract extension:

According to the messenger, All-Star Kevin Love has not been offered an extension. Think the double-double emperor’s feelings are bruised? Think agent Jeff Schwartz might be putting the pressure on GM David Kahn and owner Glen Taylor to make a proposal pronto? You got that right; according to my source, if one isn’t submitted by Jan. 15, 10 days before the league deadline to enrich players in Love’s position (Russell Westbrook is another), then don’t bother.

Think there’s a lot of speculation and unattributed sourcing in that paragraph? Yeah me too. For the record, Love claims that he hasn’t spoken with his agent about an extension since the season began (which, obviously he would say that).

Also for the record, and as per our frequent conversations about Kevin Love’s value, Bradford Doolittle of Basketball Prospectus has weighed in firmly on the side of offering our guy the max (very much worth reading). And considering how intensely good he has been this year and how much he has added to his game in just under three seasons, I’m inclined to agree. Let’s get this thing done. Here’s the slightly chilling way Doolittle leaves us:

There is no question he is deserving of a max contract, and probably little question that the Timberwolves will make such an offer. The only thing we don’t know is whether Love will sign it.

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Bonzi bows out

Benjamin Polk —  December 24, 2011 — Leave a comment

Bonzi Wells we hardly knew ye. Due to the glut of guaranteed contracts on the Wolves’ roster, there wasn’t any room for the 35-year-old vet. It’s kind of a shame too; seemed like the old fella had a new lease on life. So the Wolves’ opening day roster is as follows:

Guards: J.J. Barea, Luke Ridnour, Ricky Rubio, Malcolm Lee, Wayne Ellington, Martell Webster, Wes Johnson (although looks like he’ll also play some three)

Forwards: Derrick Williams, Michael Beasley, Kevin Love, Anthony Tolliver, Anthony Randolph

Centers: Darko, Big Pek, Brad Miller

So in memory of Mr. Wells, here’s Bonzi hitting a miracle shot:

And here he is getting yoked on by Baron Davis.

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Lazar Hayward traded to Oklahoma City

Zach Harper —  December 13, 2011 — 10 Comments

Timberwolves have announced that Lazar Hayward is no longer on the team.

They acquired Robert Vaden and two future second round picks for Hayward and then promptly waived Robert Vaden. Now the Wolves can sign JJ Barea without having to amnesty anybody and pick up a couple second round picks in the process. Not bad, I guess.

I’m going to miss Lazar. He and Wes Johnson were very jovial with each other during their Media Day appearance together. They roomed with each other this past summer during the lockout. Hopefully, this decision doesn’t keep the Wolves from securing Wes Johnson with a contract extension in three years.

Here are the highlights of Lazar Hayward that I could find on YouTube.

I’ll tell you… nobody made layups like Lazar Hayward. NOBODY! So many layups. He also had one of Jonny Flynn’s assists by the looks of the video. That’s like catching a no-hitter in baseball.

In all seriousness, I liked Lazar on the team but I wasn’t married to the idea of him having to be here. He was at a crowded position and will hopefully get a better chance to provide some scoring off the bench in OKC. Good luck, Lazar.

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Bonzi returns and other musings

Benjamin Polk —  December 11, 2011 — 5 Comments

I was shocked to hear that Bonzi Wells has been invited to the Wolves’ training camp and even more shocked to hear that he is only 35 years old. Considering that Bonzi played serious minutes on a team that included Scottie Pippen, Arvydas Sabonis and Detlef Schrempf,  I had him pegged for at least 50. But I was wrong and right now he’s a Wolf. Come to think of it, the Wolves could use an upgrade at center; I wonder if Sabonis is still in playing shape?

Even more surprising: the Wolves are also pursuing NBA Finals hero and bona fide Small Person J.J. Barea. Anyone else thinking what I’m thinking? a three-guard lineup featuring Rubio, Ridnour, Barea? Am I right? But for real: is another primary ball handler really what the Wolves need?

Speaking of perimeter players: now that the Chris-Paul-to-the-Lakers deal is in ashes (beautifully played everybody), I’m curious whether Kevin Martin remains available. He makes a chunk of change ($11.5 million this year and $12.4 million next year), he never passes the ball and the Wolves rotten perimeter D wouldn’t be made any less rotten, but Martin is the most efficient high volume perimeter scorer in the league–and the Wolves could definitely use a little of that.

And by the way, isn’t it delicious to see the Wolves’ unprotected 1st round pick bandied about in Chris Paul trade rumors? Oh Kevin McHale, will your gifts ever stop giving?

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Ricky Rubio is still not a Timberwolf

Benjamin Polk —  June 1, 2011 — 8 Comments


Well, the deadline for signing Ricky Rubio for next season under the rookie wage scale has come and gone. And, as usual in this long, baroque saga, all we have to show for it are supposition, innuendo and uncertainty. At issue are the same old things: 1) the new CBA, under which Rubio would almost certainly make less money than he would under the current rookie scale; 2) the lockout which, if Rubio signed with the Wolves this summer, could keep him from playing any basketball at all next year–and right now, what Ricky most deeply needs and wants is to play basketball; 3) the fact that Rubio may just not want to play for this weirdly managed, perennially terrible cold-weather team.

Happily for the Wolves, it seems that this latter issue is less decisive than had been reported at the time of the draft. What this whole adventure does cast into relief, however, is just how much David Kahn and the Wolves have invested in the young prodigy. Back in 2009, Rubio was a fount of possibility, a player so young and with such preternatural skill and awareness that he seemed able to bear endless quantities of hope. In many ways, that hope has sustained Kahn through the strange decisions and seeming aimlessness of the two years that have followed.

But now that Rubio’s star has dimmed and the realities of collective bargaining have presented themselves Kahn is faced with a harsh reality. Two years, two drafts and three lottery picks have gone by since Kahn took control; the Wolves have acquired exactly zero impact players in that time. Rubio is still a reservoir of hope, but that hope seems more brittle all the time.

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Wolves at the deadline: an evaluation

Benjamin Polk —  March 4, 2011 — 3 Comments

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NBA fans always invest the trade deadline, like the draft, with outsized hopes, dreams of that transformative deal that will remake the face of their franchise and propel their franchise into that next echelon. This year, those hopes were actually made real for a few teams. So how did the Wolves do? Let’s check it out.

Continue Reading…

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Corey Brewer waived by Knicks

Benjamin Polk —  March 2, 2011 — Leave a comment

Corey Brewer’s NYC vacation did not last long. It seems our boy has been waived after three inactive games with the Knicks. If you think that’s a little unjust, you should check out this post of Henry Abbott’s on the Truehoop main page, in which Brewer’s virtues are duly extolled. Check it:

Smart teams, I’d wager, have been watching Corey Brewer for a long time for this exact reason. And what they have been seeing is a defensive show. Once you clue in to the guy, it’s glaringly obvious that no one on the court is defending like him. He’s narrow, long, strong, quick and feisty — which is a perfect set of attributes to fight over a screen. He has great hands. He goads non-shooters into shooting, and keeps great shooters from making a catch. He talks constantly on defense — he’s not only in the right place, but he knows where everybody else is supposed to be, too.

Supporting Henry’s “smart teams” assertion: the Celtics, Mavs and Spurs have all expressed some interest in that skinny guy. I wonder if this would be happening if Wes Johnson or Anthony Randolph were waive today.

As we’ve discussed before, Corey was very, very far from a being a perfect player. But all the same, it’s nice to see some recognition for the striking things this uniquely energetic and positive dude did while he was with us.

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Corey Brewer, an appreciation

Benjamin Polk —  February 23, 2011 — 2 Comments

It’s not every day that an opportunity arises to write about the Timberwolves on the main Truehoop page. But today, by virtue of the Wolves’ glancing involvement with Carmelo Anthony, is one of those days. As such, our boy Zach got his pretty face in the lights. Suffice it to say, he was underwhelmed with the Brewer-for-Randolph deal:

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League source: Wolves land Randolph in Carmelo deal

Benjamin Polk —  February 22, 2011 — 3 Comments

ESPN is reporting that the Knicks have finally landed Mr. Carmelo Anthony. In exchange, the Knicks have traded almost all of their young players plus Governor’s Island and three scuzzy, bro-infested East Village bars. For us, though, here’s the important part:

New York will send Anthony Randolph and Eddy Curry to Minnesota as part of the deal in exchange for Corey Brewer, a league source told Broussard.

I hope that, just once, the Wolves deign to put Darko and Curry on the floor together. That would be pure magic.

By the way, Corey Brewer is/was my favorite T-Wolf. This hurts a little.

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Carmelo’s ripples reach our shores

Benjamin Polk —  February 7, 2011 — 1 Comment

As you may have heard, Carmelo Anthony wants to play for the New York Knicks. You may have also heard that, for various reason, consummating this seemingly modest desire has been extraordinarily difficult. Well, it seems our very own Timberwolves may have been pulled into this convoluted narrative. It goes a little something like this (from ESPN’s Marc Stein):

In the proposed trade, New York would send Anthony Randolph and Eddy Curry to Minnesota and the Timberwolves would send Corey Brewer and a first-round pick to Denver. Denver would also receive Wilson Chandler from New York.

A Timberwolves source told ESPN The Magazine’s Ric Bucher on Sunday that the team would not approve of a deal where the team received just New York’s Randolph and Curry with Brewer and a first-rounder heading to Denver. While these are the names currently being discussed, additional players could be added to make a deal possible, sources said.

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