NLL | NBA | WNBA | NBA 2k19 | NLSC
Username :
Password:

NLL Insider - Team by Team: Minnesota T'wolves

by pistolpk, updated on Tuesday, October 10 2017, 06:55 pm EST



Team by Team: Minnesota Timberwolves
2016-17 Finish: 53-29

Season Highlight:
The highlight was earning a home final in the Playoffs and proceeding into the second round. The Timberwolves had an awesome season, matching the second highest win total in the history of the franchise. With all the savy moves, Spudspace proved he is one of the top GMs in the league.

Season Lowlight:
With such great highs, it was hard to find a low. The Spurs limped into the Playoffs in the last couple of Rounds, they only just got over the Houston Rockets. Taking the series against the Spurs to 7 games, The Timberwolves ended up 1 win short, A change in result and from there anything could have happened.


Best Trade:
The Minnesota Timberwolves send Wesley Matthews and 1st-Rounder (Mil), 1st-Rounder (Ind), 1st-Rounder (Cle) and 15 GM points to the Orlando Magic. The Minnesota Timberwolves send Tyson Chandler to the Toronto Raptors. The Oklahoma City Thunder send Jonas Valanciunas to the Orlando Magic. The Orlando Magic send Danilo Gallinari and DeMarcus Cousins to the Minnesota Timberwolves. The Toronto Raptors send John Henson to the Oklahoma City Thunder.
- Any time your team gets one of the best players in the NLL, its a good day. Wolves gave up a fair bit to get Cousins, this is great for the franchise.

Worst Trade:
The Minnesota Timberwolves send Jeremy Lin to the New Orleans Pelicans. The New Orleans Pelicans send a 2nd-Rounder (NO), Matt Barnes and Nemanja Bjelica to the Minnesota Timberwolves. 
- Giving away Jeremy lin in this trade, it seemed pretty evenish at the time. Matt Barnes got dropped, Bjelica played terrible, getting on-traded, leaving the return a 2nd rounder.
 
Other Notable Trades:
The Detroit Pistons send Avery Bradley to the Minnesota Timberwolves. The Detroit Pistons send Patrick Patterson and Tyler Zeller to the Orlando Magic. The Minnesota Timberwolves send Bradley Beal and Nerlens Noel to the Detroit Pistons. The Minnesota Timberwolves send Justin Anderson to the Orlando Magic. The Orlando Magic send Brook Lopez to the Minnesota Timberwolves. The Detroit Pistons send a 2nd-Rounder (Pho) and 2nd-Rounder (Utah) to the Orlando Magic. The Minnesota Timberwolves send a 1st-Rounder (Min) to the Orlando Magic. 

- Wolves trade away injury prone Bradley Beal, Nerlen Noel and a 1st to get back a Top Centre in Brook Lopez and Avery Bradley. This is pretty even trade, Beal is a jet but loves to sit on the pine, Wolves wanted to take a new path.

The Minnesota Timberwolves send Trevor Ariza to the New Orleans Pelicans for T.J. Warren.

- This is more a salary dump, Ariza has shown for years his skillset, while T.J has allot of potential which he has started to show.

The Minnesota Timberwolves send Chinanu Onuaku and a 2nd-Rounder (Min) to the Denver Nuggets for Zaza Pachulia and 10 GM points to the Minnesota Timberwolves. 

- Zaza is a quality backup centre on an expiring contract, Wolves didn't give up much for him and now that he has resigned in NBA, this is an absolute steal.

The Boston Celtics send Jeff Teague, Wesley Matthews, Mason Plumlee, Jordan Clarkson and a 1st-Rounder (Por) to the Minnesota Timberwolves. The Minnesota Timberwolves send Kyle Lowry, Brook Lopez, Shelvin Mack, Ryan Kelly and 1st-Rounder (Min) to the Boston Celtics.

- This was more a trade for future salary relief with Lowry looking to sign an enormous contract. Boston won this trade getting the best 2 players, Spudspace added quality depth but getting back that 1st from Portland was the real diamond.

The Minnesota Timberwolves send Jordan Clarkson, Richaun Holmes and 1st-Rounder (Por) to the Philadelphia 76ers. The Philadelphia 76ers send Deron Williams, Jabari Parker and 1st-Rounder (Phi) to the Minnesota Timberwolves. 

- A trade for the future in getting Parker who has shown a bit in his limited career. I feel 76ers may have won this if the Portland pick becomes a top 3.

The Brooklyn Nets send Terrence Jones, Glenn Robinson III and 3 GM points to the Minnesota Timberwolves. The Brooklyn Nets send Danilo Gallinari, DeMarcus Cousins, Khris Middleton, Jordan McRae and Tim Quarterman to the Orlando Magic. The Minnesota Timberwolves send Mason Plumlee to the Brooklyn Nets. The Orlando Magic send Kevin Love, DeMar DeRozan, Shabazz Muhammad, Tony Snell, 2nd-Rounder (Utah) and 2nd-Rounder (Ind) to the Brooklyn Nets. 

- Wolves were only a small part of this trade, getting Terrence Jones, Glenn Robinson III and 3 GM points for Mason Plumlee

The Minnesota Timberwolves send Avery Bradley and T.J. Warren to the Philadelphia 76ers. The Philadelphia 76ers send C.J. McCollum and Salah Mejri to the Minnesota Timberwolves. 

- CJ will be a great addition to the Wolves next season, with the 76ers needing to trade him for salary reasons, I think both teams did well here.

The Minnesota Timberwolves send Paul George to the Oklahoma City Thunder. The Oklahoma City Thunder send Evan Fournier, 1st-Rounder (Mil) and 1st-Rounder (Mia) to the Minnesota Timberwolves. 

- This was a big deal for the Wolves, they had looked to move there superstar all season, and got a decent return which helped them get Cousins. Well played.

The Indiana Pacers send a 1st-Rounder (Ind) to the Minnesota Timberwolves. The Indiana Pacers send a 1st-Rounder (Was) and 2nd-Rounder (Mia) to the Oklahoma City Thunder. The Minnesota Timberwolves send a 1st-Rounder (Mia) to the Indiana Pacers. The Oklahoma City Thunder send a 1st-Rounder (OKC) and 15 GM points to the Indiana Pacers. The Oklahoma City Thunder send a 1st-Rounder (Cle) to the Minnesota Timberwolves. 

- Manoeuvring of draft picks, nothing really to see here.

The Minnesota Timberwolves send James Johnson, Taj Gibson and 15 GM points to the Sacramento Kings. The Sacramento Kings send Tyson Chandler, Cheick Diallo, Ron Baker a 2nd-Rounder (SA) to the Minnesota Timberwolves. 

- Taj and Chandler are similar rated players, so James Johnson seems like a bargain for Diallo, Baker and a 2nd rounder.


Best FA Signing:
James Johnson commits to the Minnesota Timberwolves under the MLE for 1 year and $ 4,000,000.
This was a great pickup, Johnson had a great year, improving his ratings into a valuable asset who could play SF or PF. Minnesota later moved him on for Tyson Chandler to fill a need.

Worst FA Signing:
Hollis Thompson signs with the Minnesota Timberwolves for 1 year and the minimum salary of $ 993,062.
It looked at first like a great signing, early foresight, but in 2 weeks Hollis Thompson didn't earn his pay check before being released. Shooting at 30%, scoring 3.4ppg in 12 minutes while struggling to get any other stats.


Star:
DeMarcus Cousins is a man mountain who can take over a game by himself. He was incredible last year dominating for both Orlando and Brooklyn, probably should have won the MVP if there was more team success. Based on the pre-season, Cousins hasn't slowed down at all, filling out the boxscore. 
 

Surprise:
Minnesota has replaced every player in the organisation, not 1 player who started the 2016-17 season is still on the roster. To have such success with all the turnover, shows just how good of a job Spudspace has done.


Goat:
Nemanja Bjelica shows so much potential, and fits perfectly as a PF with range, what resulted was nothing like it, Bjelica was limited to 12 minutes, averaged 4 points, hitting an abysmal 37% from the  field and 29% from behind the arc. Getting Doug McDermott and a 2nd round pick was a great return when on-trading him.

Draft Report Card:
Nenjabin's Grade:  C
Merencio's Grade: D+
Smokey's Grade: WOW!
Round 2: Nigel Williams-Goss (Pick 53)
After playing for the Jazz in the 2017 NBA Summer League, he signed a two-year contract with Serbian club Partizan. Looks like he will end up being a stash for the future. 


Looking to the Future:
I am excited to see how this team plays together, the starting line-up is stacked. The team currently have a pretty evident starting 5 of Cousins, Gallinari, Fournier, McCollum and Teague. Once Parker returns which is expected around February, they can mix up the line-up with multiple possibilities. The second unit looks a little thin at the moment, I expect Spudspace to get couple of cheap rookies or veterans to fill-in the depth chart, a backup point guard would be on the priority list. Resigning all the players will put the Timberwolves into the luxury tax, and at risk of the hard cap, so expect more moves to be made. With this line-up, I expect the Wolves to finish in the top 4 in the West, with a possible deep run into the playoffs. 


Upcoming Free Agents:
Jeff Teague
The starting Point Guard and an important piece of the team now and into the future. Minnesota will spend allot of GMs to bring him back.
Zaza Pachulia 
Zaza is a very handy big man, gives depth at Centre and holds his own off the bench. May find it hard to bring him back with no Bird rights.
Wayne Selden
Only played 8 games off the bench last season, his stats were decent in limited minutes. He will get his opportunities for the Grizzles in the NBA, worth a punt in bringing him back.
Ron Baker
Young prospect, could be better options available.

Archive

· Team by Team: Orlando Magic

· Team by Team: Brooklyn Nets

· Team by Team: Milwaukee Bucks

· Team by Team: Washington Wizards

· Team by Team: Minnesota T'wolves

· Team by Team: Philadelphia 76ers

· Team by Team: New Orleans Pelicans

· Team by Team: Utah Jazz

· Team by Team: Dallas Mavericks

· Team by Team: Oklahoma City Thunder

 

 

 

© 2001-2019 nbaliveleague.com | All Rights Reserved | About Us | FAQ | Sign Up | Contact Us | Site Statistics