2014-15 Finish: 32-50

Season Highlight

The three year playoff drought should soon be over. Although the 14-15 campaign had few highlights and only produced 32 wins, next season should see at least 15 more for the Wolves, as this roster has been seriously stacked with talent. Only really lacking a decent power forward to pair with young defensive big Nerlens Noel, this team boast serious depth and talent at the wings and guard positions. With recovering star Paul George, youngsters Bradley Beal, T.J. Warren and Rookie Justin Anderson, and experienced heads Kyle Lowry, Tyreke Evans, Jose Calderon and Martell Webster. The real highlight this season is how well they have setup for next season.

 

Season Lowlight

 

This season could have been so much better. During the pre-season there was a lot of buzz surrounding the boys from Minnesota. Klay Thompson was scorching the net and pushing claims to be one of the best at his position, David Lee and Nerlens Noel were a terrific front court combination excelling on each side of the ball, and Mike Conley and Courtney Lee combined to be a highly talented and experienced backcourt. Yes the bench was thin, but many thought this team would go far in the west, with one pundit even suggesting they were the team to beat in the West. (That was me) Then Javi blew it all up trading away four of the guys previously mentioned, for the very injured Paul George. Yes the best point guard in the game came along with him, but without George, it was always going to be tough going.

 

Best Trade

 

I loved the trades Javi made heading into the season, but wasn't a big fan of many of the moves during it. I did like this one though.

 

The Miami Heat send Hedo Turkoglu, Nate Robinson and Bradley Beal to the Minnesota Timberwolves. The Minnesota Timberwolves send JR Smith, Kosta Koufos and Ishmael Smith to the Miami Heat. 
The Minnesota Timberwolves send a 1st-Rounder (Mia) to the Miami Heat. 

The Miami Heat receive 10 GM points. The Minnesota Timberwolves trade -10 GM points.

 

Javi gets by far the best player in Bradley Beal, who should hold down shooting guard for the next ten years (If they can lock him up and he's not traded again) and only gives up shameless chucker JR Smith, bench big Koufos and a late 1st rounder.

 

Worst Trade

 

The Atlanta Hawks send Kyle Lowry, Tyreke Evans and T.J. Warren to the Minnesota Timberwolves. The Minnesota Timberwolves send Chris Paul and Jordan Adams to the Atlanta Hawks. 
The Atlanta Hawks send a 1st-Rounder (Atl) to the Minnesota Timberwolves. The Minnesota Timberwolves send a 1st-Rounder (Min) to the Atlanta Hawks. 

The Atlanta Hawks trade -18 GM points.The Minnesota Timberwolves receive 18 GM points.

 

I wasn't a big fan of this one, it's not horrible, but I feel like Chris Paul and the T-Wolves 1st were probably more valuable than Lowry, Evans and Warren. Chris Paul is the best point guard in basketball, which is a lot too give up for a serviceable PG and wing depth.

 

Other Notable Trades

 

The Minnesota Timberwolves send David Lee, Mike Conley, Courtney Lee, Wayne Ellington, Klay Thompson,Meyers Leonard and Vitor Faverani to the Sacramento Kings. The Sacramento Kings send JR Smith, Chris Paul,Paul George, Jordan Adams and Cameron Bairstow to the Minnesota Timberwolves. 
The Sacramento Kings send a 1st-Rounder (Mia) and 2nd-Rounder (Chi) to the Minnesota Timberwolves. 

The Minnesota Timberwolves receive 10 GM points. The Sacramento Kings trade -10 GM points.

 

This was a huge deal, with 12 players and two picks being exchanged. Chris Paul is a great get, as is Paul George, but his injury meant this season was kind of a write off. This one certainly helped the Kings to a lot of wins.

 

The Denver Nuggets send Martell Webster and Andrew Nicholson to the Minnesota Timberwolves. The Minnesota Timberwolves send Patrick Mills to the Denver Nuggets. 


The Denver Nuggets trade -30 GM points.The Minnesota Timberwolves receive 30 GM points.

 

A controversial one with confusion over a promised first round pick, it was eventually sorted out, making this a pretty even deal in the end.

 

Best Free Agent Signing

 

No big acquisitions here, I guess Willie Green, who appeared in 46 games and still remains on the roster.

 

Worst Free Agent Signing

 

Lou Amundson, he only lasted 6 games.

 

The Star

 

Kyle Lowry - Replacing Chris Paul as the starting point guard, Lowry was able to put up Paul like numbers. In just 20 games, Lowry averaged 26 points, 6 assists, 4 rebounds and 2 steals. Minny would be thrilled with similar production over 82 games next season.

 

Surprise

 

Paul George - The surprise being that this guy was even able to step onto the court this season after suffering a terrible leg injury during team USA play. George played the final two weeks of the season, and boy was he impressive dropping 25 pointer, 5 rebounds, 3 assists and 2 steals per game. I can't wait to see what he can do with a decent run at it.

 

The Goat

 

Nate Robinson - Averaging only 12 points on 32% shooting, Nate unsurprisingly only lasted 8 games in Minnesota after being brought over as part of the Bradley Beal deal. He was certainly no JR Smith.

 

Draft Report Card

The T-Wolves came into the draft with just the one selection, pick 21. Javi could have gone for a big like Kevon Looney or Chris McCullough to try and bolster his thin front-court stocks, but with injury clouds over both of those gentleman, and an injury list a mile long in previous seasons, Javi opted for Justin Anderson, a 6.6 wing out of Virginia. Anderson looks like a nice shooter and creative scorer, and is added to a nice group of talented wings.

 

Looking to the Future

Playoffs baby. That's what this team must hope for and probably what Javi expects. With such a deep and talented roster, especially in the back court, guys like Paul George, Bradley Beal, T.J. Warren, Justin Anderson,  Kyle Lowry, Tyreke Evans, Jose Calderon and Martell Webster should be headed for the post season, health permitting of course. I expect Javi to be working the phones, dangling one of his future first round picks for an established big man. If they can find a nice fit alongside Nerlens Noel, this team should start as one of the best in the Western Conference. Just don't blow it up again so soon Javi!

Upcoming Free Agents

Cameron Bairstow – The second year aussie big will likely return to help bolster the currently thin frontcourt.

 

Hedo Turkoglu – Turkoglu likely won’t be back and has likely already played his last game in the NLL.

Jason Smith – Smith would be very handy to keep around as additional front court help, but it’s looking likely he will try his luck elsewhere.

 

Willie Green – Like Turkoglu, Green is getting pretty long in the tooth and has probably played his last NLL game.

 

Ryan Hollins – Hollins, like Smith would be good to keep around, however also appears to be set to test free agent waters.

 

Nate Robinson – Nate will no doubt land somewhere, but surely he won’t be back in Minnesota.