Advertisement - scroll for more content
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement - scroll for more content
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Michael Porter Jr: "My energy output this last year was so much higher than in Denver because of how much I was relied on and the defenders I had on me. Every team's putting their best defender on me. I'm going from Ausar Thompson to Jaden McDaniels to this guy to that guy every game. My energy output, I just think I got to really work on like Steph does, really being in shape, so all game I can just move off the ball. I think I could be the best off-ball player in the NBA because I'm good at cutting around the rim. My finish percentage around the rim is like real high. And then, you know, catch and shoot threes and things like that. I think if I'm in good shape, I could be the best off-ball player in the NBA. So I think that's the main thing off the court. And then on the court, I think getting in that mid-post, face up, when stuff gets tough at the end of the game, mid-post face up, not a ton of dribbles, you know, one-dribble pull-up, jab shot. I think I got to master that a little bit better."
Your lead assistant coach Micah Nori is gone (to be a head coach in Portland). Finch: Micah of course; the staff changes have happened as well. But the tentpoles (Anthony Edwards, Rudy Gobert and Jaden McDaniels) are still here. And we like that. But I think it will be good to take those guys back to the beginning, too. And they’ve got to be part of the journey and impart more knowledge, understanding and expectation. And hopefully that lifts the accountability piece for everybody. Just getting LaMelo to understand how we do things and the urgency with which that needs to happen. I’m kind of excited about that dynamic and watching it play out. I’m excited about kind of putting myself forward again. I’ve spent the last few years trying to lean into the development of coaches giving everybody a voice, kind of growing together, giving everyone a role.
Edwards addressed both sides of the court in his pitch to Kuminga, firstly emphasizing the defensive end, per Krawczynski. "He started with defense and saying 'Hey, if you come here, we're gonna focus on the defensive end; we're gonna be a really tough defensive team to play against with you and me and Rudy and Jaden McDaniels'." The Timberwolves superstar guard then shifted his focus to the offense, where Kuminga felt he was not utilized enough in Golden State. "Then the second thing he told Jonathan Kuminga was, 'I know that you can cook offensively'. He had a very good playoff series against the Wolves when he was with the Warriors two years ago. He said, 'Look, if there's a matchup night where you just have the fourth-best defender on you and you can go at him, I'm gonna say go get him.'
NBA Trade Machine: Fred VanVleet was part of 4.8% of the trades built on HoopsMatic over the past 24 hours. Of those trades, his top destinations were Minnesota (13.5%), Chicago (11.5%), and San Antonio (7.7%). The most common players sent back for him were Jaden McDaniels (11.5%), Trey Murphy (7.7%), and De'Aaron Fox (5.8%).
Minnesota’s payroll places it as the sixth highest in the NBA. The Timberwolves will pay LaMelo Ball $40 million, Anthony Edwards $48.9 million and Rudy Gobert $36.5 million. Jaden McDaniels rounds out the group at $26 million, which could make Kuminga the odd man out. “A $6.5 million salary in the NBA is a bench role salary. Your salary determines ultimately how a team treats you,” Green said.
Advertisement
Shams Charania: BREAKING: Jonathan Kuminga has agreed to a two-year, $13 million deal with the Minnesota Timberwolves, plus a player option, agent Aaron Turner tells ESPN. Kuminga will be a starter alongside Anthony Edwards, LaMelo Ball, Jaden McDaniels and Rudy Gobert on the West contender.
The Minnesota Timberwolves threw everything they possibly could at LeBron James to try to persuade him to chase a championship with them. Anthony Edwards and LaMelo Ball got on the phone with him. Alex Rodriguez led ownership’s pitch given their common ground as superstar athletes who have become business moguls. Tim Connelly’s longstanding working relationship with Rich Paul helped the two have extended conversations on the fit for James in Minnesota. Throughout the process, team sources said, the Timberwolves felt like James and his camp were giving them full consideration for his 24th season. Those sources spoke on condition of anonymity to be able to speak candidly about private negotiations. They always knew it was a long shot, but the prospect of putting James in a starting lineup alongside Edwards, Ball, Jaden McDaniels and Rudy Gobert was something they had to pursue all the way to the end.
The Wolves have been in regular contact with Rich Paul, James’s agent and close friend, to try to sell them on the idea of teaming up with Ball, Anthony Edwards, Jaden McDaniels and Rudy Gobert to make a run at the San Antonio Spurs and Oklahoma City Thunder in the West. “The recruitment is just this team,” Connelly said. “Obviously, he’s an unbelievable player. Whatever decision he makes is going to be the right one. There’s a lot going on. When you’re as great as he is, you should have optionality. When you look at our team, it’s hard not to be excited about what we have.”
Jon Krawczynski: Tim Connelly and Rich Paul have had a strong relationship for a long time. Also notable that Paul mentions Wolves ownership group. And “We got Jaden McDaniels.” Whatever happens, Wolves are at least in the mix. Would’ve been unfathomable just a few years ago.
The Minnesota Timberwolves have ramped up their push for LeBron James, with full belief that they are very much in the hunt to land one of the greatest players in NBA history, league sources told The Athletic. The sources, who spoke on condition of anonymity to describe ongoing deliberations, said the Timberwolves have been in contact with James’ representatives with a bold pitch: team up with Anthony Edwards, LaMelo Ball, Jaden McDaniels and Rudy Gobert to go after the kind of championship that could end any discussion about who is the greatest player of all time.
Advertisement
Jon Krawczynski on LeBron James: Tim Connelly and Rich Paul have had a strong relationship for a long time. Also notable that Paul mentions Wolves ownership group. And “We got Jaden McDaniels.” Whatever happens, Wolves are at least in the mix. Would’ve been unfathomable just a few years ago.
“He makes Ant better, Jaden (McDaniels) better, Rudy and Joan (Beringer) better,” one team source said. “How many other players in the league would make your three best players better without getting in their way?”
The once supersized Wolves are now looking very thin in the frontline. They will have a difficult time finding an upgrade with no draft picks left to trade. They might need to part with one of Terrence Shannon Jr. or Joan Beringer to get a team interested. Otherwise, they’re looking at starting a lineup featuring LaMelo Ball, Ayo Dosunmu, Anthony Edwards, Jaden McDaniels, and Rudy Gobert. The Wolves would have limited options for upgrading the frontcourt. They will no longer create a $33 million trade exception and lose access to all trade exceptions created last season, including the $10.8 million one. They also lose the $5.5 million bi-annual exception and get the reduced $6 million taxpayer mid-level exception instead of the $15.5 million one. They are highly unlikely to get a starter with that amount.
