2023 Free Agency

[KGdaBom]

I have a thought experiment for the board. So as to not jinx anything we are placing this in a hypothetical future where the Wolves win the 2024 NBA Championship. They decide to keep Monte Morris or Kyle Anderson but not both. With the roster spot they decide to sign a minimum contract ring chaser. Who is that ring chaser?

Kevin Durant.

[winforlose]

I have a thought experiment for the board. So as to not jinx anything we are placing this in a hypothetical future where the Wolves win the 2024 NBA Championship. They decide to keep Monte Morris or Kyle Anderson but not both. With the roster spot they decide to sign a minimum contract ring chaser. Who is that ring chaser?

Kevin Durant.

Apparently he is trying to force a trade to Miami.

“ Chad Ochocinco Johnson threw flames on the speculation with recent comments he made on a podcast, when the former NFL receiver said that Durant talked to him about joining the Miami Heat. “What makes you think he’d want to go to Miami now?” Shannon Sharpe asked Johnson on the Nightcap podcast. “Because I talked to him,” Johnson replied. “I talked to KD and I know KD is going to see this and KD can attest to this. You can talk about it tomorrow on First Take. KD and I had a lengthy conversation. Listen, I’m not into basketball and people like KD and LeBron and some of these other players that I know, they confide in me. And I asked if it was OK to talk about tonight on Nightcap and it just so happens, boom, it comes up. “And he said he would have no problem coming down to Miami, if it made sense.””

Copied from hoopshype.

[BlacJacMac]

I have a thought experiment for the board. So as to not jinx anything we are placing this in a hypothetical future where the Wolves win the 2024 NBA Championship. They decide to keep Monte Morris or Kyle Anderson but not both. With the roster spot they decide to sign a minimum contract ring chaser. Who is that ring chaser?

Kevin Durant.

If he's willing to give up the 100M he's owed over the next 2 years, we could find room for him off the bench.

[winforlose]

I have a thought experiment for the board. So as to not jinx anything we are placing this in a hypothetical future where the Wolves win the 2024 NBA Championship. They decide to keep Monte Morris or Kyle Anderson but not both. With the roster spot they decide to sign a minimum contract ring chaser. Who is that ring chaser?

Kevin Durant.

If he's willing to give up the 100M he's owed over the next 2 years, we could find room for him off the bench.

He could be our 8th man. Naz and NAW have more heart so we ain’t moving them.

[BlacJacMac]

I have a thought experiment for the board. So as to not jinx anything we are placing this in a hypothetical future where the Wolves win the 2024 NBA Championship. They decide to keep Monte Morris or Kyle Anderson but not both. With the roster spot they decide to sign a minimum contract ring chaser. Who is that ring chaser?

Realistically?

De'Anthony Melton would give us a legit 3&D guard.

Someone like Luke Kennard or Gary Harris to give us a boost in 3pt shooting.

A little more under the radar would be Naji Marshall. If his 3pt shooting is real, he could be a bigger NAW type player for us. PER 36, he's a 6.5 Rebounds, 4 Assists, 2 Stocks guy.

[shrink]

I have a thought experiment for the board. So as to not jinx anything we are placing this in a hypothetical future where the Wolves win the 2024 NBA Championship. They decide to keep Monte Morris or Kyle Anderson but not both. With the roster spot they decide to sign a minimum contract ring chaser. Who is that ring chaser?

My guess? Chris Paul.

He doesn’t have much left, but he’d have a bench role, he can throw a lob, and he’d have a chance to get his first ring.

He’ll have to do a lot though to get me to like him.

[winforlose]

I have a thought experiment for the board. So as to not jinx anything we are placing this in a hypothetical future where the Wolves win the 2024 NBA Championship. They decide to keep Monte Morris or Kyle Anderson but not both. With the roster spot they decide to sign a minimum contract ring chaser. Who is that ring chaser?

My guess? Chris Paul.

He doesn’t have much left, but he’d have a bench role, he can throw a lob, and he’d have a chance to get his first ring.

He’ll have to do a lot though to get me to like him.

You would want him over JMAC?

[shrink]

I have a thought experiment for the board. So as to not jinx anything we are placing this in a hypothetical future where the Wolves win the 2024 NBA Championship. They decide to keep Monte Morris or Kyle Anderson but not both. With the roster spot they decide to sign a minimum contract ring chaser. Who is that ring chaser?

My guess? Chris Paul.

He doesn’t have much left, but he’d have a bench role, he can throw a lob, and he’d have a chance to get his first ring.

He’ll have to do a lot though to get me to like him.

You would want him over JMAC?

No. We are mostly talking about third string vets.

If Joe Ingles gets bought out, I could see MIN picking him up on a vet min too. Again, not much left, but he knows how to play with Conley and Gobert, and he can be a poor man’s SloMo, if he’s gone.

[winforlose]

My guess? Chris Paul.

He doesn’t have much left, but he’d have a bench role, he can throw a lob, and he’d have a chance to get his first ring.

He’ll have to do a lot though to get me to like him.

You would want him over JMAC?

No. We are mostly talking about third string vets.


If Joe Ingles gets bought out, I could see MIN picking him up on a vet min too. Again, not much left, but he knows how to play with Conley and Gobert, and he can be a poor man’s SloMo, if he’s gone.

Are you assuming then that both Monte and SloMo are gone? Because if Monte is back then you are talking about JMAC at 3rd string. You are now saying CP3 as third string, hence my confusion.

[shrink]

You would want him over JMAC?

No. We are mostly talking about third string vets.


If Joe Ingles gets bought out, I could see MIN picking him up on a vet min too. Again, not much left, but he knows how to play with Conley and Gobert, and he can be a poor man’s SloMo, if he’s gone.

Are you assuming then that both Monte and SloMo are gone? Because if Monte is back then you are talking about JMAC at 3rd string. You are now saying CP3 as third string, hence my confusion.

I think 90% chance SloMo is gone this summer. He’ll make much more elsewhere. I think 60% chance Morris is gone too, depending on whether he’ll take a truly tiny, short deal that factors in this injury-prone season, and gets him back into free agency quickly. I suspect JMac is back, and he’s our super cheap back-up PG, probably at a number just above the vet min.

[winforlose]

No. We are mostly talking about third string vets.


If Joe Ingles gets bought out, I could see MIN picking him up on a vet min too. Again, not much left, but he knows how to play with Conley and Gobert, and he can be a poor man’s SloMo, if he’s gone.

Are you assuming then that both Monte and SloMo are gone? Because if Monte is back then you are talking about JMAC at 3rd string. You are now saying CP3 as third string, hence my confusion.

I think 90% chance SloMo is gone this summer. He’ll make much more elsewhere. I think 60% chance Morris is gone too, depending on whether he’ll take a truly tiny, short deal that factors in this injury-prone season, and gets him back into free agency quickly.

Okay, so your PG rotation is Conley/JMAC/CP3? You think CP3 would want to be a fringe rotation player to win a ring in name only? You also realize that puts 2/3rds of our PG rotation over 37?

[shrink]

Are you assuming then that both Monte and SloMo are gone? Because if Monte is back then you are talking about JMAC at 3rd string. You are now saying CP3 as third string, hence my confusion.

I think 90% chance SloMo is gone this summer. He’ll make much more elsewhere. I think 60% chance Morris is gone too, depending on whether he’ll take a truly tiny, short deal that factors in this injury-prone season, and gets him back into free agency quickly.

Okay, so your PG rotation is Conley/JMAC/CP3? You think CP3 would want to be a fringe rotation player to win a ring in name only? You also realize that puts 2/3rds of our PG rotation over 37?

Yes, for a few reasons.

First, it is where we will need to save salary. We love our big long wing guards, and that serves as a lot of our defensive identity. A team can’t spend a ton of money at every position.

Second, we’ll have this season to see if Ant or NAW (and I suppose Clark) can develop more playmaking skills to be the heir apparent for Mike Conley, as he eventually can’t play any more. We haven’t seen it yet though. I’m hoping both improve, so we could start a back court of NAW and Ant.

Third, Paul’s significant decline this year won’t leave him many other options around the NBA except “fringe rotation player.” In MIN, he may get some opportunities if the team wants to rest Mike Conley every few games.