22. Minnesota Timberwolves | Future Power Rating: 426
PLAYERS MANAGEMENT MONEY MARKET DRAFT
170 (21st) 47 (26th) 123 (8th) 19 (28th) 68 (7th)
The Timberwolves' roster and its potential might have been the hardest to rank of any team's, because so much of its future is in flux at this very moment. With Ricky Rubio in Spain for an indeterminate time, Al Jefferson still recovering from an ACL injury and rookie Jonny Flynn having only a few games of NBA ball under his belt, it's hard to know what to make of their future just yet. Management was another iffy area. New GM David Kahn has been on the job for only a few months, and while he seems far more enlightened regarding the salary cap than Kevin McHale, his predecessor, was, we've yet to see whether any of his moves have worked out or not. The big negative dragging the Timberwolves down in this category was owner Glen Taylor, whose reputation took a beating as a result of McHale's inexplicably lengthy tenure. But the Wolves can count on having a good salary-cap situation going forward. Minnesota will be well under the cap next summer and has all but completely expunged the onerous contracts McHale saddled the team with during his ruinous reign. Additionally, Minnesota should get help from the draft. Though the Wolves owe the Clippers a future pick that could prove to be a high lottery pick, they own a pick from Charlotte with roughly equal terms. The Minnesota market will hold them back in free agency, however. The long, cold winters are a major drawback for players, as is the franchise's current rebuilding program. To date, the team hasn't done much to offset the negative perception.
