Wolves Horizon Beyond the 2022-23 Season

[Camden [enjin:6601484]]

It's time to move on from Jordan McLaughlin as Minnesota's primary backup point guard. He's simply not good enough to hold that role moving forward if the Wolves are going to continue climbing the ranks. He does some things well enough to keep him on the roster as your third point guard or emergency pace setter, but they should be looking for a better, younger option with a higher ceiling to handle that role. You can find those types in free agency and the draft.

[AbeVigodaLive]

It's time to move on from Jordan McLaughlin as Minnesota's primary backup point guard. He's simply not good enough to hold that role moving forward if the Wolves are going to continue climbing the ranks. He does some things well enough to keep him on the roster as your third point guard or emergency pace setter, but they should be looking for a better, younger option with a higher ceiling to handle that role. You can find those types in free agency and the draft.

Especially with Conley.

He's probably best suited for about 30 mpg at this point. And, he has a bit of a nagging injury history.

[thedoper]

Im all for moving on another PG. Connelly's draft history with guards gives me a bit of optimism. Its been the need on this team for a while. In moving forward I hope this team keeps Naz and Prince. I really like both of them and what they bring for a change of flavor with our starters.

Id be fine with letting JMac, Nowell, Knight, Rivers (though i bet hed reup for the min) all go.

[AbeVigodaLive]

Im all for moving on another PG. Connelly's draft history with guards gives me a bit of optimism. Its been the need on this team for a while. In moving forward I hope this team keeps Naz and Prince. I really like both of them and what they bring for a change of flavor with our starters.

Id be fine with letting JMac, Nowell, Knight, Rivers (though i bet hed reup for the min) all go.

Pretty sure Rivers would take less money to go elsewhere.

His podcast has made it clear that he's not a fan of the area (weather).

[Camden [enjin:6601484]]

Im all for moving on another PG. Connelly's draft history with guards gives me a bit of optimism. Its been the need on this team for a while. In moving forward I hope this team keeps Naz and Prince. I really like both of them and what they bring for a change of flavor with our starters.

Id be fine with letting JMac, Nowell, Knight, Rivers (though i bet hed reup for the min) all go.

Pretty sure Rivers would take less money to go elsewhere.

His podcast has made it clear that he's not a fan of the area (weather).

Yeah, Austin Rivers will end up being back with his dad in Philadelphia. Who else is signing him?

[FNG]

Im all for moving on another PG. Connelly's draft history with guards gives me a bit of optimism. Its been the need on this team for a while. In moving forward I hope this team keeps Naz and Prince. I really like both of them and what they bring for a change of flavor with our starters.

Id be fine with letting JMac, Nowell, Knight, Rivers (though i bet hed reup for the min) all go.

I certainly agree on Rivers and Knight, on the fence with Nowell, and very much opposed to moving on from JMac. I think we have him signed for just north of $2 million next year, correct? I would be surprised if we could get someone that contributes like JMac for that amount of money. Jim Pete constantly says it: "Good things happen whenever JMac is on the court". This team, when healthy, has a lot of scoring punch...what we need is a PG who distributes well, protects the ball, and plays good defense, and JMac fills the bill in all three areas. His career assist to turnover ratio of 4.25 to 1 is nothing short of elite. To put this number in perspective, Chris Paul is the all-time leader on A:To ratio among PGs with more than 8000 assists at 4 to 1. This season only Tyus Jones (5:1) and Chris Paul (4.6 to 1) are better than Jordan (Mike Conley is tied with him at 4.5 to 1). And while I'm one of the only posters here who values Cleaning the Glass on/off and expected wins data (although Finchie and Jim Pete talk about it a lot) JMac ranks second in each of the past two seasons on the Wolves...his +3.3 and 8 expected added wins was second only to KAT last year, and his +7.8 and 19 expected added wins is second only to Conley this year.

Why is he only paid $2 million? Probably because after showing some 3-point success his first two years in the pros) as well as in 4 years in college, he has struggled to make his threes this season and last. So is JMac the poor 3-point shooter he has been in his past 98 games, or is he the high 30% 3-point shooter he was in his previous 6 college and pro seasons? I would hate to find out by reading about him in another team's box scores...it would be more material for Q! Ultimately though he seems to add value even when he isn't making his threes.

The Wolves are lucky to now have two PGs we can rely on. Just look at how we struggled last night with JMac out sick when Conley sat down. I hope TC doesn't screw this one up!

[KiwiMatt]

I'm still optimistic of the the future and think we take a big leap next season if we can keep most of our roster together.

We have great depth and complimentary pieces in the front court and center positions with KAT, Gobert, Naz, McDaniels, Prince and Anderson. Garza and Minott give us further depth and upside. Hopefully we can keep this group on the books.

Our problem is in the backcourt outside of Edwards. Conley will suffice next year, but we need someone to groom to take over from him following next season. McLaughlin is a good 3rd string PG who can back up if need be. I am not sold on Nowell or NAW and the contracts they will likely demand. No interest in resigning Rivers. Maybe Pat Bev will re sign in a player / mentor role, but the problem is there is currently no young PG on our roster to mentor and no 1st round pick to draft one. That's why I wish we had acquired Bones Hyland instead of the Clippers, and I've read that Connelly offered them a better package than what the Clippers ended up getting him for.

[Coolbreeze44]

TC has taken a lot of heat for the Gobert trade, and I think most of it is deserved. But other than that move, I really like what he has done. Great moves to keep Jaden, acquire Slo-mo, retain Naz, and get Conley for DLO. I'm seeing more and more people say they would have traded Conley for DLO straight up, and I certainly am in that camp. But we also received NAW and those 2nds to boot. It's great to have a cerebral point guard who can not only play, but be a real leader this team sorely needed. He also seems to be meshing better and better with his teammates as games go by. When Ant gets back our top 6 or 7 is going to be lit. I'm looking forward to what TC will do this offseason and beyond.

[Monster]

It's time to move on from Jordan McLaughlin as Minnesota's primary backup point guard. He's simply not good enough to hold that role moving forward if the Wolves are going to continue climbing the ranks. He does some things well enough to keep him on the roster as your third point guard or emergency pace setter, but they should be looking for a better, younger option with a higher ceiling to handle that role. You can find those types in free agency and the draft.

Especially with Conley.

He's probably best suited for about 30 mpg at this point. And, he has a bit of a nagging injury history.

Yes Conley's age and injury history are another reason why the Wolves need to add a PG to the roster not move on from McLaughlin.

Saying McLaughlin is a 3rd PG or emergency guy makes him sound easily replaceable which may not be what was intended. I don't think that's true I think it would be hard to find a player that could be as effective as him if that was his status on a roster. McLaughlin plays his role very well despite his flaws. He isn't a primary ball handler a chunk of the time when he is on the floor but he still creates PG number assist numbers with low TOs. His individual defense looks to be better and that's now a bit of an asset and he has always had a knack for playing the passing lanes etc. Personally if I could lock up McLaughlin on a cheap extension I would do it and then keep looking to improve the roster so I had other options. It's kinda like Prince who is a better player who misses games but part of his value is that (especially for this season) if he was hurt there simply wasn't much behind him. The wolves need another guy there. NAW physically is an improvement over the guards they were having to play that role. Matt Ryan was ok but he wasn't a guy that instilled confidence either.

We need more at PG and I hope the Wolves don't just keep going in on these big guards that sound great playing next to superstar Edwards in the playoffs...or one of those guys needs to actually come through.

[Lipoli390]

I'm with FNG and Monster on JMac. He's a very solid backup PG on a very team-friendly contract. And ye could probably be extended on another team-friendly deal. The Wolves should never have let Tyus Jones go. Letting JMac go would be a similar mistake. Let's remember that Mike Conley is turning 36. I like what he's giving this team, but his horizon is limited. I like the idea of him as our starting PG next season, but we can't count on him behind that. In fact, his age and injury history give me some pause about relying on him next season.

We need a young PG to eventually take over for Conley. I don't think that guy is JMac. TC will have to find Conley's heir apparent. Meanwhile, it's important to keep JMac here. He's a positive contributor and the kind of guy you want on your roster. He's a long-term keeper along with Ant, McDaniels, Towns and Kyle Anderson.