Naz or Randle. Can't have both.

[WildWolf2813]

I keep trying to come up with reasonable landing spots for Randle. There aren't many. Miami is one spot if the Wolves were able to get involved in a Butler to Warriors trade. Another spot is Detroit -- they have the need and financial flexibility to take on Randle and deal with his player option and/or extension. And they might find a tremendous incentive if their 1st round pick we have is on the table, too! So Detroit is a logical 3rd team to work with the Wolves.

So, then it comes down to who we are targeting to replace Randle? Some names we have tossed around are John Collins, Nicola Vucevic and Jonas Valanciunus. Heck, we might even have interest in bringing back SloMo! But here is a name that has flown under the radar: Kelly Olynyk.

Kelly is another former Jazz player that has played with Rudy, NAW and Mike. He has 2 years left on his contract at roughly 13 mil per year. He is just returning from a back injury and has only played in Toronto's last 4 games. I think he would be a reasonable fit alongside Rudy and NAZ as our frontcourt trio. He can hit the 3, is a ball mover, and is not ball dominant.

Because of both Toronto's and Detroit's cap situation, a trade can be structured with Randle going out and only Kelly coming in, which means the Wolves would save over 20 mil THIS year. That would be a boatload of luxury tax savings, and would set up a reasonable chance of re-signing both NAZ and NAW this offseason.

Anyway, I have no idea why I am wasting so much time on trying to solve the Wolves roster/cap issues. I guess I am kind of bored at the moment. I do believe this is my favorite manufactured trade thus far!

Depending on who you believe, Toronto has a thing for picking up Canadians. I'm not sure they wanna part with him.

[60WinTim]

I keep trying to come up with reasonable landing spots for Randle. There aren't many. Miami is one spot if the Wolves were able to get involved in a Butler to Warriors trade. Another spot is Detroit -- they have the need and financial flexibility to take on Randle and deal with his player option and/or extension. And they might find a tremendous incentive if their 1st round pick we have is on the table, too! So Detroit is a logical 3rd team to work with the Wolves.

So, then it comes down to who we are targeting to replace Randle? Some names we have tossed around are John Collins, Nicola Vucevic and Jonas Valanciunus. Heck, we might even have interest in bringing back SloMo! But here is a name that has flown under the radar: Kelly Olynyk.

Kelly is another former Jazz player that has played with Rudy, NAW and Mike. He has 2 years left on his contract at roughly 13 mil per year. He is just returning from a back injury and has only played in Toronto's last 4 games. I think he would be a reasonable fit alongside Rudy and NAZ as our frontcourt trio. He can hit the 3, is a ball mover, and is not ball dominant.

Because of both Toronto's and Detroit's cap situation, a trade can be structured with Randle going out and only Kelly coming in, which means the Wolves would save over 20 mil THIS year. That would be a boatload of luxury tax savings, and would set up a reasonable chance of re-signing both NAZ and NAW this offseason.

Anyway, I have no idea why I am wasting so much time on trying to solve the Wolves roster/cap issues. I guess I am kind of bored at the moment. I do believe this is my favorite manufactured trade thus far!

Depending on who you believe, Toronto has a thing for picking up Canadians. I'm not sure they wanna part with him.

Yeah, that thought had occurred to me. Maybe there is deal that involves NAW as well. Or a larger deal that has Wiggins going to Toronto...

[Wolvesfan21]

I agree with Q and Tim. I’m not down on Randle as a player. I’m just down on him, paired with Rudy, as a fit for Ant and we need to reduce the payroll to have a chance at retaining NAW and/or Naz and still get below the 2nd apron. I like the Olynyk deal because it’s a pure salary saving deal. We shouldn’t kid ourselves into thinking we can get a player in return for Randle who will make us better this season. In fact, we could end up worse in the short term as we Randle’s scoring in the middle of the season.

Trading Randle in early February would be the right move if we’re still no better than a few games over .500. At that point, I’d want to see this team upping Naz’s minutes, reducing Conley’s minutes and giving more playing time to Garza, Minott, Dilly and TSJ. Depending on how things go, I could see getting Miller and Clark in involved starting in mid March.

I was thinking the same thing, Conley is starting to look pretty cooked, is he still bothered with the wrist?

If the team isn't firing on all cylinders in another month or so it would be time to see if a Randle trade is out there along with bumping up the young guys into more playing time even starting (Dilly over Conley possibly to inject scoring).

My other worry with Randle is if he decides to opt in next year and we then potentially lose one or both of NAW and Naz because of Randles salary. Is there an expiring for Randle that makes some sense which then simply opens up minutes for the young guys and gives us better chance of retaining Naz and NAW?

I just like the potential of the young guys and this season is starting to feel more like a non contending team (Boston and OKC look so good and I am having a hard time seeing us beating both even if things do start to click).

At what point do you prioritize the future over the current? Those young guys could really surprise also and a Randle trade
could really open up the offense for Ant and others too. DDV struggling and Naz not exactly firing on offense. I can potentially see a top 5 offense if things go right. With Randle just ISO ball, sure it's decently effective. However it feels like it inhibits the offense from being better at the same time.

The other thing I was thinking was with Conley playing poor and Ant getting doubled. Like WTF are we suppose to do? Jaden and Rudy are obviously not great options. Even if Conley just started playing like last year we'd be in decent shape on offense. Time will tell.

[Wolvesfan21]

Is it even close for anyone 27 games in? Even though Naz has been hit or miss this season I'm 100% on the side of Naz. He brings more energy and more intensity and toughness night to night. He's my dude.

[WildWolf2813]

Is it even close for anyone 27 games in? Even though Naz has been hit or miss this season I'm 100% on the side of Naz. He brings more energy and more intensity and toughness night to night. He's my dude.

while you might want Naz to get that playing time, Naz also hasn't forced the issue on his end by playing out of his mind. Fans just want Randle seated because of Randle's performance, not Naz's. If Naz plays like this as a starter, then you're not gonna want either of them.

[BloopOracle]

Read a stat that Towns averaged 86% of crunch time minutes last year with Naz getting the rest. This year so far Randle is playing 97% of crunch time minutes...

[Wolvesfan21]

Is it even close for anyone 27 games in? Even though Naz has been hit or miss this season I'm 100% on the side of Naz. He brings more energy and more intensity and toughness night to night. He's my dude.

while you might want Naz to get that playing time, Naz also hasn't forced the issue on his end by playing out of his mind. Fans just want Randle seated because of Randle's performance, not Naz's. If Naz plays like this as a starter, then you're not gonna want either of them.

I still think Naz overall would help the offense and defense. Randle too often is bad on D, then ISO's on offense getting no one else involved (making no one else better). Naz may also struggle some as a starter but he at least won't tank the offense as much.

[Wolvesfan21]

Read a stat that Towns averaged 86% of crunch time minutes last year with Naz getting the rest. This year so far Randle is playing 97% of crunch time minutes...

KAT was also hurt with the knee later in the season and Naz played solid in that stretch if I remember right. Ant started to really take off as the lead dog during that time. Which made me think he'd really take another leap this year, still time...

[Lipoli390]

I agree with Q and Tim. I’m not down on Randle as a player. I’m just down on him, paired with Rudy, as a fit for Ant and we need to reduce the payroll to have a chance at retaining NAW and/or Naz and still get below the 2nd apron. I like the Olynyk deal because it’s a pure salary saving deal. We shouldn’t kid ourselves into thinking we can get a player in return for Randle who will make us better this season. In fact, we could end up worse in the short term as we Randle’s scoring in the middle of the season.

Trading Randle in early February would be the right move if we’re still no better than a few games over .500. At that point, I’d want to see this team upping Naz’s minutes, reducing Conley’s minutes and giving more playing time to Garza, Minott, Dilly and TSJ. Depending on how things go, I could see getting Miller and Clark in involved starting in mid March.

I was thinking the same thing, Conley is starting to look pretty cooked, is he still bothered with the wrist?

If the team isn't firing on all cylinders in another month or so it would be time to see if a Randle trade is out there along with bumping up the young guys into more playing time even starting (Dilly over Conley possibly to inject scoring).

My other worry with Randle is if he decides to opt in next year and we then potentially lose one or both of NAW and Naz because of Randles salary. Is there an expiring for Randle that makes some sense which then simply opens up minutes for the young guys and gives us better chance of retaining Naz and NAW?

I just like the potential of the young guys and this season is starting to feel more like a non contending team (Boston and OKC look so good and I am having a hard time seeing us beating both even if things do start to click).

At what point do you prioritize the future over the current? Those young guys could really surprise also and a Randle trade
could really open up the offense for Ant and others too. DDV struggling and Naz not exactly firing on offense. I can potentially see a top 5 offense if things go right. With Randle just ISO ball, sure it's decently effective. However it feels like it inhibits the offense from being better at the same time.

The other thing I was thinking was with Conley playing poor and Ant getting doubled. Like WTF are we suppose to do? Jaden and Rudy are obviously not great options. Even if Conley just started playing like last year we'd be in decent shape on offense. Time will tell.

I want to emphasize a point you made, Wolvesfan21. You mentioned your worry that we’d lose one or both of NAW and Naz if Randle opts in. I’ll just add that there’s no if in this equation. Julius Randle absolutely will opt in since there is not team out there that will give him that much money as a free agent. That’s why I’m absolutely convinced we need to trade him by the February deadline. We won’t be able to trade Randle after the season because the Wolves are over the 2nd apron which means they can’t sign-and-trade of of their players. As a result, Randle will opt in and we won’t be able to sign Naz and probably won’t her able to sign NAW either.

Unfortunately, the rest of the League is aware of the Wolves predicament. Moreover, Randle is not a coveted asset. Consequently, we’ll probably have to attached the Detroit pick we received for KAT to entice a team to take Randle in exchange for an expiring contract. That’s the best we’ll be able to do — i.e., trading Randle plus the Detroit pick in exchange for an expiring contract for payroll room to re-sign Naz and possibly re-sign NAW.

Even if we pull all that off, re-signing both Naz and NAW and getting below the 2nd apron threshold, we’ll still be well over the salary cap with limited draft assets. That’s why it’s so important to start getting good looks at Minott, Dilly and TSJ (maybe also Miller and Clark) in meaningful NBA minutes. We need to get a better sense of their potential and also give them the opportunity to develop through real game experience. I’d like to see this happen sooner rather than later. I don’t think we have to wait until early February to know that this Wolves team is NOT going to contend for a championship. At best, this team will end up in the 7th or 8th position after competing in the play-in tournament.

[AbeVigodaLive]

I agree with Q and Tim. I’m not down on Randle as a player. I’m just down on him, paired with Rudy, as a fit for Ant and we need to reduce the payroll to have a chance at retaining NAW and/or Naz and still get below the 2nd apron. I like the Olynyk deal because it’s a pure salary saving deal. We shouldn’t kid ourselves into thinking we can get a player in return for Randle who will make us better this season. In fact, we could end up worse in the short term as we Randle’s scoring in the middle of the season.

Trading Randle in early February would be the right move if we’re still no better than a few games over .500. At that point, I’d want to see this team upping Naz’s minutes, reducing Conley’s minutes and giving more playing time to Garza, Minott, Dilly and TSJ. Depending on how things go, I could see getting Miller and Clark in involved starting in mid March.

I was thinking the same thing, Conley is starting to look pretty cooked, is he still bothered with the wrist?

If the team isn't firing on all cylinders in another month or so it would be time to see if a Randle trade is out there along with bumping up the young guys into more playing time even starting (Dilly over Conley possibly to inject scoring).

My other worry with Randle is if he decides to opt in next year and we then potentially lose one or both of NAW and Naz because of Randles salary. Is there an expiring for Randle that makes some sense which then simply opens up minutes for the young guys and gives us better chance of retaining Naz and NAW?

I just like the potential of the young guys and this season is starting to feel more like a non contending team (Boston and OKC look so good and I am having a hard time seeing us beating both even if things do start to click).

At what point do you prioritize the future over the current? Those young guys could really surprise also and a Randle trade
could really open up the offense for Ant and others too. DDV struggling and Naz not exactly firing on offense. I can potentially see a top 5 offense if things go right. With Randle just ISO ball, sure it's decently effective. However it feels like it inhibits the offense from being better at the same time.

The other thing I was thinking was with Conley playing poor and Ant getting doubled. Like WTF are we suppose to do? Jaden and Rudy are obviously not great options. Even if Conley just started playing like last year we'd be in decent shape on offense. Time will tell.

I want to emphasize a point you made, Wolvesfan21. You mentioned your worry that we’d lose one or both of NAW and Naz if Randle opts in. I’ll just add that there’s no if in this equation. Julius Randle absolutely will opt in since there is not team out there that will give him that much money as a free agent. That’s why I’m absolutely convinced we need to trade him by the February deadline. We won’t be able to trade Randle after the season because the Wolves are over the 2nd apron which means they can’t sign-and-trade of of their players. As a result, Randle will opt in and we won’t be able to sign Naz and probably won’t her able to sign NAW either.

Unfortunately, the rest of the League is aware of the Wolves predicament. Moreover, Randle is not a coveted asset. Consequently, we’ll probably have to attached the Detroit pick we received for KAT to entice a team to take Randle in exchange for an expiring contract. That’s the best we’ll be able to do — i.e., trading Randle plus the Detroit pick in exchange for an expiring contract for payroll room to re-sign Naz and possibly re-sign NAW.

Even if we pull all that off, re-signing both Naz and NAW and getting below the 2nd apron threshold, we’ll still be well over the salary cap with limited draft assets. That’s why it’s so important to start getting good looks at Minott, Dilly and TSJ (maybe also Miller and Clark) in meaningful NBA minutes. We need to get a better sense of their potential and also give them the opportunity to develop through real game experience. I’d like to see this happen sooner rather than later. I don’t think we have to wait until early February to know that this Wolves team is NOT going to contend for a championship. At best, this team will end up in the 7th or 8th position after competing in the play-in tournament.

To be fair... are we certain THAT much has changed?

Back in October, there were reports that Randle would probably opt out and look for something like a 3/$100M deal. (basically an extension of his current deal)

Or last April, there was speculation he might seek a 4 year/$160M deal. In September, speculation was that he'd want (and earned) at least as much as Jarrett Allen ($30M)... and that signing as a FA for around $20M was too low.

I know Wolves fans are on a heater ripping the guy (justifiably). I just don't know if his value around the league is as low as many of us believe. Has it dropped THAT much in 25 games?