AussieWolf3 wrote: ↑Thu Oct 29, 2026 5:34 pm
He's under contract, no?
I agree with you, but they'll have to pull levers to make that happen
Kuminga or Rudy? Both have player options next season. 38 million for Rudy, and 6.3 million for Kuminga. Rudy can opt out at any time (today, next week, in June) and agree to an extension as soon as he opts out. Or he can opt in and play on an expiring contract. If Rudy plans on staying here for a few years, ideally he opts out and takes a pay cut to round the roster out. Kuminga can opt out and sign anywhere, the most we could open up for him is the 15 or so million mle, but getting that far below the apron might be tough, especially if they want to re-sign Donte and keep everyone.
To afford Kuminga the Wolves would need to trade Rudy next summer to a team with lots of cap space for a MUCH lower contract or draft assets in return. I’m not advocating for that but if we want a shot at keeping Kuminga that’s what the organization would need to do.
You missed the memo, Cool. You could wipe Rudy's salary off the books and still only be able to offer JK the full MLE. While wiping Rudy's salary off the books does get the Wolves under the salary cap, it's not more than the full MLE under, therefore the Wolves would not be able to offer more than the full MLE.
If JK was willing to sign a short term deal for the full MLE, the Wolves will be sufficiently under the 1st apron to do so, even without moving Rudy. Of course, the desire to re-sign Donte complicates things... But extending Rudy at a smaller number might enable both signings.
Q-is-here wrote: ↑Fri Oct 30, 2026 2:22 pm
I like the idea of a Rudy taper, whereby he signs an extension for less money and gradually plays fewer and fewer minutes.
Yeah, this is my preferred route as well. It keeps the floor in place, gives Joan time to develop, and creates salary space to address the depth in the front court.
Q-is-here wrote: ↑Fri Oct 30, 2026 2:22 pm
I like the idea of a Rudy taper, whereby he signs an extension for less money and gradually plays fewer and fewer minutes.
Yeah, this is my preferred route as well. It keeps the floor in place, gives Joan time to develop, and creates salary space to address the depth in the front court.
Yes, mine too...and I also think that is the route we are most likely to go. TC and Finchy have shown they are in 100% win-now mode with the offseason moves, and a raw soon to be 20-year old does not fit well in that scenario...no matter how good we might think he's going to be in 4-5 years (and I think very good).
Aussie has mentioned that 5 games is way too small a sample size to make any on/off conclusions with respect to Rudy and Joan, and I agree. My point is I would wager a lot that there will continue to be a sizable gap between the 2 of them by this measure as the season progresses. And I don't think the "playing with reserves" argument holds water...it ignores the fact that he is also generally "playing against reserves"! Joan has been typically out there with either Ant or Ball, Ayo, TJ and Lyles, and most of us continue to be quite high on Ayo and TJ...in fact, I think most of us would say a lineup that includes one of our powerhouse backcourt, Ayo and TJ is going to generally be better than the lineup our opponent puts out there at the first break. I don't believe we're getting outscored because Joan is playing with scrubs...the main reason we're getting outscored when Joan is out there is because (just like last year) our defense just isn't the same when Rudy sits. But I can't think of a better center for him to play understudy to as he learns the basics of NBA defense...keeping Rudy around for a couple more years will be far better for his development than throwing Joan into the deep end and asking him to swim.
I'll put another stop to the "dump Rudy" discussion, although I know it will fall on deaf ears . The best analysis I have ever heard about Rudy was when I heard a smart guy say "Rudy's mistakes are very loud, and the things he does well are very quiet...but the good far outweighs the bad". Joan is just the opposite...very loud good things (like when he makes a spectacular block or dunk) and very quiet but numerous bad things. We all get frustrated when Rudy fumbles the ball, but we don't talk enough about his elite defense (and yes, it is still elite), his defensive rebounding, his ability to keep offensive possessions alive with tip backs, and his screening (which is as good as any center in the Association). We also don't talk about his court knowledge...how he knows exactly where to go when he sees a guard being doubled or in trouble, and how for some reason his hands aren't made of stone when he catches the ball at the top of the key. And finally how quickly he gets rid of the ball to the right person when he catches the ball at the top of the key. In contrast Joan hasn't learned to do many of these small, but important things, and will really profit from at least another season of watching a future HOF center. All of little things add up, and lead to the dramatic difference in on/off numbers we currently see and will continue to see the rest of the season...the Wolves are a plus 4.9 on/off when Rudy is on the court, and a minus 15.6 for Joan.
Joan is going to be terrific...he has the size, athleticism and drive to be a really good 2-way center. But I think we're being naive to think a raw 19-year-old who has played a lot more soccer than basketball in his life is ready to be a starting center in the NBA. My long-term expectations for him are high, but my hopes for this season is that we survive the minutes Rudy is off the court as Joan continues to learn to play a game he has only played for 6 years. I would love to be wrong and see Joan be right away what a lot of us want him to be, but I am quite certain that we will continue to win the minutes Rudy is on the court and lose Joan's minutes...and hopefully that gap diminishes as the season progresses.
We all talk about those things and are very aware of them regarding Gobert. I know Gobert has earned a reputation nationally that is unfair, but 99% of the folks here are aware of his virtues, and his loud mistakes. Which is why it's noteworthy for us to comment on his poor play.
The numbers you site just aren't that compelling off 5 games of data. Rudy's net on/off is the worst of the starters, and Joan is playing with backups or blended lineups.
Bottom line is that Rudy hasn't made a FG in like 13 tries and has how many turnovers? It's inexcusably bad even if he continues to be the leagues best floor raiser on defense. To be honest, if he continues to play this way, I'm not sure that you can call him a starting caliber center on a contending team.
Not a lot is being asked of him here: hold on to the ball and finish with force at the rim. He makes it look hard but it shouldn't be this hard for a professional athlete.
He's gotta be better, flat out, period.
Spot on, Aussie! I don’t want to “dump” Rudy. But I expect Rudy to play much better. He’s still a great paint defender but he’s not the shot-blocking force he once was, which magnifies the significance of his weaknesses. And moreover, so far this season those weaknesses themselves have been worse than usual.
Does anyone have any idea what LaMelo was saying to Rudy in this clip?
We don't know what was said, but I would guess it was something like "catch the ball, Rudy, and dunk it...it ain't that hard"! Only Rudy has talked about it. He said there was nothing disrespectful, just teammates trying to help each other out. He said they were frustrated and he was too. I have no problem with JK and Ball doing that. And I'll have no problem either with Rudy getting up in the grill of a teammate he thinks isn't putting in enough effort on defense. I think everyone knows this roster has championship potential, and the players are going to hold each other accountable at both ends of the court.
. The best analysis I have ever heard about Rudy was when I heard a smart guy say "Rudy's mistakes are very loud, and the things he does well are very quiet...but the good far outweighs the bad". Joan is just the opposite...very loud good things (like when he makes a spectacular block or dunk) and very quiet but numerous bad things. We all get frustrated when Rudy fumbles the ball, but we don't talk enough about his elite defense (and yes, it is still elite), his defensive rebounding, his ability to keep offensive possessions alive with tip backs, and his screening (which is as good as any center in the Association). We also don't talk about his court knowledge...how he knows exactly where to go when he sees a guard being doubled or in trouble, and how for some reason his hands aren't made of stone when he catches the ball at the top of the key. And finally how quickly he gets rid of the ball to the right person when he catches the ball at the top of the key. In contrast Joan hasn't learned to do many of these small, but important things, and will really profit from at least another season of watching a future HOF center. All of little things add up, and lead to the dramatic difference in on/off numbers we currently see and will continue to see the rest of the season...the Wolves are a plus 4.9 on/off when Rudy is on the court, and a minus 15.6 for Joan.