Wolves Horizon Beyond the 2022-23 Season

[Monster]

As long as we can max out NAW we will be just fine.

Lip did I do it right? :)

This is an interesting thread from the tortured soul Lip is who is seeing the positives despite his dislike of the Gobert trade. As Wolves fans we have been in this type of situation plenty of times. What's different now is that the Wolves now have 3 really damn good young players in Towns Edwards and McDaniels. We aren't pinning our hopes on Kevin Love or Towns and Wiggins and hoping Rubio learns how to shoot. In addition I know people are down on Connelly but he does have a track record for having an eye for talent. That's a significant reason why he was brought here. Maybe it was other guys in Denver that made him look good. If it wasn't and he can continue to identify talent like he has then the Wolves will be able to fill in around the good young players they have.

Lip I'll add to the shopping list that if Gobert is dealt the Wolves will also need to look for a younger big to play next to Towns. Kyle Anderson is here so they may not need to fill that as immediately as the PG position but Anderson's injury history worries me and I'm a big fan of his. I think we need to calibrate how we look at Gobert not in how much we gave up but what he is worth both on the floor and as an asset. We have some basketball to be played yet this season to give us more info on how to value him going forward. Maybe his value goes up the next couple months both for the Wolves and around the league. There are also worse outcomes. There is nothing to be done for a while so let's see things play out.

[TheFuture]

As long as we can max out NAW we will be just fine.

Lip did I do it right? :)

This is an interesting thread from the tortured soul Lip is who is seeing the positives despite his dislike of the Gobert trade. As Wolves fans we have been in this type of situation plenty of times. What's different now is that the Wolves now have 3 really damn good young players in Towns Edwards and McDaniels. We aren't pinning our hopes on Kevin Love or Towns and Wiggins and hoping Rubio learns how to shoot. In addition I know people are down on Connelly but he does have a track record for having an eye for talent. That's a significant reason why he was brought here. Maybe it was other guys in Denver that made him look good. If it wasn't and he can continue to identify talent like he has then the Wolves will be able to fill in around the good young players they have.

Lip I'll add to the shopping list that if Gobert is dealt the Wolves will also need to look for a younger big to play next to Towns. Kyle Anderson is here so they may not need to fill that as immediately as the PG position but Anderson's injury history worries me and I'm a big fan of his. I think we need to calibrate how we look at Gobert not in how much we gave up but what he is worth both on the floor and as an asset. We have some basketball to be played yet this season to give us more info on how to value him going forward. Maybe his value goes up the next couple months both for the Wolves and around the league. There are also worse outcomes. There is nothing to be done for a while so let's see things play out.

Gobert cannot be dealt. This FO is tied too deep with him.

[Lipoli390]

As long as we can max out NAW we will be just fine.

Lip did I do it right? :)

This is an interesting thread from the tortured soul Lip is who is seeing the positives despite his dislike of the Gobert trade. As Wolves fans we have been in this type of situation plenty of times. What's different now is that the Wolves now have 3 really damn good young players in Towns Edwards and McDaniels. We aren't pinning our hopes on Kevin Love or Towns and Wiggins and hoping Rubio learns how to shoot. In addition I know people are down on Connelly but he does have a track record for having an eye for talent. That's a significant reason why he was brought here. Maybe it was other guys in Denver that made him look good. If it wasn't and he can continue to identify talent like he has then the Wolves will be able to fill in around the good young players they have.

Lip I'll add to the shopping list that if Gobert is dealt the Wolves will also need to look for a younger big to play next to Towns. Kyle Anderson is here so they may not need to fill that as immediately as the PG position but Anderson's injury history worries me and I'm a big fan of his. I think we need to calibrate how we look at Gobert not in how much we gave up but what he is worth both on the floor and as an asset. We have some basketball to be played yet this season to give us more info on how to value him going forward. Maybe his value goes up the next couple months both for the Wolves and around the league. There are also worse outcomes. There is nothing to be done for a while so let's see things play out.

Lol. You got it right, Monster. If I were TC and someone called about the availability of NAW, I'd hang up the phone immediately. :)

Seriously, your post is really good. I agree with all your points, including your take on how to evaluate Rudy. As much as I dislike the trade, which was horribly one-sided in favor of Utah by any coherent measure, it doesn't make sense to make decisions on Rudy now based on that trade. It's about the net value he brings versus the net value of trading him. That's the call the Wolves front office will have to make.

I agree with Cam that the Wolves should look to trade Rudy this offseason in exchange for younger, less proven prospects and possible draft assets as part of building around Ant and McDaniels (and probably KAT). I'd get as much in exchange for Rudy as possible and I think the longer the Wolves wait the less they'll get as he gets up into his 30s - not to mention the risk of a major injury that would leave the Wolves with a Supermax player who can't play or be traded. On the other hand, Gobert has played well lately and he definitely improves the team's defense when he's on the floor. But as Cam noted, there are other ways to ensure a good defense that will work better offensively and align well with the trajectory of our two young studs - Ant and Jaden. As Cam pointed out, last season was a good example of a decent defense with KAT as the team's starting center. Note also that Ant wasn't nearly as good defensively as he's been this season and we didn't have Kyle Anderson either.

Speaking of Kyle Anderson, I agree that the Wolves need to find a successor to Kyle Anderson as well as Mike Conley.

Let's see how the season plays out. I'm enjoying the moment, but as I said in my opening post, I'm also preparing myself psychologically for the worst, in which case it's all about looking ahead.

[60WinTim]

Considering the Wolves are in full control next year for each player currently in Finch's 9-man rotation (assuming KAT replaces Naz in the rotation), why is there any concern about the horizon after this season? The horizon after the '23-24 season is another story, with a number of player contracts ending. I expect next year's core team to be the same as this year's team. The only changes should be a turnover with some of our bench fodder, and hopefully, the addition of a heir apparent PG for Conley to groom over the next year or two.

[FNG]

Considering the Wolves are in full control next year for each player currently in Finch's 9-man rotation (assuming KAT replaces Naz in the rotation), why is there any concern about the horizon after this season? The horizon after the '23-24 season is another story, with a number of player contracts ending. I expect next year's core team to be the same as this year's team. The only changes should be a turnover with some of our bench fodder, and hopefully, the addition of a heir apparent PG for Conley to groom over the next year or two.

Yeah, that's where I am too, Tim...I'm don't anticipate any significant changes, or any changes at all, in next year's core. And not because of a lack of flexibility...because this roster (with credit to both TC and Rosas) is set and built for success. We've added two Utah players who were key pieces on a team that won 101 games last night to join three guys any team would love to have in their starting lineup along with a reliable veteran supporting cast. I see a roster with all the pieces needed for a championship:

-A defense that has shown it can be equally effective inside and outside. Gobert gives us an inside presence that allows our wing defenders to be more aggressive on the perimeter, and Jaden and Ant seem to have the potential to match any duo in the league in perimeter defense.

-A PG who takes care of the ball and looks to get everyone involved. Conley is a proven leader and winner...his career winning percentage, despite largely not playing next to many certain Hall of Famers and in small markets that don't attract free agents, is truly extraordinary. He simply knows how to win, and I would argue he has never had a stronger roster top to bottom around him.

-A versatile offense that has shown it can score efficiently inside and outside. Game after game we outscore our opponent in the paint, due to a combination of elite interior defense and ball movement resulting in easy buckets plus Ant's ability to get to the rim. And while there was a narrative that we would be a terrible 3-point team AD compared to BC, and especially with the absence of KAT, actually the opposite has been true in the 8 AD games. We are making 40% of our threes during that period on almost 40 attempts per game. 40% is better than any other team in the league this season, and the 40 attempts also puts us in the upper echelon. 40 and 40 needs to be our mantra the rest of the season! NBA players make open 3-point shots, and our improved ball movement along with Conley's ability to consistently deliver the ball in the right place and at the right time (just watch how much better Jaden is on 3's with Conley finding him perfectly in rhythm) leads to the kind of results we are getting beyond the arc. Suddenly we are an elite 3-point team, and the return of KAT will only make us better.

-Veteran leadership what can calm things down when necessary. Is there anyone here that doesn't feel comfortable when the ball is in the hands of Conley, SloMo or Prince? They are exactly the kind of players you want around to mentor and steady budding superstars like Ant and Jaden.

So let's stop the talk of blowing up this team by trading players who have a decent chance of being in the Hall of Fame some day...that's nonsense. We just swept the LA teams on their home court for the first time in franchise history, and followed that sweep with an "upset" win against the highest scoring team in the league that had won 5 games in a row! We have a roster that is finally built to win a championship, and some here want to blow it up. I'm inviting the horse traders to jump on the bandwagon and enjoy what this new roster is doing, and dream about what they can do once KAT completes the picture.

LET'S GO WOLVES!!!!!!!!!!!

[Monster]

I wouldn't get too attached to Mike Conley being on the roster next year. I think the Wolves will not just sit around and try and keep the whole band together which would also include resigning guys like Naz and NAW. I think they will look for a way to upgrade the guard spot possibly both in terms of a possible starter next to Edwards and off the bench.

Having said that I think if the Wolves play FA right they may be able to add a pretty good player/s (or one with some reasonable potential) to help the backcourt either by making a solid offer to someone fairly quickly or waiting things out till the money dries up...or maybe both.

[60WinTim]

I think I disagree with you regarding Conley, monster. TC was pretty adamant about wanting to surround his youngsters on the team with "adults" who can aid in their development. So I fully expect to see Conley on the team next year, and maybe even an extension for the year after that, with the chemistry and performance of the team, and the financial sense of keeping Conley's salary slot being factors in that decision.

Nowell will be gone, Rivers will only be brought back if something better doesn't surface, and I think it's a less than 50-50 chance that Naz returns.

The Wolves are roughly 18 mil under the luxury tax for next year with players that are signed. It's logical to assume they would sign NAW to an extension and still be able to sign a player with the MLE, which should be a player who could eventually supplant Conley as the starting PG.

[KG4Ever]

I expect the roster next year to include Edwards, McDaniels, KAT, Rudy, SloMo, Conley, Prince, JMac, NAW, Garza, Minott, Moore and possibly Reid and Ryan. I love Reid's development and offensive tools, but he's been terrible in plus/minus since he joined the rotation and with the glut of big men, I don't think anyone will pay him a lot or bring him in to start, so maybe we can get him well below 10M. Nowell, I am ambivalent about, but wouldn't pay him a lot to return and I think he leaves. I think Rivers is likely gone and Knight may be gone, if they need a roster spot. Would love to bring in an eventual Conley replacement and Shake Milton is someone I'd look at. Other FA possibilities include Dennis Smith or Oladipo.

[Carlos Danger]

Gobert cannot be dealt. This FO is tied too deep with him.

Absolutely. I understand why people want to deal him. And if it were us or anyone else running the team - sure, that would make sense. But not the guy that traded the farm for him. I just don't see TC backtracking on that deal so fast. And in his defense, Towns/Rudy only played 19 games and 400 minutes together. He's running it back 100% IMO.

[Carlos Danger]

I think I disagree with you regarding Conley, monster. TC was pretty adamant about wanting to surround his youngsters on the team with "adults" who can aid in their development. So I fully expect to see Conley on the team next year, and maybe even an extension for the year after that, with the chemistry and performance of the team, and the financial sense of keeping Conley's salary slot being factors in that decision.

Nowell will be gone, Rivers will only be brought back if something better doesn't surface, and I think it's a less than 50-50 chance that Naz returns.

The Wolves are roughly 18 mil under the luxury tax for next year with players that are signed. It's logical to assume they would sign NAW to an extension and still be able to sign a player with the MLE, which should be a player who could eventually supplant Conley as the starting PG.

If Conley shows he still has something left in the tank through year end (and hopefully playoffs), I feel he's definitely back and possibly extended. I'm not sure I want to depend on him as my starting point guard. But maybe he'd be a nice guy with less minutes in a bench role. But obviously, we all would want to wait and see what he does down the stretch before forming any final opinions.