Minnesota Sports Forum

60WinTim wrote:

monsterpile wrote:Per jon k

Source: Shabazz Muhammad turned down more $ to come back to Wolves for a playoff run. Wolves gave him a trade kicker to finish deal

I am happy we added depth with Bazz. But don't think Bazz made this choice out of the goodness of his heart. He and his new agent would have examined all possibilities, including what can happen next year. Playing time had to be a major consideration in his their choice. But with FA money being even tighter next year, I think they decided retaining his Bird rights was better than taking a little more money somewhere else right now. Because with his Bird rights, FA money doesn't matter as much next year, whether it is re-signing with the Wolves or pursuing a sign-and-trade.

Yeah and how many guys have gotten some decent contracts for a couple nice playoff games? This probably was a somewhat calculated move for him but I would bet coming back to a team coaching staff players that were familiar with AND prioritized him for weeks (not to mention they probably offered him more money than anyone else before he turned it down and they went on with FA)...that probably all helps. Having said all this and how I am happy to be back it's very possible he ends up not being anything worth getting excited about. It's a great gamble for the Wolves though.

Great deal for the Wolves.

It shows how quickly things have changed for the players. Did I hear correctly that Muhammad turned down $40M earlier this year... only to end up with this deal. Yikes. Nerlens Noel is another one. They aren't alone.

How will this play out on the court. We know these guys care about money. And perception. And the perception that inferior players are making A LOT more money than they are just because of good/bad timing. For example... does Muhammad try to tear Aldrich's face off while dunking over him at practice this fall?

AbeVigodaLive wrote:Great deal for the Wolves.

It shows how quickly things have changed for the players. Did I hear correctly that Muhammad turned down $40M earlier this year... only to end up with this deal. Yikes. Nerlens Noel is another one. They aren't alone.

How will this play out on the court. We know these guys care about money. And perception. And the perception that inferior players are making A LOT more money than they are just because of good/bad timing. For example... does Muhammad try to tear Aldrich's face off while dunking over him at practice this fall?

I hope he rips everyone's face off who makes more than him this year. At his price that's a lot of faces. Nothing wrong with a bench guy having a big chip on his shoulder.

thedoper wrote:

AbeVigodaLive wrote:Great deal for the Wolves.

It shows how quickly things have changed for the players. Did I hear correctly that Muhammad turned down $40M earlier this year... only to end up with this deal. Yikes. Nerlens Noel is another one. They aren't alone.

How will this play out on the court. We know these guys care about money. And perception. And the perception that inferior players are making A LOT more money than they are just because of good/bad timing. For example... does Muhammad try to tear Aldrich's face off while dunking over him at practice this fall?

I hope he rips everyone's face off who makes more than him this year. At his price that's a lot of faces. Nothing wrong with a bench guy having a big chip on his shoulder.

Agreed.

It's simply such a disparity that it has to cause some animosity in locker rooms all over the league... especially if the lesser players flaunt it just a bit too much.

Our bench is now very good offensively. Although I don't think Bazz and Crawford will play much together (because I'd expect at least one of Butler or Wiggins to be in the game at all times), when they do it's gives us a nice leftie / righty scoring punch. Add Jones, Belly and Dieng and we have a bench full of guys who can get the ball in the hoop in a variety of different ways.

KiwiMatt wrote:Our bench is now very good offensively. Although I don't think Bazz and Crawford will play much together (because I'd expect at least one of Butler or Wiggins to be in the game at all times), when they do it's gives us a nice leftie / righty scoring punch. Add Jones, Belly and Dieng and we have a bench full of guys who can get the ball in the hoop in a variety of different ways.

I agree with this. Although the roles of Wiggins and Zach used to get compared constantly I think the roles of Zach and Bazz were potentially more overlapping long term. I actually think Butler/Bazz or Wiggins/Bazz will be great to watch tearing up 2nd units.

This thrills me. I love rooting for Bazz

leado01 wrote:This thrills me. I love rooting for Bazz

Isn't it great??? He's going to have even more to prove this year. He knows what Thibs wants to get playing time and he still chose another year here. It's awesome.

I love Bazz's hustle and transition play, we need another wing bad, and the price tag is awesome. At the same time, we have to admit it's really not the best fit. We really need 3 point shooting, defense, and passing--all weak points for Bazz.

All our guys have to be working on their 3 point shots this offseason. Thibs has got to get through to these guys defensively. Finally, this team needs to come to trust each other soon and become more willing passers. Winning should help, but it'll need to start earlier than that. This could either be an amazing season or a pretty disappointing one given our additions.

SameOldNudityDrew wrote:I love Bazz's hustle and transition play, we need another wing bad, and the price tag is awesome. At the same time, we have to admit it's really not the best fit. We really need 3 point shooting, defense, and passing--all weak points for Bazz.

All our guys have to be working on their 3 point shots this offseason. Thibs has got to get through to these guys defensively. Finally, this team needs to come to trust each other soon and become more willing passers. Winning should help, but it'll need to start earlier than that. This could either be an amazing season or a pretty disappointing one given our additions.

I agree on the need for 3-point shooting and defense. But more than anything, we needed wing who could play reasonably well on both sides of the ball. Bazz was the only viable free agent left who could fill that need. He's not a great defender, but he's turned himself into a decent defender and looks like the sort of player who will continue to improve on that side of the ball. And we all know he can score. As for passing, I don't think that's a priority. Butler, Teague, Belly, Towns and Jones are all good passers. Gorgui and Taj aren't bad either.

Interestingly, Thibs doesn't appear to be focused on bringing in 3-point shooters. His signature free agent signings -- Teague, Crawford and Taj are all predominantly mid-range/short-range shooters. Teague's a low-volume 35.5% three-point shooter while Crawford is a mid-volume 35% three point shooter. Taj is the opposite of the modern-day stretch 4 in today's NBA. Bazz is a 33% three-point shooter, but he looks like he'll grow into a 35-36% three-point guy. So from a 3-point shooting standpoint, signing Bazz is consistent with Thibs' other free agent signings this summer.

The common threads I see through all the free agents Thibs has signed this summer are:

1. The ability to score the ball;
2. High energy/passion; and
3. Toughness.

Bazz brings all those qualities as do Teague, Crawford and Taj.