Minnesota Sports Forum

Sundog60 wrote:It seems like the primary ball handlers on the roster besides Dlo will be ant, j-mac, nowell, forbes, and now rivers. Not sure a guy like Schroeder would have wanted to come here with such limited opportunity. But who knows what was explored.

I'm confused about the number of remaining roster spots. I think I'm assuming Knight will be signed as the 4th big, and probably not on another two-way -- right? If so, does that mean the only spots left are the two two-ways? Or is there a roster spot for Minott?

This team is again remarkably deep, now with more veterans that have playoff experience. The team also seems well-situated to absorb the minor injuries to key players that usually happen in the course of the season. Is that the board's sense as well?

I would remove Bryn Forbes and Austin Rivers from your list of ball-handlers. Ideally, neither of them are handling the rock with any consistency. They're catch-and-shoot threats, and in the case of Rivers he's shown enough ability on straight line drives, especially when attacking closeouts. I also think we could see Kyle Anderson handling the ball a decent amount with the second unit.

Nathan Knight will probably be retained on the two-way offer that Minnesota already tendered. I don't think he'll be given an NBA deal by another team. I would, however, think that the Timberwolves will try to lock Josh Minott into a four-year deal with team options and little guaranteed money after the first year similar to the deals Naz Reid and Jaylen Nowell signed several years ago. Those deals reward unrefined NBA talent while allowing them some level of financial security.

Signing Josh Minott to an NBA deal would leave Minnesota with one roster spot remaining that I would expect them to leave vacant. Nathan Knight would take up one of Minnesota's two-way spots. Who they sign to the other two-way spot is a mystery at this point. I had vocalized support for Mac McClung previously, but I'm not sure what level of interest, if any, the Timberwolves would have in him.

I like this move, he can push McLaughlin and Nowell just in case either shits the bed.

Solid add, even players like Lance Stephenson have a roll in this league...as long as they understand their roll...otherwise your Dion Waiters

WallyWorld wrote:Solid add, even players like Lance Stephenson have a roll in this league...as long as they understand their roll...otherwise your Dion Waiters

Great point, Wally.

Austin's tweet following his decision to sign with the Wolves:

Austin Rivers
@AustinRivers25
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Minnesota I'm hype. Excited to be apart of the squad! Big year ahead!!
9:36 PM · Jul 14, 2022

Chemistry matters. Having players who are excited to be part of the team is a big deal. We heard from Gobert directly at his presser about how excited he is to come to the Wolves. Obviously, the same level of excitement from Austin Rivers. We saw Jon K's interview and report showing how excited DLO is. Have to believe that KAT and Edwards are similarly excited about the upcoming session. Of course, how things come together remains to be seen. But the building enthusiasm among Wolves players -- all wanting to be here and excited about the team's prospects -- bodes well.