Naz is back!

[60WinTim]

And just to clarify, his salary next year will be roughly 21.5 mil. 8% raises over the course of 5 years brings the total to 125 mil.

I have a hard time complaining about 21.5 mil.

[Lipoli390]

For context:

https://www.espn.com/nba/salaries

Seems totally fair for Naz.

Very good deal for Naz, but I have to agree with Kek that it seems like an overpay. I don't think I see any other non-starters on the first two pages of Drew's list.

Like most of us, I'm gonna miss NAW.

FNG - I think it’s clear the Wolves front office views Naz as our starting PF eventually if not right away during the five-year term of this deal. And he wasn’t just a guy off the bench; he was the team’s 6th man with an 6th man of the year award under his belt while averaging over 27 minutes per game last season. I haven’t dug into which players with comparable salaries are not starters. I don’t think Jrue Holiday started for Celtics’ last season at $32.4M. I think Hartenstein came off the bench except when Holmgren was out. Hartenstein’s minutes per game last season were essentially identical to Naz Reid’s. I’m sure there some other examples. So the salary isn’t even out of line for a 6th man. But again, I don’t think there’s much doubt that the Wolves brass envision Naz as the Wolves starter at some point.

[Lipoli390]

And just to clarify, his salary next year will be roughly 21.5 mil. 8% raises over the course of 5 years brings the total to 125 mil.

I have a hard time complaining about 21.5 mil.

No kidding.

[WildWolf2813]

Huh? Chet and J Dub will get maxxed out and don't they have next year to play still which means All NBA and big raises coming.

My point is that's clearly their big three long term.

I look at this team and still don't see a 2nd or 3rd guy here yet.

You seriously don't think Jaden can be a legit 3rd guy? I mean, he's basically in that role now and has proven he can step up in the playoffs.

would it stun me if we heard nothing but pleasantries about JMac only for Finch to forget he's sitting in the corner and then after a month he's back to averaging 10 and 3 after the first month? No.

In the short term what we're asking JMac to do if he is gonna be one of those immovable core pieces is be top 3 for Most Improved Player and have us complain that he got snubbed for an all-star spot (well maybe not this if they're doing US vs World but you get my point.) I appreciate what he's doing and I wouldn't give him away, but entering year 6 he's gonna have to just put it all together.

[Lipoli390]

I think that of semi-importance is that he had other similar offers available to him. That means he is tradeable if the need arises and would probably be a key piece in a potential superstar trade down the line.

I'm glad he's staying but I get the feeling he is being paid off to be happy coming off the bench whereas I might rather trade Randle into a backup big and point guard.

I don’t think so, Phenom. I don’t think the Wolves are paying a premium; in fact based on reports its appears we’re paying him the market rate and perhaps even a little less.

Honestly, this isn’t an “overpay.” When I see “overpay” my reaction is - compared to what or who? The market determines a player’s monetary value and it’s been reported that Naz had similar offers from other teams, which means this contract reflects Naz’s market rate. I’m not surprised at all by $25M per year, which is about what I thought he’d end up getting. I actually thought he might get more.

This amount makes even more sense when put in perspective relative to other contracts around the League. Here are some salaries for the upcoming season: Aaron Gordon ($22.8M), RJ Barrett ($27.7), De’Andre Hunter ($23.3M), Nic Claxton ($25.3M), Miles Bridges ($25M), Jerami Grant ($32M), Kuzma ($23M), Vucevic ($21.5M), Hartenstein ($28.5M), Jordan Poole ($31.8M), Quickley ($32.5M), Anfernee Simons ($27.7M), Andrew Wiggins ($28.2M), Lauri Markkanen ($46.2M), Zach LaVine ($47.5M), OG Anunoby ($39.6M), Zion Williamson ($39.4M), Jalen Suggs ($35M), Khris Middleton ($33.9M), and Jrue Holiday at age 36 ($32.4M with 3 years left on his deal). When you look at these salaries and consider Naz’s skills, durability, close relationship with key Wolves players (Jaden & Ant), age and remaining upside, this contract makes a lot of sense. If we’re looking for overpays, we can find them in Jrue Holiday, Khris Middleton (deciding skills and can’t stay healthy), Zach LaVine ($47.5M is a lot for an empty stat guys who doesn’t defend or contribute to winning). I like Lauri Markkanen, but $46 million?? If Jerami Grant is worth $32M then Naz is certainly worth $25M.

I’m super happy the Wolves got this done and I’m content with what appears to be a reasonable, market-based contract. The interesting question now is what happens with Randle. Did Naz sign this deal without regard to what Randle does or did he get word that Randle won’t be getting a multi-year offer from the Wolves? We were never going to be in a position to keep Naz, Randle and NAW because of the second apron and TC made it clear again that they’re committed to staying under that threshold. I’m still thinking the most likely outcome is Randle exercising his option and NAW signing elsewhere as a free agent.

I actually believe this is fair value for his talent and production. The difference, and what I am referring to, is he is projected as a bench player so he is getting a higher salary to placate him for being a bench player, at least for the time being. His salary range is made up of starters around the league. It may be a signal of the Wolves long term plan for him.

I see your point, Phenom. There are two ways to look at this. One way is to assume the Wolves contemplate Naz eventually becoming our starting PF over the term of his contract. The other way to look at it is to look at the deal through the lens of minutes played. Naz averaged 27.5 minutes per game last season. If you envision him averaging 30 minutes per game, which is only slightly more than he’s been playing, it doesn’t really matter whether his starting or not.

[WildWolf2813]

Huh? Chet and J Dub will get maxxed out and don't they have next year to play still which means All NBA and big raises coming.

My point is that's clearly their big three long term.

I look at this team and still don't see a 2nd or 3rd guy here yet.

OK sure, Naz isn't being paid like it though either. I heard today Booker is due to make 75 million per year next contract like 2 years 150 something. So a third of that is a fair deal really compared to the supermax guys.

25 per is kind of backup/6th man/low end starter money now believe it or not.

It's less about the money and more about roster construction. There's only 5 starting spots.

Ant - nuff said.

Rudy- maybe has one more year of significant defensive impact, but that's ok because we've started the eventual transfer of power to Beringer (who even if he fully develops I don't see as a top 3 guy but still very impactful)

J-Mac and Naz I've stated my opinions on them, so it leaves PG as that one spot that can be conductive to that sidekick Ant needs. Thus, why I'm all for giving Rob the opportunity to become that if he can. Otherwise, we'll be searching for PG's til we do.

[Lipoli390]

My point is that's clearly their big three long term.

I look at this team and still don't see a 2nd or 3rd guy here yet.

OK sure, Naz isn't being paid like it though either. I heard today Booker is due to make 75 million per year next contract like 2 years 150 something. So a third of that is a fair deal really compared to the supermax guys.

25 per is kind of backup/6th man/low end starter money now believe it or not.

It's less about the money and more about roster construction. There's only 5 starting spots.

Ant - nuff said.

Rudy- maybe has one more year of significant defensive impact, but that's ok because we've started the eventual transfer of power to Beringer (who even if he fully develops I don't see as a top 3 guy but still very impactful)

J-Mac and Naz I've stated my opinions on them, so it leaves PG as that one spot that can be conductive to that sidekick Ant needs. Thus, why I'm all for giving Rob the opportunity to become that if he can. Otherwise, we'll be searching for PG's til we do.

I feel great about Ant as our #1 and Jaden as our #3. I agree we haven’t yet seen any of our current players emerge as a #2. I think Jaden has the talent to become that guy. Ideally, I’d like to see our #2 emerge at the PG position so I’d love to see Dily get the opportunity to grow into that role over the next few years. But there are other ways this can go successfully. Ant could settle into a role as our SGA and TSJ could become Ant’s Jalen Williams who, in his third season, was SGA’s #2 on a championship team. Maybe we don’t need a clear #2.

[Monster]

I'm pretty happy with this and glad to see we have kept him around. My take was it seems like a solid deal especially since it's a 4-5 year deal. Salaries are gonna keep going up so this could end up being quite the value at some point.

Like others have said this deal starts at around 21 million. The full mid-level is just over 14 million. It's fair to say Naz market value was higher than the full mid level. How much? I guess that can be debated but a deal starting at that number seems reasonable to me. It's nice that it's done now and we can see what else happens.

[Lipoli390]

I was just looking at our payroll situation again with Randle in mind. Assuming we let NAW walk, I think we can sign Randle to a multi-year deal starting at as much as $33 million and stay under the 2nd apron. One possibility would be a 4-year, $126M contract that starts at $33M and ramps down in 1M yearly increments to $30 million for year 4. That way, he gets slightly more than Naz in one less year, which should be enough for his pride. At the same time, it would be a nice hedge against hitting the second apron in future years as the salaries of Naz and others go up each year. Moreover, it would help enhance Randle’s trade value down the road.

[Crazysauce]

I'm not a fan of this contract. Naz has proven time and rime again that he can't play defense. Was awful in the playoffs. And like was mentioned, who were we negotiating against? Nobody could pay him that much. Have a bad feeling we will look at this as a bad contract in a year or two.