Jimmy Butler traded to Philly

[Monster]

A couple considerations from this deal when it comes to salary and the cap etc.

1. The Wolves actually have some space to add a player to their roster now beyond the vet min. They would have to waive Bayless but that isn't a big deal. I'd guess the bigger aspect of having that room and a trade excemption is adding a player in a trade that someone doesn't want. It could even be something where they get a 2nd round pick for taking a player on. That's a nice option to have.

They added 2 possible starters for next season for less than 15 million combined in Saric and Covington. Even if Saric is just a good rotation player that's still pretty good. The Wolves have some space against the lux tax to keep and or add players to the roster even if Teague opts in. If Teague opts our they would have more options but obviously a position that needed to be filled.

Also worth noting on the 2022 2nd round pick it's the best of the Either the Sixers or Denver's 2nd round pick. So there is 2 chances of getting a pick in the 2nd round higher in the draft.

Saric would be a RFA in 2021 so the Wolves have some time to figure out what they have in him and what they want to do with him. They could also do an extension with him before next season.

One thing this deal does is continue to make this team look more modern. Saric and Covington combine to shoot over 11 threes a game this year. Covington actually took more last year.

[Coolbreeze44]

I'm probably more in the Cool camp than the Crazy/Jason camp....This whole situation has sucked the life force out of me as a fan. I suspect the same can be said of the locker room. Simply doing something - anything! - to get Jimmy out of town is better than the dysfunctional circus we have suffered through over the past month or so.

That being said, Covington has always been a guy on my list of wings I'd love to see in a T-Wolves uniform. He does the two things we need most: Defense and 3-point shooting. He isn't a sniper like Redick, but you have to respect his outside shot. This also ensures that KAT is absolutely the center of gravity on offense (so long as Wiggins and Rose don't get too shot happy).

No, we didn't get equal value for Butler and I probably would have preferred Richardson over Covington. But since this sordid affair started, my bar of what is acceptable has been lowered and now I'm just glad we can move the hell on.

Q, what's your take on Saric? I'd like to hear your perspective on him.

[Monster]

I'm probably more in the Cool camp than the Crazy/Jason camp....This whole situation has sucked the life force out of me as a fan. I suspect the same can be said of the locker room. Simply doing something - anything! - to get Jimmy out of town is better than the dysfunctional circus we have suffered through over the past month or so.

That being said, Covington has always been a guy on my list of wings I'd love to see in a T-Wolves uniform. He does the two things we need most: Defense and 3-point shooting. He isn't a sniper like Redick, but you have to respect his outside shot. This also ensures that KAT is absolutely the center of gravity on offense (so long as Wiggins and Rose don't get too shot happy).

No, we didn't get equal value for Butler and I probably would have preferred Richardson over Covington. But since this sordid affair started, my bar of what is acceptable has been lowered and now I'm just glad we can move the hell on.

In a vacuum without the money and all that Richardson has more upside etc. there are some reasons to like Covington more in that is he is bigger and stronger physically than Richardson and has had better rebounding numbers.

[Q12543 [enjin:6621299]]

I'm probably more in the Cool camp than the Crazy/Jason camp....This whole situation has sucked the life force out of me as a fan. I suspect the same can be said of the locker room. Simply doing something - anything! - to get Jimmy out of town is better than the dysfunctional circus we have suffered through over the past month or so.

That being said, Covington has always been a guy on my list of wings I'd love to see in a T-Wolves uniform. He does the two things we need most: Defense and 3-point shooting. He isn't a sniper like Redick, but you have to respect his outside shot. This also ensures that KAT is absolutely the center of gravity on offense (so long as Wiggins and Rose don't get too shot happy).

No, we didn't get equal value for Butler and I probably would have preferred Richardson over Covington. But since this sordid affair started, my bar of what is acceptable has been lowered and now I'm just glad we can move the hell on.

In a vacuum without the money and all that Richardson has more upside etc. there are some reasons to like Covington more in that is he is bigger and stronger physically than Richardson and has had better rebounding numbers.

True, Richardson is more of a SG than a SF. Covington can slide right in at SF, so he is a cleaner fit given our current roster....so yeah, short-term might be better but I like Richardson better long term.

[Q12543 [enjin:6621299]]

I'm probably more in the Cool camp than the Crazy/Jason camp....This whole situation has sucked the life force out of me as a fan. I suspect the same can be said of the locker room. Simply doing something - anything! - to get Jimmy out of town is better than the dysfunctional circus we have suffered through over the past month or so.

That being said, Covington has always been a guy on my list of wings I'd love to see in a T-Wolves uniform. He does the two things we need most: Defense and 3-point shooting. He isn't a sniper like Redick, but you have to respect his outside shot. This also ensures that KAT is absolutely the center of gravity on offense (so long as Wiggins and Rose don't get too shot happy).

No, we didn't get equal value for Butler and I probably would have preferred Richardson over Covington. But since this sordid affair started, my bar of what is acceptable has been lowered and now I'm just glad we can move the hell on.

Q, what's your take on Saric? I'd like to hear your perspective on him.

He's your classic skilled Euro big that can handle, shoot, and pass but defensively doesn't quite have the strength and athleticism we could really use next to KAT in terms of defense and rebounding. He doesn't do any one thing super well or super poorly. I'm not sure he's our future starting PF given KAT's inability to tussle with the big boys in the paint. I do think he can be an upgrade to Tolliver as a backup 4, so it will be interesting to see how Gibson, Tolliver, and Saric share playing time.

[Monster]

I'm probably more in the Cool camp than the Crazy/Jason camp....This whole situation has sucked the life force out of me as a fan. I suspect the same can be said of the locker room. Simply doing something - anything! - to get Jimmy out of town is better than the dysfunctional circus we have suffered through over the past month or so.

That being said, Covington has always been a guy on my list of wings I'd love to see in a T-Wolves uniform. He does the two things we need most: Defense and 3-point shooting. He isn't a sniper like Redick, but you have to respect his outside shot. This also ensures that KAT is absolutely the center of gravity on offense (so long as Wiggins and Rose don't get too shot happy).

No, we didn't get equal value for Butler and I probably would have preferred Richardson over Covington. But since this sordid affair started, my bar of what is acceptable has been lowered and now I'm just glad we can move the hell on.

Q, what's your take on Saric? I'd like to hear your perspective on him.

He's your classic skilled Euro big that can handle, shoot, and pass but defensively doesn't quite have the strength and athleticism we could really use next to KAT in terms of defense and rebounding. He doesn't do any one thing super well or super poorly. I'm not sure he's our future starting PF given KAT's inability to tussle with the big boys in the paint. I do think he can be an upgrade to Tolliver as a backup 4, so it will be interesting to see how Gibson, Tolliver, and Saric share playing time.

I agree with your assessment Q. What I think Saric does do is make this team even if he is flawed mroe modern. Saric's abiity to shoot 3's etc could be good enough to pair next to Towns for a chunk of minutes. SI ranked him pretty high in their top 100. Im not buying him at 54 (!!!!!!) but check out what they wrote about him.

https://www.si.com/nba/2018/09/10/top-100-nba-players-2019-lebron-james-stephen-curry-dirk-nowitzki#partone


DARIO SARIC
PHILADELPHIA 76ERS
For Saric (14.6 PPG, 6.7 RPG, 2.6 APG), instinct is a propulsive force. The 24-year-old has a preternatural sense of where to be and when. By the time Ben Simmons commits to making a pass, Saric has already raced through the backdoor on his way to the rim. He has a knack for turning up around any loose ball. If the defense is careless enough to box out without securing the rebound, Saric will be the first to it. Should an opponent get careless with a dribble hand-off, Saric might sniff out their negligence and poke the ball away.

It's not easy for a team to build off of that kind of situational awareness, but we saw in the postseason just how fruitful it can be. Saric was completely undaunted by his first playoff run. He stuck to his game--a dynamic mix of cutting, shooting, and playmaking--and found room to contribute across the board. There were always higher priorities for the Sixers than to get Saric involved, and yet he constantly worked his way into the mix. For all the careful planning that goes into an NBA game, sometimes it's up to players like Saric to help a team find their flow. -- RM

[Q12543 [enjin:6621299]]

I can see KAT and Saric ending a lot of halves/games together as a pair, but I still think KAT needs a true big man that can give us 20-25 MPG and help on the boards and clog the paint. Saric/Embiid works defensively because Embiid is a monster. KAT unfortunately doesn't offer up the same level of resistance and Saric certainly doesn't. Nice piece, but not a great fit defensively IMO.

[Monster]

I can see KAT and Saric ending a lot of halves/games together as a pair, but I still think KAT needs a true big man that can give us 20-25 MPG and help on the boards and clog the paint. Saric/Embiid works defensively because Embiid is a monster. KAT unfortunately doesn't offer up the same level of resistance and Saric certainly doesn't. Nice piece, but not a great fit defensively IMO.

I agree. I think my angle is Saric is a nice player that is good enough to help the team move forward. He might not be the ultimate answer but he could be good enough to get us to a place where we are winning games and find the other guy we need. In addition if all we need is a big strong center...Sign one of those guy for a few million it wouldn't be too hard. I'll be interested to see what Saric's base is. I don't think he is really weak at least. To me it feels like there is still potential left with him overall especially as a shooter. He doesn't take many of the long 2's which is good. He is a on a contract that's long enough we don't have to decide on him right away and can get value of him being on his rookie contract. All I keep hearing about him from fans etc is he is a good dude that plays hard and plays the right way. We need guys like that.

[Monster]

Witht he addtion of Saric suddenly this team is loaded with modern PFs. Even though Dieng has actually played pretty well I think we need to go small with Taj or Tolliver (with the bench unit) at C at times. I think this team need to explore dealing either Tolliver or Taj at some point if they are both healthy. We also have Deng who I think might actually be able to play as a big. Honestly I hate the idea of trading either Tolliver or Taj I like both guys but it seems like it makes too much sense if we can get some sort of value even a 2nd rounder.

[WildWolf2813]

I can see KAT and Saric ending a lot of halves/games together as a pair, but I still think KAT needs a true big man that can give us 20-25 MPG and help on the boards and clog the paint. Saric/Embiid works defensively because Embiid is a monster. KAT unfortunately doesn't offer up the same level of resistance and Saric certainly doesn't. Nice piece, but not a great fit defensively IMO.

Which is why either Saric is a 6th man here too or he's gotta be shopped for a PG (as I said earlier, I don't believe the PG of the future is on this team).

The 2 main needs of the Wolves now just don't exist much in the 2019 draft which sucks. Even Zion for all the talent he has just doesn't compliment Towns well.

At this point I'm rooting like hell for someone Jaylen Hands to play well enough to justify a lottery selection on him for PG.

C Towns /Dieng
PF ??? /Saric
SF Covington /Beita-Diop
SG Wiggins /Okogie (I hope this flips)
PG Hands /Teodosic or Dinwiddie