Minnesota Sports Forum

No, I'm not talking about the stock market or home prices. I'm talking about Wolves players under contract and whose rights we hold (Bolmaro). Their value is rising in the marketplace.

Beasley - I know he's been out, but is there any question that his contract is a borderline bargain at this point? He's still reasonably young and is a legit sharpshooter that can put up 20 PPG.

Edwards - I think there is no question that he is worth more now than he was when first taken #1.

McDaniels - Potential future all-NBA first team defense candidate.

Rubio - Don't look now, but Rubio appears to be back to the player he was a year ago with Phoenix. I'm sure Pork is shattered to see his old friend help us winning games in the midst of a time we are supposed to be tanking! Plus he is on an expiring deal, which in and of itself is useful.

Reid - He is one of the better offensive bench bigs in the league right now and is still only 21. The improvement from last season is impressive and he is on a really cheap contract. He is way more valuable than his current contract.

Bolmaro - He has steadily improved this season in the top European league and is getting regular minutes now. If he were to be drafted this year instead of last, I'd guess he would go a lot higher.


The bottom line is that even if we miss out on a draft pick this offseason, Rosas has a pretty strong hand to play with this offseason that gives him options to improve the team. We can debate the merits of various trade scenarios and some of us may not want to give up any of the folks above.

Thoughts?

Reid is a guy we should try to lock up before he blows up. Rarely has a Wolves player shown as much improvement as we've seen from him. And I'm not sure he's going to stop improving. He's a legit NBA big man now and compliments KAT really well.

Good breakdown Q.

I don't think the case is as strong as other players you mentioned but I would guess Nowell's value has increased this season as well.

I would assume Vanderbilt has more value too since has actually played some legit NBA minutes and shown some ability. He is a RFA but could still be an asset as a sign and trade candidate. I'd prefer to resign him on a cheap deal though.

I think think that some of the guys you listed Q have increased their value is a pretty significant plus for the franchise. It's one thing for a guy to go from random guy to maybe a rotation player but Edwards showing game and McDaniels looking like a really good complimentary piece those are big deals. Culver is the guy that's really been a disappointment but IF some of the guys you have mentioned turn out (Nowell I think has a chance too) that will be relatively easily be mitigated and that will be a credit to Rosas and his group. They need to keep hitting on non-lottery picks/undervalued young guys. The NBA seems to have more of those types of players turn out to be worthwhile. Nunn in Miami is one recent example.

For May, Rubio has made 24 of his last 48 shots (.500 FG%) plus 10 of 11 of his free throws. #AllStar2022

Carlos Danger wrote:For May, Rubio has made 24 of his last 48 shots (.500 FG%) plus 10 of 11 of his free throws. #AllStar2022

No doubt, he's been at the top of his game of late. Also just 10 total turnovers in the last 10 games. It should be no surprise that his net On/Off rating is now back in the plus column, meaning the team is better when he's on the court versus off.

Having said that.....Where the hell was this in January when we really needed it!? Too little too late, but this is the player I was hoping we got when Rosas traded for him.

As he ages, I worry that his notorious slow starts look more like this year, where it's basically a slow start, a slow middle, and then he finally starts playing better in the last quarter of the season. I love Ricky, but if he needs to be included in a deal to bring back a major upgrade elsewhere on the roster, then so be it.

Q12543 wrote:

Carlos Danger wrote:For May, Rubio has made 24 of his last 48 shots (.500 FG%) plus 10 of 11 of his free throws. #AllStar2022

No doubt, he's been at the top of his game of late. Also just 10 total turnovers in the last 10 games. It should be no surprise that his net On/Off rating is now back in the plus column, meaning the team is better when he's on the court versus off.

Having said that.....Where the hell was this in January when we really needed it!? Too little too lateWhere the hell was this in January when we really needed it!? Too little too late, but this is the player I was hoping we got when Rosas traded for him.

As he ages, I worry that his notorious slow starts look more like this year, where it's basically a slow start, a slow middle, and then he finally starts playing better in the last quarter of the season. I love Ricky, but if he needs to be included in a deal to bring back a major upgrade elsewhere on the roster, then so be it.

Yup. And the same can be said for the rest of the team's play. Which is why I can't put much stock into these meaningless end of season games/results. It's not real unless both teams are playing for real.

Carlos Danger wrote:

Q12543 wrote:

Carlos Danger wrote:For May, Rubio has made 24 of his last 48 shots (.500 FG%) plus 10 of 11 of his free throws. #AllStar2022

No doubt, he's been at the top of his game of late. Also just 10 total turnovers in the last 10 games. It should be no surprise that his net On/Off rating is now back in the plus column, meaning the team is better when he's on the court versus off.

Having said that.....Where the hell was this in January when we really needed it!? Too little too lateWhere the hell was this in January when we really needed it!? Too little too late, but this is the player I was hoping we got when Rosas traded for him.

As he ages, I worry that his notorious slow starts look more like this year, where it's basically a slow start, a slow middle, and then he finally starts playing better in the last quarter of the season. I love Ricky, but if he needs to be included in a deal to bring back a major upgrade elsewhere on the roster, then so be it.

Yup. And the same can be said for the rest of the team's play. Which is why I can't put much stock into these meaningless end of season games/results. It's not real unless both teams are playing for real.

The value of the guys Q mentioned has been going up since the all-star break if not longer. In Beasley's case, his value when up the minute he signed a pretty team-friendly deal and it went up further as he became a consistent offensive force before his injury. So I don't think the value proposition has been defined by the last 5 games.

The good news is that we have players with some good to great market value. I'll be really pissed if we trade Ant, but I's be shocked if that happens. I'd also be disappointed if we end up dealing McDaniels. Obviously, we're keeping KAT. If it were me, I'd have DLO on the market, but no way Rosas does that.

I think the Wolves will end up trading Culver and Nowell. The question is whether those two will end up in a package with Beasley or Ricky. I could see Naz getting dealt too. Ultimately, I don't see the Wolves dealing Beasley or Naz unless it's part of a package for John Collins or Myles Turner.

Ultimately i think they need to pick one of Vando or Reid, one of culver or Okogie, and say goodbye to Juancho and Ricky, and if Beasley is the piece to get you a two way pf like Myles Turner that too. I dont know if Rosas would do all of that but I think that is what it would take to give this roster more balance.

thedoper wrote:Ultimately i think they need to pick one of Vando or Reid, one of culver or Okogie, and say goodbye to Juancho and Ricky, and if Beasley is the piece to get you a two way pf like Myles Turner that too. I dont know if Rosas would do all of that but I think that is what it would take to give this roster more balance.

I generally agree with you Doper even though I'd hate to give up Vando or Reid. We'd get more in return for Reid, but of course, we'd be losing more. Naz is just scratching the surface of his ability. He's going to be a really good starting PF or center putting up 20 points per game at some point. I love what Vando brings.

I'd like Rosas to focus on getting as much as he can in exchange for Juancho, Ricky and either Culver or Okogie as you suggested. I'd strong favor trading Culver over Okogie. Unlike Culver, you know what you're getting from Okogie. Moreover, Okogie has a knack for drawing fouls and hits his free throws. Every type of shot, including free throws, are adventures with Culver. Okogie's also much cheaper. Unfortunately, I don't think we can get a consequential player without including Naz in a Ricky/Juancho/Culver package.

Ultimately, i think Rosas will deal Beasley for Turner, Collins or someone comparable. It might require a third team, but I think it's inevitable.

lipoli390 wrote:

thedoper wrote:Ultimately i think they need to pick one of Vando or Reid, one of culver or Okogie, and say goodbye to Juancho and Ricky, and if Beasley is the piece to get you a two way pf like Myles Turner that too. I dont know if Rosas would do all of that but I think that is what it would take to give this roster more balance.

I generally agree with you Doper even though I'd hate to give up Vando or Reid. We'd get more in return for Reid, but of course, we'd be losing more. Naz is just scratching the surface of his ability. He's going to be a really good starting PF or center putting up 20 points per game at some point. I love what Vando brings.

I'd like Rosas to focus on getting as much as he can in exchange for Juancho, Ricky and either Culver or Okogie as you suggested. I'd strong favor trading Culver over Okogie. Unlike Culver, you know what you're getting from Okogie. Moreover, Okogie has a knack for drawing fouls and hits his free throws. Every type of shot, including free throws, are adventures with Culver. Okogie's also much cheaper. Unfortunately, I don't think we can get a consequential player without including Naz in a Ricky/Juancho/Culver package.

Ultimately, i think Rosas will deal Beasley for Turner, Collins or someone comparable. It might require a third team, but I think it's inevitable.

Id love to keep Vando and Reid. I just think that one of those guys should get some attention because of their promise and youth. Both could benefit from more PT. I think the dynamic you listed between Culver and Josh is there too. I think most teams could envision a role for Josh, which means hes an asset. It also probably means that we need something positive from culver.