Minnesota Sports Forum

As you've all probably heard, the Wolves extended qualifying offers to Vanderbilt and JMac. I'm happy about that. In addition, Rosas has pretty much confirmed that Bolmaro will be signing with the Wolves this offseason. What does all this mean for the Wolves roster and salary/luxury tax situation?

First, assuming the Wolves don't withdraw either qualifying offer and neither player goes elsewhere via free agency, it means the Wolves have a full roster of 15 and are about $4.2M under the luxury tax threshold.

Second, it means the Wolves can use the extra $4.2M under the luxury tax to match any reasonably likely offer Vanderbilt might get from another team.

Third, it means the Wolves can't add another big to the roster unless they (a) make a trade that clears a roster spot and some salary (i.e., trade a guaranteed contract roster player for future pick or for non-guaranteed player); (b) acquire the big via trade; or (c) withdraw the qualifying offer for either JMac or Vanderbilt.

So you can see the Wolves front office plan unfolding. I like it. We've staked our claim to JMac and Vandy while preserving flexibility to pursue an impact defensive big via free agency or trade. If we can't get a reasonable deal, we'll have the development of Vanderbilt, Reid and McDaniels to fall back on in the front court, with some additional help from Prince. And we'll have JMac on a cheap deal to back up DLO at PG. I know that some have doubts about JMac's ability to be our #2 PG. I disagree. I think he's plenty good for that role. He reminds me of JJ Barea, but he's actually more athletic than JJ.

lipoli390 wrote:As you've all probably heard, the Wolves extended qualifying offers to Vanderbilt and JMac. I happy about that. In addition, Rosas has pretty much confirmed that Bolmaro will be signing with the Wolves this offseason. What does all this mean for the Wolves roster and salary/luxury tax situation?

First, assuming the Wolves don't withdraw either qualifying offer and neither player goes elsewhere via free agency, it means the Wolves have a full roster of 15 and are about $4.2M under the luxury tax threshold. And that, in turn, means two things:

Second, it means the Wolves can use the extra $4.2M under the luxury tax to match any reasonably likely offer Vanderbilt might get from another team.

Third, it means the Wolves can't add another big to the roster unless they (a) make a trade that clears a roster spot and some salary (i.e., trade a guaranteed contract roster player for future pick or for non-guaranteed player); (b) acquire the big via trade; or (c) withdraw the qualifying offer for either JMac or Vanderbilt.

So you can see the Wolves front office plan unfolding. I like it. We've staked our claim to JMac and Vandy while preserving flexibility to pursue an impact defensive big via free agency or trade. If we can't get a reasonable deal, we'll have the development of Vanderbilt, Reid and McDaniels to fall back on in the front court, with some additional help from Prince. And we'll have JMac on a cheap deal to back up DLO at PG. I know that some have doubts about JMac's ability to be our #2 PG. I disagree. I think he's plenty good for that role. He reminds me of JJ Barea, but he's actually more athletic than JJ.

Excellent post and breakdown Lip.

I will also add that the Wolves also still have a 2-way spot open they could add a big and they have been pretty good about finding guys that are worthwhile on the fringes. It's certainly not out of the ordinary for 2-way guys to come in and play reasonably well.

I think one of the big advantages of having that amount under the Lux tax is now the Wolves can easily take back more salary in a trade and for some teams looking to save money that might be enough to get a better player back just paying a couple more million dollars. I wonder if they would consider doing that trick of adding some non-guaranteed players to then send to a team to match salary to make a deal work. Even a vet min guy's salary (added via waivers) might be enough to get something done.

Man this team really needs to aim higher than JMac. Otherwise I'm really hoping Wright makes him expendable by preseason

WildWolf2813 wrote:Man this team really needs to aim higher than JMac. Otherwise I'm really hoping Wright makes him expendable by preseason

I've been a JMac fan since summer league a couple years ago, but I agree I would prefer an upgrade at PG. I'm sky high on Wright and hope he blows Finch away in Vegas and show he belongs in the NBA.

FNG wrote:

WildWolf2813 wrote:Man this team really needs to aim higher than JMac. Otherwise I'm really hoping Wright makes him expendable by preseason

I've been a JMac fan since summer league a couple years ago, but I agree I would prefer an upgrade at PG. I'm sky high on Wright and hope he blows Finch away in Vegas and show he belongs in the NBA.

I'm also really high on Wright. I think JMac, Wright, Nowell and Edwards, in combination, would be enough for adequate backup duty at the PG position. If we keep Culver, he's another potential lead guard. Honestly, backup PG should be the least of our worries. The two things that will move the needle for the Wolves this upcoming season are: (1) the addition of a good defensive big to the roster; and (2) the development of KAT, DLO, Ant, McDaniels, Vanderbilt and Naz Reid.

KAT and DLO need to improve defensively and KAT already seems on a positive trajectory in that regard. Ant, McDaniels, Vanderbilt and Reid simply need stay on the same improvement trajectory they displayed last season. All four still have a lot of additional upside to tap into. Ant, in particular, needs to improve a lot on the defensive end. He clearly has the physical tools to be an elite defender. Now it's a matter of desire and learning. Finch and the coaching staff will have to really push him on that end, even if it means sitting his behind on the bench from time to time.

I really wish we had an experienced defensive vet with a winning pedigree on this team to mentor Edwards, especially on the defensive end of the floor. Chris Paul would be perfect for him, but that's not going to happen. Any ideas?

lipoli390 wrote:

FNG wrote:

WildWolf2813 wrote:Man this team really needs to aim higher than JMac. Otherwise I'm really hoping Wright makes him expendable by preseason

I've been a JMac fan since summer league a couple years ago, but I agree I would prefer an upgrade at PG. I'm sky high on Wright and hope he blows Finch away in Vegas and show he belongs in the NBA.

I'm also really high on Wright. I think JMac, Wright, Nowell and Edwards, in combination, would be enough for adequate backup duty at the PG position. If we keep Culver, he's another potential lead guard. Honestly, backup PG should be the least of our worries. The two things that will move the needle for the Wolves this upcoming season are: (1) the addition of a good defensive big to the roster; and (2) the development of KAT, DLO, Ant, McDaniels, Vanderbilt and Naz Reid.

KAT and DLO need to improve defensively and KAT already seems on a positive trajectory in that regard. Ant, McDaniels, Vanderbilt and Reid simply need stay on the same improvement trajectory they displayed last season. All four still have a lot of additional upside to tap into. Ant, in particular, needs to improve a lot on the defensive end. He clearly has the physical tools to be an elite defender. Now it's a matter of desire and learning. Finch and the coaching staff will have to really push him on that end, even if it means sitting his behind on the bench from time to time.

I really wish we had an experienced defensive vet with a winning pedigree on this team to mentor Edwards, especially on the defensive end of the floor. Chris Paul would be perfect for him, but that's not going to happen. Any ideas?

I think saying backup PG being the least of our worries is going to far...but I'm not laughing. :) Having said that often what the bench or even fill in starter needs from the backup PG is someone that can get things going just kinda lead the offense and not screwing up too much. They don't have to be wildly doing things. McLaughlin is a true PG he is sort of a Tyus Jones type he isn't going to blow you away but does a solid job. Jmac still only has a couple years in the league but he was also a 4 year starter in college and he seems solid as a guy actually playing as a true PG. He isn't as good of a playmaker as Rubio but he is a better shooter so he is a better option playing off the ball when someone else is handling it which could be guys like Edwards or Nowell. I'd be interested to see what the numbers were for when McLaughlin played with another PG. Honestly there are only so many true PGs in the league that are also worthwhile 3 point shooters and aren't a disaster on defense. I hope the Wolves and McLaughlin have an understanding and get him rolling right away this year because him not being around the team last year seemed to get him off on the wrong foot.

Idk if Bolmaro will be ready yet to get legit minutes but even if he struggles early to defend my guess is his 6'7" frame playing PG will have some benefits. He also is coming from playing a limited role so it's not like he has to make an adjustment from playing big minutes. I think if they are bringing him over they likely envision giving him some minutes other than just garbage time.

I think this team could use a vet presence. My guess is that the Wolves will acquire someone in a trade that is more qualified to be that than anyone currently on the roster. I still think Dieng (doesn't have the winning pedigree) would be a great dude to have around this group.

Given the fact that our star players each have some significant flaws (for example, exactly zero of them can play plus level defense), we really do have to worry about every single supporting position, including backup PG. While Rubio was an overpriced answer at that slot, at least he was an answer. J-Mac took a step backwards last season (yet another recent Wolves prospect that seemingly gets worse the longer he plays with us!) and we have no clue if Bolmaro is ready or not. It's still a big gap in my opinion.

I would consider Kris Dunn. I think he would compliment Bolmaro in the second unit nicely. His defense would be very welcome. Boston is apparently open to moving him. Preferably for Culver or possibly into the trade exception that is coming from the Prince trade.

Q12543 wrote:Given the fact that our star players each have some significant flaws (for example, exactly zero of them can play plus level defense), we really do have to worry about every single supporting position, including backup PG. While Rubio was an overpriced answer at that slot, at least he was an answer. J-Mac took a step backwards last season (yet another recent Wolves prospect that seemingly gets worse the longer he plays with us!) and we have no clue if Bolmaro is ready or not. It's still a big gap in my opinion.

Last season was an odd one for a lot of reasons, including (1) the lack of a normal off-season or training camp because of Covid, (2) DLO's injury, (3) KAT's tragic offseason and wrist injury followed by his own bout with Covid; (4) a mid-season coaching change; and (5) the lack of clear roles with Ricky on the the team and Ryan Saunders as head coach; and (6) the challenge of integrating two rookies. So I'm reluctant to give must weight to last season when evaluating JMac. I do recall that the Wolves two best games the prior season were against Miami and the Clippers. KAT played in one and DLO the other, but neither played in both. However, JMac was key to both wins. He can be a pesky defender and very effective on the offensive end.

Note I'm not suggesting that backup PG isn't important; just that it's close to the bottom on the list of key priorities for the Wolves right now. Things that will move the need significantly in one direction or the other will be (1) KAT's continued positive progression on the defensive end and return of his prior durability; (2) DLO staying finally committing to defense and improving significantly in that area; (3) Edwards improving defensively and progressing towards his elite potential on both ends; (4) McDaniels' progression from last season's promising rookie season; (5) Nowell continuing to progress as he did last season and improving his shooting consistency; (6) Vanderbilt picking up where he left off at the end of last season and continuing to progress as a potential defensive stopper and elite rebounder; and (7) acquiring a defensive big to start next to KAT or come off the bench as a key part of the rotation. Moreover, we have players with the potential to initiate the offense behind DLO, including Edwards and Nowell. We'll also have Wright on a 2-way deal. There's also Bolmaro, although I'm not counting on him as a rotation player.


Getting the defensive big we need won't leave us with meaningful assets or luxury tax space to acquire much of a backup PG. I'm intrigued by Phenom's idea of Kris Dunn. If we end up trading Okogie, then I could see going with Dunn over JMac for defensive purposes, assuming we don't have roster or luxury tax room for both. But otherwise, I don't see any obviously better backup PGs we could acquire this summer. I'd be comfortable rolling with JMac, Edwards, Nowell and Wright (and possibly Bolmaro), even though I'd certainly prefer to bring in a solid veteran PG.

I think health will be the most important factor to our success this year. A healthy Kat and dlo would go along ways.

I'd be fine with Jmac as our backup PG and then using our assets to find a starting PF. I would expect to see an improved Jmac this season with a clear role now that rubio is gone.