Lower-Tier Free Agent Targets

[Lipoli390]

We know the Wolves have no cap room to pursue upper tier or even mid-tier free agents. There's been a lot of talk about a big salary dump or sign-and-trade to acquire an upper-tier RFA named D'Angelo Russell. But as discussed, there are cautions associated with Russell that should give the Wolves pause before they give up valuable assets to get him and then given him a max or near-max contract. Moreover, there are apparently other teams like the Lakers, Knicks and Suns in the mix for Russell - all teams with the cap space needed to make him a max offer.

I still think the Wolves need to focus primarily on trying to add a player who can become that second elite player we need next to KAT to turn this team into a contender. But given the lack of cap room to acquire a top-tier free agent and lack of assets to acquire an elite player via trade, I think the Wolves need to look to the pool of the lower tier free agents to find that second all-star caliber player. Obviously, it would have to be a young player with upside who hasn't developed yet - a player like Chauncey Billups. So here's a list of what I would consider to be young lower-tier free agents with the potential to develop into an all-star caliber player who the Wolves could probably afford to sign with their $9M MLE or by clearing a lot less cap space than needed to sign Russell:

Jabari Parker - 24 year old SF with great talent but history of knee injuries.
Hezonja - 24 year old offensively talented SG who has some attitude issues, but remains intriguing.
Mudiay - 23 year old PG with major upside, especially on the defensive end. RFA with Knicks.
Korkmaz - 22 year old SG with the Sixers.
Thomas Bryant - A 22 year old talented center. Wizards RFA.
Kelly Oubre - Talented 23 year old SF with the Suns. Would likely cost more than MLE
Trey Lyles - 23 year old PF is a Denver RFA.
MCW - at 27 he's probably too old to finally get it. But I thought he'd be great when drafted so who knows.
Jeremy Lamb - 27 and probably won't get much better. But he can shoot

Then there's Harrison Barnes. He's not a young up-and-comer, but he's still 27 and a very good SF on both sides of the ball. I wonder how much space we'd have to clear to sign him.

Which, if any, of these free agents do you think the Wolves should pursue and how much do you think the Wolves would have to pay to sign them?

[Monster]

Interesting thread and list.

The market for a guy like Parker is interesting.

Mudiay intrigues me. I've done some reading about him. There are plenty of jokes from Knicks fans about saying he must be Fizdale's son because of how he plays him and speaks highly of him. It sounds like he may have taken a step defensively towards being worthwhile on that end. I think he had a rep of being horrible before that. I would be surprised if his price would be high and his cap hold is big so if the Knicks actually make any kind of noise getting a top guy I'd guess they would renounce him although they could still sign him at that point. I don't know what the upside is for him at this point but I'm intrigued especially if the price is right.

MCW first problem is his health. He already did the Kobe thing with his knees. I'm not sure he will even he able to play going forward. He had some good defensive numbers a couple seasons ago. Where they real? Idk but my guess is that's why the Rockets signed him last offseason.

I'd add Noah Vonleh to the list.

[60WinTim]

I don't think dumping salary is a viable option for the Wolves. It would cost too many assets to accomplish and leave nothing left to complete the roster. Any big splash would come via a sign-and-trade, which would kind of leave the Wolves in the same position financially as they are currently in.

So with that in mind, I figure the Wolves have 8 players signed and will assume both Culver and Nowell make the roster, too. Consistent with the Rosas "high end players" philosophy, I expect the entire MLE to be spent on a single player, and probably the same with the BAE. Doing the salary cap math, that would be 12 players signed with roughly 5 mil to sign up to 3 vet minimum players and still stay under the luxury tax threshold. (It seems kind of amazing to me the numbers came out that way -- was that master planning by the Thibs/Layden regime? Or just dumb luck?)

There are a TON of free agents. And while there is a lot of money out there, I believe we are going to see it go really fast to the top guys -- kind of like musical chairs for free agents. That will leave a lot of very good free agents having to settle for MLE money, which is where the Wolves enter the picture.

In my salary cap math, I did not include Tyus. If the Wolves do re-sign him, it will have a direct impact on the amount of MLE or BAE money the Wolves have to work with (ie. spending 3 to 4 mil on Tyus prevents us from using the BAE on somebody else).

[crazy-canuck [enjin:18955461]]

Khem birch and richaun holmes are at the top of my list for cheap bigs.

Seth Curry, Mudiay, and Joseph for cheap pgs.

[Lipoli390]

Interesting thread and list.

The market for a guy like Parker is interesting.

Mudiay intrigues me. I've done some reading about him. There are plenty of jokes from Knicks fans about saying he must be Fizdale's son because of how he plays him and speaks highly of him. It sounds like he may have taken a step defensively towards being worthwhile on that end. I think he had a rep of being horrible before that. I would be surprised if his price would be high and his cap hold is big so if the Knicks actually make any kind of noise getting a top guy I'd guess they would renounce him although they could still sign him at that point. I don't know what the upside is for him at this point but I'm intrigued especially if the price is right.

MCW first problem is his health. He already did the Kobe thing with his knees. I'm not sure he will even he able to play going forward. He had some good defensive numbers a couple seasons ago. Where they real? Idk but my guess is that's why the Rockets signed him last offseason.

I'd add Noah Vonleh to the list.

I didn't realize MCW's knees were that bad. I'd cross him off my list.

Like you, Mudiay is the guy who intrigues me the most. With Dennis Smith Jr. and even Ntilikina under contract, I don't see the Knicks very motivated to keep him. So I can see the Knicks renouncing their cap hold and making him an unrestricted free agent. And even if they keep him restricted, I wouldn't see the Knicks as highly motivated to match an offer. Mudiay is just the kind of player the Wolves need to get and develop. I was just watching some video of Mudiay, including Schmitz scouting video before Mudiay was drafted. The guy is super talented. Unfortunately, like Culver, his perimeter shooting is suspect. But his midrange is OK and he's an excellent penetrator and passer with elite defensive potential. He shouldn't cost much and ought to be a high priority acquisition for the Wolves in my view - whether as a FA or some sort of sign-and-trade with the Knicks.

I'd like to know the market value of Parker. I had him #1 on my draft board the year he came out - ahead of Wiggins (because of concerns about Andrew's motor) and ahead of the most talented player in the draft, Embiid (because of his physical issues). We don't know the state of Parker's knees.

I was a big fan of Vonleh when he entered the draft. But I remember Flip telling me that he wouldn't even consider Vonleh because of some issues he wouldn't disclose. He implied character issues. So I suspect there's something there, which might explain why Noah hasn't progressed or stuck with a team to date.

[thedoper]

I don't see how any of those players give us more than Rose, except that all of them will cost more. I don't see how this route is going to get this team there. We need the super cheap draft picks and two way contracts to yield something and hope and pray we can get DLo. We're maxed out either way, so do Glen any favors by saving money? We need a player to break down teams on the dribble and score, especially when teams gang up on KAT in the 4th quarter.

[worldK]

Jamaychal green would be a worthwhile low tier free agent to add as a stop gap option at the 4. Can rebound and defend. Shoot a little.

[Lipoli390]

I don't see how any of those players give us more than Rose, except that all of them will cost more. I don't see how this route is going to get this team there. We need the super cheap draft picks and two way contracts to yield something and hope and pray we can get DLo. We're maxed out either way, so do Glen any favors by saving money? We need a player to break down teams on the dribble and score, especially when teams gang up on KAT in the 4th quarter.

If your goal is to win as many games as possible next season, then Rose is probably a better bet than any of the young free agents I listed. But the goal underlying my list is to get a young high-upside prospect who can make a difference long term. I'm all for super cheap draft picks and two-way contracts. We will also need a couple minimum vets. But unless you're certain we get DLo, this organization needs to add young high upside talent anyway they can. I absolutely agree this team needs a player to break down defenses off the dribble and score. Mudiay can actually do that and has the potential to become really good if not elite if he reaches his potential. He's only 23 and would come pretty cheap. I wouldn't assume that all those guys, Mudiay included, would cost more than Rose. And after what Rose said in his book, I don't see him coming back under any circumstances.

[Lipoli390]

Jamaychal green would be a worthwhile low tier free agent to add as a stop gap option at the 4. Can rebound and defend. Shoot a little.

I like him. I wonder how much it would take to sign him.

[Monster]

I don't see how any of those players give us more than Rose, except that all of them will cost more. I don't see how this route is going to get this team there. We need the super cheap draft picks and two way contracts to yield something and hope and pray we can get DLo. We're maxed out either way, so do Glen any favors by saving money? We need a player to break down teams on the dribble and score, especially when teams gang up on KAT in the 4th quarter.

If your goal is to win as many games as possible next season, then Rose is probably a better bet than any of the young free agents I listed. But the goal underlying my list is to get a young high-upside prospect who can make a difference long term. I'm all for super cheap draft picks and two-way contracts. We will also need a couple minimum vets. But unless you're certain we get DLo, this organization needs to add young high upside talent anyway they can. I absolutely agree this team needs a player to break down defenses off the dribble and score. Mudiay can actually do that and has the potential to become really good if not elite if he reaches his potential. He's only 23 and would come pretty cheap. I wouldn't assume that all those guys, Mudiay included, would cost more than Rose. And after what Rose said in his book, I don't see him coming back under any circumstances.

If we don't get Russell or some legit shot creator and we can get Rose for 3-4 million I say go for it. That doesn't mean wecan't go after a guy like Mudiay. In fact I like the idea that Rose could show Mudiay how he could have success getting up the floor scoring on guys sounds good. Rose is gonna play but he needs to keep his minutes down and will either be hurt and or be sat down to rest here and there. In those games a young guy like Mudiay or Culver or whoever can get more run.

I personally don't think what Rose said in his book was that big of a deal. I won't be surprised though if another team with a reasonably good situation comes calling with a decent offer and he takes it. I still value him but I'm also ready to move on if that happens. Again we have little clue how Rosas values Rose.