Minnesota Sports Forum

Tyus just turned 23 years old and is entering his 5th NBA season as a restricted free agent. He never averaged more than 18 minutes per game until last season when he averaged nearly 23. He's played for 4 different head coaches in his 4 seasons.

So what do we know about his game so far based on his limited minutes through these past 4 tumultuous seasons?

On the positive side, we know he protects the ball and forces turnovers at a very high level. Last season he averaged 1.2 steals in 22.9 minutes per game while only turning the ball over 0.7 times. He's not super quick, but he has quick hands, a quick mind and terrific instincts that make him a good defender in spite of his physical limitations. He's also an excellent playmaker, averaging 4.8 assists last season. Weighing those assists against his 0.7 turnovers per game, Tyus has an elite assist to turnover ratio. I think it's fair to say Tyus has a very high basketball IQ and knows how to run an offense. We know that Jeff Teague thinks highly of him as Jeff constantly and publicly lobbied Thibodeau to give Tyus more playing time and play them both at the same time. Going back a bit in time, he was Final Four MVP for the championship Duke team.

What what's the rap on Tyus? He has his detractors who focus on his size and lack of elite athleticism. Those limitations might ultimately prevent him from becoming an all star, but I don't find them particularly instructive in determining whether he can be a solid starter or at least a highly valuable rotation player off the bench. Kyle Lowry and Fred VanVleet are a couple of players with size and athletic profiles that aren't much different from Tyus. And Kyle has, in fact, been an all star. Tyus is also criticized for his 3-point shooting, which has been in the low 30s. But keep in mind that Kyle Lowry's 3-point percentage languished around 30% until his 5th season when, at the age of 24, his percentage jumped into the high 30s where it's stayed ever since. Interestingly, his 3-point percentage jumped in his 5th season concurrent with a big increase in his minutes from the low/mid 20s to the mid-30s. As another example, Kemba Walker's 3-point percentage was around 30% until his 5th season when it jumped into the high 30s. Also keep in mind that Tyus was a 38% 3-point shooter in his one college season, so it's not as if he hasn't shown shooting range. We see pundit articles and message board posts raving about prospective draftees based on college 3-point percentages of 36-38%. So it's important to remember what Tyus did back in college.

All of this is not to suggest Tyus will be a great player or even a starting caliber PG. And it's not an argument for re-signing him at any cost. But it's a reminder that the final chapter on what Tyus can become hasn't been written in 4 seasons with limited, erratic minutes and a ton of coaching turnover playing for an organization with a history of poor player development. That's especially true when you consider Tyus's young age. I'd like to see his minutes bump up in his upcoming 5th season the way Lowry's minutes ramped up in his 5th season. I suspect his 3-point percentage would go up and that he's become a far more reliable scorer while continuing to get the most out of his teammates, force turnovers and protect the ball. What should the Wolves be willing to pay to keep him? That depends on his market price and other moves the Wolves make on draft day and early July. If it were up to me, I'd be highly inclined to re-sign him. Right now, I'd consider 4 years at $6 million per year a reasonable deal to lock him up. I might go higher, depending on other moves. Now that we have what appears to be a highly professional front office with an appreciation for player development, I think it would be a mistake to let go of Tyus at this juncture, just after his 23rd birthday.

Lip, I have similar sentiments about Tyus. I would try to lock him up on a team friendly deal and worse case he is a quality backup but he certainly has the potential to become an above average starting point guard. Seems like a low risk strategy to try and lock him up at $6-7 million per year. If there is any benefit to Teague's oversized contract is that it might help us negotiate a cheaper deal with Tyus than we might otherwise have done. The main competition for Tyus's services is probably Phoenix and so I hope they fill their point guard needs elsewhere.

I'm not bringing him back. I just think there's a lot of fuss over a player who won't have a bigger role than he already has and a player who can be upgraded. The only reason why he has had the leash he has is because he's a local kid. If Tyus Jones was from California or Texas or wherever, we wouldn't be talking about whether we'd be bringing him back.

With that said I fully expect the Wolves to bring him back. Like Ryan Saunders, it's a basketball move wrapped in sentimentality.

I just hesitate on next season banking on internal improvement from so many guys when some guys *coughs* Wiggins *coughs* are lost causes.

For 2 or 3 mil sure.

I was interested to hear what the Dunc'd on guys said about Tyus in their Wolves offseason podcast. In the past Nate has been a big fan of Tyus but obviously a little shine came off him last year. They thought Tuus might even end up playing for the qualifying offer because he wouldn't get a great offer. They didn't even think Tyus was gonna get a 3 year 15 million dollar offer from another team. One thing I don't think they know is that the Wolves because of Ryan Saunders and Tyus being from here that he is more likely to want to stay than they assume.

Maybe Tyus isn't worth talking about. Or maybe he is the next Corey Joseph. Can you imagine what a guy like Joseph that plays as a combo guard despite not being a good or volume 3 point could do if he was a 3 point shooter? Meanwhile I remember his measurables out of college as a young guy were comparable to Tyus. It took him quite a while to really become something and he spent a bunch of years being developed by one of the best organizations in the Spurs. Sure he is a local kid but he knows how to play. I like guys that can do that.

As for what he should get paid. Honestly I think the Wolves need to get him for 5 million per or less for it to be a good contract all things considered. If he outperforms that great but the people that keep saying he gets talked about too much cause he hasn't done anything have a point too. 6 million per I won't be upset about but I think the Wolves need to be smart. Honestly I think that Tyus should take a decent contract with maybe a player option for year 3. He would be young enough to cash in if he becomes a starting level player. The Wolves need to finally utilized their advantage of restricted FA and get a guy on a good deal.

Small unathletic pgs like Lowry or fvf or joseph are thick and play low to the ground.

Tyus is just light which also describes alot of our players. We need a strength coach.

If we get a true shot creating shooting guard/wing Tyus has a place as a very good role player who doesn't make many mistakes and doesn't kill you on the floor. It's why his +/- is always so high. He rarely kills you when he's on the court which is something you can't say for most bench players. If we don't get that guard/wing who can create that kind of offense efficiently Tyus just doesn't fit here. You can't play him next to Wiggins and Covington and have a good offense. They just don't have the right combination of ball handling and shot making.

khans2k5 wrote:If we get a true shot creating shooting guard/wing Tyus has a place as a very good role player who doesn't make many mistakes and doesn't kill you on the floor. It's why his +/- is always so high. He rarely kills you when he's on the court which is something you can't say for most bench players. If we don't get that guard/wing who can create that kind of offense efficiently Tyus just doesn't fit here. You can't play him next to Wiggins and Covington and have a good offense. They just don't have the right combination of ball handling and shot making.

That's where I'm at. More than likely the guys who will be here the next 2-3 years are okogie, Wiggins, cov and KBD to go along with Kat. None are above average shot creator and only Cov is a good 3 pt shooter. I'm worried that Tyus weakness are just enhanced with those players playing along side.

I think Tyus is the perfect backup PG but I'm not going over 5 mil a year for him. I like tyus just don't know if he is the right fit for our roster

khans2k5 wrote:If we get a true shot creating shooting guard/wing Tyus has a place as a very good role player who doesn't make many mistakes and doesn't kill you on the floor. It's why his +/- is always so high. He rarely kills you when he's on the court which is something you can't say for most bench players. If we don't get that guard/wing who can create that kind of offense efficiently Tyus just doesn't fit here. You can't play him next to Wiggins and Covington and have a good offense. They just don't have the right combination of ball handling and shot making.

with at least 50+ minutes of floor time together.

tyus, wiggs, cov, taj, and kat unit had a net rtg of +15.5 in 77 minutes together with a 117 oftg

Only one other 5 man group had a better ortg at 120.6 (but the defense was beyond bad 121)

Teague, wiggs, saric, okogie, and kat.


Tyus was also a part of our best defensive group: 92.7 drtg w/ 102 ortg.

Tyus, Okogie, wiggs, saric, and Dieng

I had high hopes for Tyus last season, but he disappointed. Prior to last season, he was one of those rare Wolves draft picks that actually showed nice, steady progress throughout his first three seasons. I thought he would take another step forward, but alas, his 3-point shot regressed and he didn't make up for it by getting a lot better at any other facet of the game.

As others said, if we can get him back for fairly cheap, he's a really good backup and nice spot starter. He's also still pretty damn young, having just turned 23 a few weeks ago.