The Kaplan effect

[Phenom]

At this point he is my biggest hope for digging the franchise out of this perennial rut. What are the prospects of him being a big influence for the team this summer? Is Glen going to let him clean house? It would make some sense since he is expected to buy the team outright sooner than later. We know some changes are forthcoming this off-season, so why make changes that the eventual owner will change again in a couple years?

I really hope that big changes come right away. It's time to clean the slate from top down. From a roster standpoint, how much turnover is acceptable and how much is too much?

Wiggins, Towns, and LaVine are going to be regarded as keepers by most anyone. Will the lottery pick be in play? I'm going to guess no. I could see any other player being moved although if Levien is involved, Ricky will likely be kept as well. He was reportedly a big fan when he worked for the Kings and they passed on him.

I still think those 4 (plus pick) are a great foundation. I would be fine with doing a major reshuffle from there though even though I do like the rest of the roster. This team needs shooters, defense and toughness around the cornerstones.

Reading about how desperate Kaplan has been to acquire a team makes me believe he will be ready and willing to make a quick impact. Does anyone care to speculate about some coaches or front office guys that he may target from his previous associations?

[Monster]

Here are my thoughts.

Since he will be buying 30% share of the team via his ownership group and the relative promise to get the majority share not too far down the road it makes sense that Kaplan would try and have some influence. It would also make sense that Glen would get some input but I really doubt Kaplan will have the sort of influence you are hoping for. If that was the case it would be because Glen had actually sold his majority share but that isn't what he is doing. Glen is still going to be ultimately calling the shots. I think you can hope Kaplan can have some positive influence though.

[TheGrey08]

Glen Taylor stated him buying the 20% does NOT give him the inside track on being the majority owner. I wasn't able to quickly find the link, but I know I posted a link in a thread on the board quite a few months back when this first came up. Therefore I don't expect much change in the short term.

[Phenom]

I think Kaplan will be the successor considering how unsuccessful Glen has been at selling before. It has been reported that the stake has risen to 30 percent and stipulations that the team stays in Minnesota, which no one else would promise papa Glen. I doubt he even sells him a bag of popcorn if he didn't make that promise. And it probably wouldn't come up unless there was a good chance.

That said, Glen will probably want things done his way until he is totally out of the picture so I expect a holding pattern to continue.

[Phenom]

I found an article from December 16 th that the stake will be 30 percent with conditions that Kaplan become majority owner when Taylor decides to step down. I hope he gets some good input with the front office spots this off-season.

http://m.startribune.com/wolves-owner-glen-taylor-proceeding-toward-selling-30-percent-of-team/362581721/

[Phenom]

I didn't hear it but AP guy supposedly said on Bump that the Kaplan group want to be involved in the hiring process of the new coach and gm. I hope Glen dummies up and relents.

Also said tension is mounting with players and Sammitch. Has an interim coach ever been let go mid season before?