April 2015 Minnesota Timberwolves Wiretap

Towns, Okafor, Russell, Mudiay Go 1-4 In First Post-Lottery Mocks

May 20, 2015 6:17 PM

With the lottery complete, we can now begin to have a realistic idea of which players will end up with which teams. The following three mocks are the first projections from ESPN's Chad Ford, Jonathan Givony of Draft Express and Aran Smith of NBADraft.

ESPN
1. MIN: Karl-Anthony Towns
2. LAL: Jahlil Okafor
3. PHI: D'Angelo Russell
4. NYK: Emmanuel Mudiay
5. ORL: Kristaps Porzingis
6. SAC: Willie Cauley-Stein
7. DEN: Justise Winslow
8. DET: Mario Hezonja
9. CHA: Devin Booker 
10. MIA: Stanley Johnson
11. IND: Myles Turner
12. UTA: Trey Lyles
13. PHX: Frank Kaminsky
14. OKC: Cameron Payne

Draft Express
1. MIN: Karl Anthony-Towns
2. LAL: Jahlil Okafor
3. PHI: D'Angelo Russell
4. NYK: Emmanuel Mudiay
5. ORL: Mario Hezonja
6. SAC: Willie Cauley-Stein
7. DEN: Justise Winslow
8. DET: Kristaps Porzingis
9. CHA: Stanley Johnson
10. MIA: Kelly Oubre
11. IND: Myles Turner
12. UTA: Frank Kaminsky 
13. PHX: Devin Booker
14. OKC: Cameron Payne

NBADraft.net
1. MIN: Karl-Anthony Towns
2. LAL: Jahlil Okafor
3. PHI: D'Angelo Russell
4. NYK: Emmanuel Mudiay
5. ORL: Kristaps Porzingis
6. SAC: Justise Winslow
7. DEN: Mario Hezonja
8. DET: Stanley Johnson
9. CHA: Trey Lyles
10. MIA: Myles Turner
11. IND: Willie Cauley-Stein
12. UTA: Sam Dekker
13. PHX: Devin Booker
14. OKC: Cameron Payne

RealGM Staff Report

Tags: Los Angeles Lakers, Minnesota Timberwolves, New York Knicks, Philadelphia Sixers, NBA, NBA NBA Draft, NBA Draft General

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Wolves Willing To Consider Trading No. 1 Overall Pick

May 20, 2015 3:58 PM

The Minnesota Timberwolves have openly mentioned the possibility of trading away the first overall pick.

Glen Taylor admitted it is unlikely, but not something they're prepared to rule out.

Taylor said it is something that will be “part of any conversation.”

“You never know what it could mean, if you could get the right one or two guys that could change your team,” Taylor said. “When you already have a bunch of young guys, you have to look at this type of stuff. But I think it's a very hard decision to make.”

The Wolves already have a young roster with several former lottery picks.

“We've got so many young guys,” Taylor said, “we would be better off not even being close to the lottery again.”

Ken Berger/CBS Sports

Tags: Minnesota Timberwolves, NBA, NBA Misc Rumor, NBA NBA Draft, NBA Draft General

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Wolves Anticipate Kevin Garnett Returning Next Season

May 21, 2015 1:27 PM

Glen Taylor expects Kevin Garnett to play next season.

The Minnesota Timberwolves acquired Garnett at the trade deadline in February.

"I see that he's out working really hard to get his knee into shape," said Garnett. "So I anticipate that he's interested in coming back. I can't say that for sure, but I don't know why he would be out there doing what he's doing if he didn't want to come back."

Garnett was drafted by the Wolves in 1995 and has played nearly 50,000 career minutes.

John Schuhmann/NBA.com

Tags: Kevin Garnett, Minnesota Timberwolves, NBA, NBA Misc Rumor, NBA Injury

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Lakers Had Handshake Agreement For Kevin Garnett In 2007

May 19, 2015 7:34 PM

The Los Angeles Lakers reportedly had a handshake agreement with the Minnesota Timberwolves in 2007 on a trade of Andrew Bynum and Lamar Odom for Kevin Garnett.

"Dr. [Jerry] Buss came to me and said, 'I have a handshake agreement with Taylor, that he's going to come to L.A. But (Kevin) McHale hasn't concurred yet.' So I said, 'Well that's a good excuse.' You always, as an owner, say, 'I'll do this, but …' So I kept that hope out there, that he was gonna be a part of the Laker organization," said Phil Jackson.

Taylor believed Bynum was going to become a star.

Garnett was eventually traded to the Boston Celtics for Al Jefferson, Sebastian Telfair, Gerald Green, Ryan Gomes and a first round pick.

McHale's relationship with Ainge was believed to have helped facilitate the trade.

"I've always kind of hinted that, in fun. … Of course, it's easier to make a deal with someone you know," said Jackson.

The Phoenix Suns were offering Amar'e Stoudemire for Garnett.

The Lakers eventually acquired Pau Gasol without trading away Bynum or Odom, which led them to three Finals appearances and two titles.

Howard Beck/Bleacher Report (via Kelly Dwyer/Yahoo! Sports)

Tags: Kevin Garnett, Boston Celtics, Los Angeles Lakers, Minnesota Timberwolves, NBA, NBA Trade Rumor, NBA Misc Rumor

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Wolves Win 2015 NBA Draft Lottery

May 19, 2015 9:38 PM

The Minnesota Timberwolves will pick first in the 2015 NBA Draft, joining the list of previous lottery winners. The Wolves are expected to decide between Karl-Anthony Towns and Jahlil Okafor.

The Los Angeles Lakers and New York Knicks swapped pre-lottery standings at No. 4 and No. 2, while the Philadelphia 76ers stayed put at No. 3. 

The 76ers have their own lottery pick, while they could have also received the Lakers' pick if it had fallen out of the top-5 and/or Miami's if it fell out of the top-10.

You can view the lottery history of each team, including the players selected with their picks, by clicking on the below links.

Draft Lottery Results

1. Minnesota Timberwolves (25%) 

2. Los Angeles Lakers (11.9%)

3. Philadelphia 76ers (15.6%)

4. New York Knicks (19.9%)

5. Orlando Magic (8.8%)

6. Sacramento Kings (6.3%)

7. Denver Nuggets (4.3%)

8. Detroit Pistons (2.8%)

9. Charlotte Hornets (1.7%)

10. Miami Heat (1.1%)

11. Indiana Pacers (0.8%)

12. Utah Jazz (0.7%)

13. Phoenix Suns (0.6%)

14. Oklahoma City Thunder (0.5%)

Click here to run RealGM's Lottery Simulator.

RealGM Staff Report

Tags: Charlotte Hornets, Denver Nuggets, Detroit Pistons, Indiana Pacers, Los Angeles Lakers, Miami Heat, Minnesota Timberwolves, New York Knicks, Orlando Magic, Philadelphia Sixers, Phoenix Suns, Sacramento Kings, Utah Jazz, Oklahoma City Thunder, NBA, NBA NBA Draft, NBA Draft General

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Wiggins, Noel, Mirotic, Clarkson, Payton On All-Rookie Team

May 18, 2015 3:18 PM

Andrew Wiggins, Nerlens Noel, Jordan Clarkson, Nikola Mirotic and Elfrid Payton have been named to the 14-15 NBA All-Rookie First Team.

On the second team are Marcus Smart, Zach LaVine, Bojan Bogdanovic, Jusuf Nurkic and Langston Galloway.

From Gary Neal and Landry Fields in 2011 to Marc Jackson in 2001, the All-Rookie First Team has had a surprising number of one-hit wonders.

RealGM Staff Report

Tags: Chicago Bulls, Los Angeles Lakers, Minnesota Timberwolves, Orlando Magic, Philadelphia Sixers, NBA, NBA Award

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Divac, Noel, Bird Among On-Stage Participants For Lottery

May 14, 2015 1:21 PM

The NBA has released the list of on-stage participants for next week's draft lottery.

Hornets: Michael Kidd-Gilchrist

Nuggets: Josh Kroenke

Pistons: Jeff Bower

Pacers: Larry Bird

Lakers: Byron Scott

Heat: Alonzo Mourning

Wolves: Glen Taylor

Knicks: Steve Mills

Thunder: Russell Westbrook

Magic: Alex Martins

76ers: Nerlens Noel

Suns: Alex Len

Kings: Vlade Divac

Jazz: Dennis Lindsey

RealGM Staff Report

Tags: Charlotte Hornets, Denver Nuggets, Detroit Pistons, Indiana Pacers, Los Angeles Lakers, Miami Heat, Minnesota Timberwolves, New York Knicks, Orlando Magic, Philadelphia Sixers, Phoenix Suns, Sacramento Kings, Utah Jazz, Oklahoma City Thunder, NBA, NBA NBA Draft, NBA Draft General

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