Hungry Like the Wolf

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Top Tier Free Agents

Yao Ming
Zach Randolph
Marc Gasol
Al Horford(Restricted)

2nd Tier
Greg Oden
Jamal Crawford
Andrei Kirlenko
Carl Landry
J.R. Smith
Jason Richardson
Reggie Williams
Vince Carter
Kendric Perkins

3rd Tier
Thadeus Young
Troy Murphy
Josh Howard
Kalenna Azuibuke
Aaron Afflalo(Restricted)
Corey Brewer
Peja Stojakovic
Michael Redd
Kenyon Martin
Grant Hill

As you can see there are slim pickings in this Free Agency

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As GM I am looking for three veterans whom I can sign to deals for 1-3 years, that can help mentor my plethora of young players. I think a SG, a SF and a PF would be optimal.

Who I am looking at

SG Anthony Parker
PF Kenyon Martin
SF Peja Stojakavic
C Joel Pryzbilla
PF Troy Murphy
SF Rasual Butler

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The following players refused to sign with the Wolves
Stojakavic(Wants to win a championship, will retire unless he can get with a contender)
Pryzbilla(Worried about playing time, he wants starters minutes)
and
Troy Murphy(Wants to make the playoffs at least once in his career)

So far Anthony Parker is the only player to accept a contract offer for 2 million for one year. I am excited about this because Parker has good fundamentals and will make a good training partner for my young SGs/SFs.

So Far Kenyon Martin is asking for too much money and too long of a contract.

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Corey Brewer Signed with the Hornets for 2 years 11 mil

The Timberwolves signed Rasual Butler to a 2 year 10 million dollar contract.

I would have personally signed Brewer over Butler as he was a good player for the Wolves last year, but Brewer wanted a 4 year contract worth 25 million to play for us. Having Chris Paul really helps the Hornets.

I am happy to have Rasual Butler as a capable backup SF for the next two years.

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The Wolves signed their last player and their roster is set. Craig Smith joined the team. We were able to sign Smith to a league minimum contract for two years. I really believe this is a steal, Smith is a good backup and ultimately an effective player in most situations.

Greg Oden re-signed with the Trailblazers

Memphis re-signed Marc Gasol

Kenyon Martin signed with the Denver Nuggets at around 6.5 million a year for four years.

Yao Ming re-signed with the Rockets, for nearly max contract!

Overall this was one of the more boring off-seasons in recent memory, not many players changed teams.

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The rookies

Travis Tennell: Tennell was a shocker of a pick at number 7, but he has shown strong abilities so far. Tennell could improve his shooting but his point guard abilities are already better than that of Ridnour.

James Whitfield: A weakness of Whitfield's has turned out to be his three point shooting and he hasn't been able to draw many fouls either. Whitfield could surprise by developing but as it stands he might never be better than a mediocre player.

Sang-de Teoh: Teoh will need to change his game, he is actually a great athlete with similar skills to a Power Forward, but he relies too much on an inconsistent jump shot. The training staff will work with him tirelessly to improve his driving and post game. His athletic ability is absolutely astounding, but he has yet to harness it, Teoh is a big time project, it will be about 5 years before we see his full capabilities.

Justin Henderson: Henderson has shown himself to be an elite offensive rebounder, he is good at defensive rebounds as well, but often that is at the expense of his defense, which will always be well below league average. Henderson is the type of player that might rack up statistics but won't help the team. This has become extremely apparent in training camp. I wouldn't be surprised if Henderson is dealt for a more capable player or draft pick that might have a future with the franchise.

[zike_42]

I'm surprised you didn't get aki carr when you had the chance. What put you off him?

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Point Guards

1. Travis Tennell: Tennell has wowed people and gained many supporters from good pre-season and summer league play. The only question mark for Tennell would be his shot selection. Tennell's defense isn't great for a point guard either but its already better than anyone else on the Timberwolves roster.

2. Luke Ridnour: A capable backup with a good 3 point stroke and the ability to limit turnovers. Ridnour is also a capable mentor for Tennell.

3. Daniel Gibson: Look for Gibson to be traded at some time during the season, he won't be better many minutes this year.

Shooting Guards

1. James Whitfield: Whitfield is a big question mark, he may be the weak link on an inexperienced and raw roster. His size puts him at a disadvantage as a two guard, at this point however he is the best the Wolves have. Whitfield will be thrown in the fire this year.

2. Anthony Parker: A veteran who hasn't played major minutes in a few years, his capabilities are diminished, but he should be a good mentor and backup for Whitfield.

Small Forwards

1. Shang-de Teoh: The franchise truly believes that Teoh will be a good player one day and even though he isn't starting material, they want him to get used to being a starter. Look for Teoh to refine a post game and play some back up power forward as well.

2. Rasual Butler: Butler will be a defensive mentor and backup for Teoh. Butler has never really been that efficient of a scorer, he will fill the role Corey Brewer filled last year.

3. Sam Young: Young will try and break through to grab some minutes after a solid year in the D-League last year.

Power Forwards

1. Antwan Jamison: Jamison will start the year off as the teams moral leader, he has stepped up in recent years to try and really help the younger players and keep everyone motivated. Jamison is no longer a productive player in many respects, but sometimes he shows flashes of his old self.

2. Craig Smith: Smith will have to compete for minutes he was overlooked in free agency and the franchise hope the chip on his shoulder will motivate him to compete.

3. Kosta Koufos: A player most people do not know is actually in the NBA, Koufos has done nothing but warm the bench for years.

Centers

1. Justin Henderson: Henderson brings some limited but effective offensive tools and rebounding to the team. Henderson's lack of athleticism may really hurt his abilities to ever become a productive defender. Rumor has it that the team is already considering trading Henderson as his value is very high.

2. Nikola Pekovic: All off-season the Timberwolves worked on conditioning Pekovic and yet he continues to have problems with exhaustion and fouling out. When he is on the court this year he will be the Timberwolves best big man.

3. Anthony Tolliver: Tolliver had a remarkably inefficient season last year, look for his role to be diminished this year.

4. Hasheem Thabeat: Thabear isn't even worth his rookie contract he will see little time on the floor for the Wolves.

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"This will be a rebuild year just as last year was a rebuild year. We have a good mix of young and old players, however not very many players are in their prime. Now begins the long process of developing the players we have into parts of a winning basketball team. I cannot give the fans a time table for making the playoffs, but I can guarantee when we get back to the playoffs we will be there year after year and we will be contenders."

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I'm surprised you didn't get aki carr when you had the chance. What put you off him?

He was a jump shooting PF who while ranked at no. 1 at the beginning of the draft did not actually have good ratings or potential in my eyes. A lot of other CPU GMs thought the same way.