After making the big splash trade for Rudy Gobert last summer, the Minnesota Timberwolves have utilized more understated offseason signings this summer in free agency.
The biggest and most important move was extending Anthony Edwards until 2029, locking up one of the game's brightest young stars.
Smaller additions like the Timberwolves' signings of Shake Milton and Troy Brown Jr. should provide some versatility in the backcourt, and bringing back Nickiel Alexander-Walker after his impressive postseason performance was a wise decision.
Minnesota's moves in free agency were cost-effective and savvy, but there's still a hole on the roster that could be addressed late into the offseason.
Biggest roster concern for the Timberwolves
After losing Taurean Prince in free agency and with Jaylen Nowell still unsigned, the Timberwolves could use some help at the backup wing/forward spot. While there's hope that Wendell Moore Jr. or Leonard Miller will grow into that role, playoff teams typically don't like to rely on rookies at such important positions of need.
Jaden McDaniels will handle the duties as Minnesota's starting small forward, and there's a lot of potential for him to grow as an offensive weapon this year. Kyle Anderson spends almost all of his minutes at the 4 and is a natural playmaker. Brown Jr. has been a low-usage offensive option at his last two stops with the Chicago Bulls and Los Angeles Lakers.
The Timberwolves' biggest roster concern is the lack of another wing scorer to pace the team when Anthony Edwards sits.
The good news is that there are some veteran scorers still available in free agency. The Timberwolves finished 23rd in offensive efficiency last year, and while most of that can be chalked up to Karl Anthony-Towns only playing in 29 games, finding some scoring pop off the bench should still be a priority.
Potential free agency signings
There isn't much depth available in free agency on the wing, as it's mostly a cast of fringe rotation guys available. There are two notable exceptions, however: T.J. Warren and Kelly Oubre Jr.
Warren, 29, has been a productive scorer at the forward spot for years. For his career, Warren averages a robust 19.2 points per 36 minutes of playing time. His most notable offensive explosion came in the “NBA bubble” where he erupted for 53 points back in 2020.
Warren missed all of the 2021-22 season with a stress fracture in his foot, and he didn't look fully recovered this year playing for the Phoenix Suns. Still, it might be worth the gamble for Minnesota to bank on Warren having improved mobility now that he's further removed from the injury.
Prior to getting hurt, Warren recorded two straight seasons shooting over 40 percent from 3. While his fit with Anderson in a bench unit may not be great defensively, Warren and McDaniels would work nicely together as a forward tandem in certain lineups for the Timberwolves.
Oubre Jr., 27, is a fascinating free agent. A decade ago, there would be no chance that a player who just averaged over 20 points a game in the prime of his career would still be unsigned this deep into free agency.
Efficiency, of course, matters more than ever in the NBA. Oubre's shooting percentages leave a lot to be desired (31.9 percent from 3 on 7.1 attempts), but Minnesota wouldn't be nearly as dependent on Oubre's scoring as Charlotte was last year. In a reduced role coming off the bench, perhaps Oubre could pick his spots a little more efficiently while still providing the Timberwolves with a late shot-clock option if nothing good materialized.
Most of the advanced stats suggest Oubre is a replacement-level player at best, but sometimes funny things happen when you take a veteran who hasn't had the chance to play really meaningful basketball and drop him on a contender.
Malik Monk paid huge dividends in a high-volume role off the bench for the Sacramento Kings last year, and while Kelly Oubre isn't anywhere near Monk's level as a creator, it's still the kind of low-risk, high-reward roster signing the Timberwolves should explore to give the offense a boost.
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