Dwight Howard is reported to be disgruntled in Atlanta, should the Timberwolves look at acquiring him?
The Minnesota Timberwolves had high expectations that they never had a chance at achieving.
They are centered by two players that are ready to take the next step of becoming all-stars. Could a sneaky good move scooping up Dwight Howard for practically nothing finally push Minnesota into the playoffs?
Karl-Anthony Towns is already considered one of the top centers in the NBA and is only improving his game everyday.
Andrew Wiggins has developed into a great scorer and has proven that on any given night he can go for 30 points. He does need to turn into a little more of a well-rounded offensive player, but as soon as that happens, the Wolves will be hard to guard on offense.
Although these two players are set in stone for the franchise, the rest is a bit foggy.
Gorgui Dieng was locked up prior to the current season, so he is really the only player that is under contract for a while with Minnesota. Dieng has proven to be useful on the boards, but is inconsistent on offense and is sluggish on defense sometimes.
Zach Lavine improved on many levels this year, but is he going to be a part of their future?
Something is missing on the Wolves path back to the playoffs.
The Timberwolves have two major needs to fill this upcoming offseason:
- A starting caliber big man to play alongside Towns while moving Dieng to the bench.
- Scoring-especially from beyond the arc.
Some news flew under the radar today and the Wolves should keep their eye out on this one.
Kevin Arnovitz tweeted that the buying price for former All-Star center, Dwight Howard, is quite low.
So the best case scenario for the Hawks is a second round draft pick and some help paying what they owe Howard?
Now I understand… Howard has been a train wreck the past few years, but look at where he has gone.
The Lakers were obviously an awful fit as he did anything but mesh with LA.
The Houston move looked like fun. James Harden and Howard in a pick and roll, but the two clashed passively.
Next, a move that looked like the last jigsaw piece being found, Howard in his hometown Atlanta. However, he went on to average the lowest amount of points in his career since his rookie season.
Howard has potential to be a real contributor and become an X-factor on a team ready to make a playoff run.
He would be able to come in right away and fill two voids for Minnesota.
First he would move Dieng to the bench. While it seems like a major downgrade for Dieng, he would now become the best player on the bench and could run things to fulfill his ceiling.
With Howard inserted into the starting lineup, Towns would be able to develop his shooting even more. Towns and Howard would be two towers that would be hard to go into the paint on.
Second, even though his numbers went down a little bit this year, Howard would be a key scoring option on a young team. His numbers would increase, his touches would go up and a happy Howard would arise.
Now something that would be an added bonus is Howard’s defense.
He showed some lack of awareness and just plain laziness in the playoffs, but we all know how he can be.
The thing that could be different now, is Tom Thibodeau. A defensive coach that will rip into Howard and just might possibly find a motivator.
The 31 year-old won’t have a whole lot of suitors, but the Minnesota Timberwolves need to take a hard look at acquiring the big man.
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This team has a whole lot of cap room and would be able to take this low risk-high reward plan a long ways.