Timberwolves targeting Kyle Lowry in free agency

After the addition of Jimmy Butler on draft night, the Minnesota Timberwolves are looking to make another splash as Kyle Lowry is reported to be the next target for the team.

It looks like the Timberwolves aren’t done making power moves. It’s been reported that the Wolves top free agent target is Kyle Lowry.

Mitch Lawrence, a Sirius XM NBA columnist and a writer for Sporting News NBA, reports that the Wolves are now going to target Kyle Lowry as their first option.

Now with Jimmy Butler, T-wolves think they can upgrade PG in free agency. Targeting Kyle Lowry first, then Jrue Holiday, J Teague and G Hill
— Mitch Lawrence (@Mitch_Lawrence) June 23, 2017

Minnesota believes that the addition of Jimmy Butler will make other players want to play for the Wolves. Before Butler, Minnesota was saying that they are a rising team. With Butler, they can say that they just might be a playoff lock.

The addition of Butler certainly upgrades their chances to add bigger free agents. Before, the rumor was that they were only targeting Jrue Holiday, Jeff Teague and George Hill. But now, hey apparently see themselves as part of the Lowry sweepstakes.

It seems that with the addition of Butler, the Wolves are looking at around $20 million in cap space, according to Spotrac. This likely wouldn’t be enough to sign Lowry, as it is expected he’d be accepting a max contract.

What do the Wolves need to do to sign Lowry?

,If the Wolves were going to sign him; they would undoubtedly have to cut ties with Ricky Rubio via trade. It just wouldn’t make sense to keep Rubio on the roster with the amount of money he would be taking up, and the Wolves would be able get something good in return.

Ricky Rubio is currently taking up roughly $14 million a season over the next two years. If the team were to move along from Rubio, they would have $34 million in cap space this off-season.

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Trading him would allow the team to sign Lowry to a max contract and still have $9 to 14 million left. They would also need to consider cutting ties with other players in order to make room, including the option to move Gorgui Dieng due to the fact that he will be taking up $14 million after signing a contract extension.

They have a team option on Jordan Hill, and allowing him to walk would free up a lot of cap space as it would mean that the only big contracts on the team at the moment would be Butler and Lowry. Of course, Andrew Wiggins is eligible for his extension this summer and Karl-Anthony Towns will be next year, but there would be a bit of short-term flexibility.

Ultimately, however, Dieng’s deal is a palatable four years and $64 million — especially considering what other players received, like Steven Adams and Timofey Mozgov.

What the Timberwolves would look like:

The Wolves would have a super-team lineup composed of Lowry-Wiggins-Butler-Dieng-Towns. That is a scary lineup that would spell doom for the (non-Golden State) Western Conference and the entire NBA.

Lowry is a bulldog, scoring 22.4 points per game, plus seven assists, 4.8 rebounds, and 1.5 steals per game while shooting 40 percent from three-point range. Those are big numbers that would be a major upgrade from Rubio. The three-time All-Star is a great scorer that can shoot from anywhere on the court, and push around other point guards playing good defense and getting steals.

The team needs three-point shooting and defense, and Lowry would immediately give them what they’re looking for. But not only does he do those two things very well, but he does gives the team veteran leadership and experience. He’s been to the playoffs the past four years, playing a major role every year for the Toronto Raptors.

The Wolves were notorious for not finishing games in 2016-17. If they were able to close out games, they would easily see a double-digit improvement in wins, making them an instant playoff team.

The addition of Butler alone will help the team close out games, but adding Lowry would be a huge benefit when attempting to close out games. The experience of the younger guys will come along and they too will understand what it takes to play the whole 48 minutes. But for now, those two will hold the fort down and help win games.

What the Timberwolves should do

I believe that the Wolves should sign Lowry as it would immediately help the team win games and would bring another voice in the locker room teaching the young guys how to mold their games.

However, they should not sign him and keep Rubio if it would mean ruining the possibility of not resigning Andrew Wiggins and Karl-Anthony Towns. As those two are the future of the franchise.

If they can re-sign those two and still find room to sign Lowry as well, then it’s a done deal. They should sign him. It would be a fun team to watch as we would see the aggressive play of Lowry, Wiggins finding more floor space to run the floor, Butler putting up shots, and Towns doing what he does.

It would be a scary thought to imagine all four of these players on the same team. Not to mention if Wiggins takes the next step in his career and Towns get even better.

Next: 5 Free Agents The Timberwolves Should Sign

It’s something to keep an eye on come free agency time, but for now, the Wolves should be happy about the future.