The Minnesota Timberwolves will reportedly make their first significant signing of the offseason, adding sharpshooting forward Anthony Tolliver to replace Nemanja Bjelica on the roster.
In the opening moments of free agency, the Minnesota Timberwolves signed Derrick Rose to the veteran’s minimum.
Then, there was word that the Wolves plan to (unsurprisingly) make a max-contract offer to Jimmy Butler as soon as they’re able to, which is on July 9.
Since late on Saturday night/early Sunday morning, the Timberwolves had been silent. Until ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski presented Wolves fans with a hint that their favorite squad was about to get active.
Minnesota withdrew qualifying offer on Nemanja Bjelica, who will become an unrestricted free agent, league source tells ESPN.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) July 2, 2018
Renouncing Nemanja Bjelica‘s rights releases their cap hold on the now-unrestricted free agent, clearing additional space to make another addition. And we didn’t have to wait very long to find out who the newest (old) Wolf would be…
Free agent forward Anthony Tolliver is nearing a one-year deal with the Minnesota Timberwolves, league sources tell Yahoo.
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) July 2, 2018
Sources: Tolliver's one-year deal will be in $5-to-$6M range to sign with Minnesota. https://t.co/LvKMOobo8F
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) July 2, 2018
Long-time Wolves fans will remember Anthony Tolliver‘s presence as a bench piece during the 2010-11 and lockout-shortened 2011-12 seasons. He played under first Kurt Rambis and then Rick Adelman, and is remembered, at least by me, for knocking down this memorable 3-pointer in what was just Ricky Rubio‘s fourth career NBA game.
Anthony Tolliver landed at No. 4 on my pre-free agency list of forward options due to his offensive efficiency and solid, relatively versatile defensive ability.
Tolliver’s calling card has always been his shooting; he shot 40.9 percent on 3-point attempts with the Wolves in 2010-11, and while he had a couple of down years immediately following that, he shot 39.3 percent from deep over the next four seasons, including a career-high 43.6 percent last year in his second stint in Detroit.
He’s consistently averaged around 20 minutes per game in each season of his career, and the Wolves will look for him to back-fill the 20.5 minutes per game that Bjelica will vacate.
And while the role will be similar, it’s fair to assume that Tolliver will shoot more threes, and hopefully at a higher success rate, and will be a bit more versatile on defense. He’s not quite the rebounder that Bjelica was, but improved consistency on the offensive end for the second unit will certainly be a positive.
Next: Re-creation of the Timber-Bulls is still underway
We’ll have more on this signing for your Tuesday. In the meantime, enjoy the return of the great Tolly to Target Center.