In a free agency market in which shooters will more than likely be a coveted asset, Seth Curry may offer the services the Minnesota Timberwolves are looking for at a reasonable price.
Seth Curry, who should be a Minnesota Timberwolves free agent target, has had an interesting NBA career, spending years in the purgatory of 10-day contracts and G-League appearances. However, he found his feet the last few years with solid seasons in Dallas and Portland.
The 2017-18 season was a sitout for Curry, who was diagnosed in the preseason with a stress reaction in his left tibia that required surgery. It was then to the open market for Curry, who really needed a deal to solidify his place as an NBA role player after the injury.
It was Portland who came knocking with a $2.8 million contract that proved enough to lure Curry’s signature. Throughout 74 appearances, Curry averaged 7.9 points on 45.6 percent shooting, which included a 45.0 percent success rate from beyond the arc. Curry’s stats were down due to playing 10 less minutes per game, but ona team like the Timberwolves, he could see those numbers skyrocket.
With the upcoming free agency period seeing almost half of the current Timberwolves’ roster on the open market, shooting is going to be a priority for the Wolves to chase. While Curry will likely have many suitors, bringing the younger Curry to Minnesota could bolster the Wolves’ offense to a level we desperately need as we look to contend.
Plus, wouldn’t it be nice to finally have a Curry in Minnesota after we passed on Steph twice in 2009? Too soon?
Either way it’s hard to deny the younger Curry has plenty of talent on his own. The 45.0 percent clip from 3-point range would have Curry ranked first on the Timberwolves’ roster, while the Timberwolves as a whole ranked 20th in the league with a combined 35.1 percent average.
The Wolves further ranked 26th in 3-pointers attempted per game, while successful teams such as Golden State, Houston, Milwaukee and Boston all ranked in the top ten. 3-pointers are not necessarily an indicator of success, but with the way the league is played at the moment it certainly would help to bolster the team’s shooting ability.
The only reason I would urge the Wolves to be cautious on the Seth Curry front is his potential price tag. While the younger Curry shouldn’t be fetching anything outside of the team’s price range, he is likely to garner some interest and the Wolves have a lot of additions to make this offseason.
In my opinion, the Wolves should go into the negotiations with a fixed price in mind and avoid going higher. I’m not sure whether or not Curry’s market will stretch to the $7 million to $8 million per year range, but any higher than that should be too high for the Wolves to consider.
Curry is a capable shooter, and with a minutes increase would likely be a productive role player for the team off the bench. He also has the ability to slot into a starting lineup if Minnesota proves as injury-prone as they were this year. The younger Curry is certainly someone the Timberwolves should be talking to this offseason, however those discussions need to have their price limits.
I’m all for offering Curry a contract in the range of say, 3-years, $15 million, as long as the Timberwolves’ front office can assure Curry has drive to get back to the playoffs and understands the role he has on the team.
I can’t see Curry signing a contract for any less than $4 million unless interested teams see something we can’t, but somewhere between $5 million and $7 million mark per year may be able to get a signature on the dotted line and a Curry in Minnesota.
Seth Curry may prove to be a hotly contested free agent this offseason. That being said, the Minnesota Timberwolves should certainly show an interest in the sharpshooter that could bolster the Wolves 3-point ability.