The Timberwolves extending Patrick Beverley’s contract is a win-win

The Minnesota Timberwolves are reportedly extending Patrick Beverley’s contract, and it’s a clear win all the way around for both parties.

The Timberwolves extending Patrick Beverley’s contract is a win-win

The Timberwolves acquired veteran guard Patrick Beverley from the Memphis Grizzlies in August at an absurdly low cost: embattled power forward Juancho Hernangomez, who has since been traded three times, and out-of-the-rotation former lottery pick Jarrett Culver, who remains out of Memphis’ rotation.

The Wolves needed a backup point guard after trading Ricky Rubio to Cleveland earlier in the offseason. They needed to improve their perimeter defense. And they needed to add 3-point shooting to their rotation.

Beverley checked all those boxes, and, in a vacuum, was clearly a better fit for the Wolves roster than Rubio. There was also very little risk, with Beverley’s contract set to expire to at the end of the season. The only real concern that comes along with Beverley is durability, as the 33-year-old has missed a chunk of games in nearly every season throughout his career.

The rumors surrounding a potential contract extension for Beverley started as early as November, as the veteran guard and the team spoke highly of each other in the media. It all made sense, as Beverley’s impact on the court was immediate.

Now, Beverley’s agent informed Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN, among others, that his client and the Timberwolves have agreed to a one-year contract extension.

Despite having the worst 3-point shooting season to this point in his career, Beverley has been phenomenal defensively and has turned in a career-best assist rate and the second-lowest turnover rate of his career. The tenacity and edge that he plays with are qualities that have been few and far between on virtually every Wolves roster since the Kevin Garnett years, and the difference in demeanor from last year’s team to this year’s edition has been clear.

Once again, there’s precious little risk for the Wolves. Beverley will undoubtedly shoot the ball better moving forward, and the games lost due to injuries here and there are somewhat baked in with Beverley. After all, he’s around the team and in the locker room even when he’s hurt.

The contract makes sense for Beverley, as the $13 million he’ll get next year is only a small step back from the $14.3 million he’s making next year and in line with the average annual value (AAV) of the $40 million he was paid over the last three years.

After all, 34-year-old guards don’t get paid this much annually across a long-term contract; it’s unlikely that Beverley would do much better than this from an AAV perspective on the open market. This way, he gets to be with a team that he’s gotten to know and a roster that he believes will be a playoff team for the foreseeable future.

No matter how you want to slice it, this is a win-win deal. Beverley gets paid and the opportunity to stay with a team he knows. The Wolves have a veteran leader and fantastic perimeter defense locked up for another year, and if things go completely south for whatever reason, Beverley will be an expiring contract at next year’s deadline.