Timberwolves Rumors: Mike Conley Jr. tops list of PG targets

If you are the Minnesota Timberwolves, you are reluctant to enter any trade discussions in the hopes of improving your NBA roster through an exchange with another team because, quite frankly, the Timberwolves have all but exhausted their easily tradeable assets. With few picks at their disposal and an injury-riddled roster, there really doesn’t seem to be any spare change lying around for this team.

In order to acquire the rights to former Utah Jazz center Rudy Gobert, the Minnesota Timberwolves packaged four first-round draft picks plus five players. What the team has left is basically next to nothing, at least in terms of tradeable picks.  That does not bode well for the Timberwolves, at least in terms of trying to move the needle at upgrading a position or a rotation that is not hitting the mark.

Timberwolves: Time to go shopping for a PG?

So what options do the Timberwolves have for trades at their point guard position? Not as many as they might prefer. The problem for the Timberwolves is that they need someone who can play the role of both a starting point guard, but also a player who can come off the bench just as willingly and effectively.

And then there is the matter of economics. If the Timbewolves are interested in trading for a bona fide point guard, they will need to set realistic expectations. Right now, the team has much less to offer to any potential trade partner, unless the exchange becomes a three-way trade and involves one of the Timberwolves’ more valued players. But if there is a will, there will be a way.

Minnesota Timberwolves rumors this season have not just been based on random what-if scenarios. The Timberwolves are one of the NBA bubble teams, a team whose appearance in the 2023 NBA Playoffs depends upon how well the team plays in the second half of the 2022-23 NBA season. Unfortunately, injuries have plagued the Timberwolves roster so far this season, and the best option to get things back on track appears to be the NBA Trade or free agent markets:

Timberwolves trade options

The most obvious solution to help the Minnesota Timberwolves roster improve the point guard status at the moment is to trade for an established veteran. But the Timberwolves are not exactly an NBA team with available draft picks or high-profile and easily movable players right now. That means that any potential trade will require seriously lengthy negotiations.

Trade Options III: Mike Conley Jr.

Right now, The Athletic’s Shams Charnia is reporting that the Minnesota Timberwolves, along with the LA Clippers, have expressed interest in acquiring Utah Jazz point guard Mike Conley Jr. (subscription required) The Timberwolves rumors have been pretty active so far, and the link to Conley makes sense.

Conley is a veteran NBA point guard and has both the experience and the flexibility that this Timberwolves team so desperately needs right now. In the latest Jazz-Timberwolves contest, Conley put up 14 points, eight rebounds, and six assists in 30 minutes. Better yet, he shot 62.5 percent from the floor and a cool 50 percent from beyond the perimeter.

He is currently competing in his 16th NBA season and his fourth season for the Utah Jazz.  While he is currently listed as a backup to Jazz point guard Jordan Clarkson, he has been too productive to sit on the bench. So far this season, he has appeared in 35 games for the Utah Jazz and started in 34 of those contests.

Conley is under contract with the Jazz for two more seasons, at a cost of $22.68 million. If the Timberwolves truly have an interest in acquiring Conley, they will need to negotiate a package that sends D’Angelo Russell to the Jazz as part of the exchange to get the finances in the right ballpark. If that falls through? The Timberwolves may have other options

Trade option II: T.J. McConnell

The Timberwolves would benefit significantly from the impact of a veteran PG like T.J. McConnell.  The problem is that the Indiana Pacers like what they have in him right now. And with the Pacers flirting with an NBA Playoff berth of their own, there may not be much interest in dealing away a solid contributor and backup point guard at this point in time.

But there is the rub. McConnell is a backup point guard for the Pacers, appearing in 42 games and yet averaging just 17.9 minutes, 6.6 points, 2.7 rebounds, 4.6 assists, and 1.1 steals per game.  So why isn’t he starting? He is playing behind PG Tyrese Haliburton and Andrew Nembhard, which makes him stuck on the depth chart. If the Timberwolves had a frontcourt player to offer, say a Taurean Prince, that could get the Pacers’ attention long enough to make the trade.

McConnell could be a starting PG for the Timberwolves. And the Timberwolves could net pick in the trade as well.

Trade Option I: Markelle Fultz

A chance to resurrect the tarnished NBA career of Markelle Fultz may be something the Timberwolves want to tackle. Right now, Fultz is the on-again, off-again point guard starter for the Orlando Magic.  He is a young versatile guard who can play point guard or off the ball as a shooting guard. While he has never lived up to the number one player selected in the 2017 NBA Draft, he has managed to reclaim a bit of respect with his recent efforts.

He can score, and he most certainly can distribute the basketball to the open shooter. But he has yet to perfect any resemblance to an NBA three-point shot, which lowers his value to the NBA and to the Timberwolves. But it’s that tarnished upside which could deflate Fultz into the Minnesota Timberwolves price range.

Timberwolves free agency options

Of course, NBA Trades are not always an option because of the complexity of everything coming together. First and foremost, you need a team that is interested in a player or players on another team’s roster. Then you need for that team to find a reason to trade with that first team, in short, that team must recognize some value that will improve their team as well. Then, both teams must engage in negotiations that end at a point where both teams believe that they are walking away with more value.

It’s a wonder any trade happens at all, isn’t it? To get around that, the Timberwolves may simply opt for a free agent. But the pickings are pretty slim at the midpoint of the season for a viable point guard. But here are two veteran options who may still have some NBA tread in their tires:

Free agency II: Avery Bradley

A backcourt player who has enjoyed 12 seasons of play in the NBA, but who continues to score from the perimeter. His initial play for the Boston Celtics had him perform as a point guard, but he played the last nine years primarily off the ball. His reputation was tarnished somewhat when he competed with the LA Lakers, which is a bit surprising because I found this article from a year ago singing his praises both offensively and defensively. Bradley is a veteran who still has some basketball left in him. Will it be enough to pique the Timberwolves’ interest? That remains to be seen

Free Agency I: Isaiah Thomas

Another free agent blast from the past is 5-foot-9 185-pound point guard Isaiah Thomas. While many believe that Thomas’ best basketball is behind him, Clutch Points writer Guilherme Hiray Leal was lobbying for three NBA teams to kick the tires on Thomas for the 2022-23 NBA season. Thomas is that veteran’s leadership that is so hard to quantify but could prove to be invaluable to the controlled chaos that seems to pervade the Minnesota Timberwolves locker room this season.

And Thomas did help the Charlotte Hornets succeed just one year ago:

That would be great for the Timberwolves right now.  And great is a whole lot better than this middle-of-the-road performance that fans are getting out of the team currently.

Timberwolves international option

In every NBA offensive arsenal, there is that half-court buzzer-beater that is the NBA version of football’s Hail Mary pass. So why not embed that same process for the Timberwolves’ strategy to reinforce the roster? Only, instead of a half-court shot, something along the lines of looking into international players.

Bonus option: Matteo Spagnolo

The Minnesota Timberwolves currently hold the rights to three players who are currently competing internationally: G Matteo Spagnolo, C Paulao Prestis, and C Henk Norel. Of that group, only Matteo Spagnolo is actively competing in basketball overseas.

Spagnolo was selected by the Minnesota Timberwolves with the 20th pick of the second round in the 2022 NBA Draft. At the time, the Timberwolves roster was loaded with players, so the option was made to draft and stash Matteo Spagnolo in the Euroleague competition.  This season, he is competing for Dolomiti Energia Trento and is averaging 26.4 minutes, 10.3 points, 4.9 assists, and 3.3 rebounds per game.

Of course, Spagnolo is under contract with Real Madrid, and any overtures to bring him to the NBA would require satisfying the terms of that contract. Beyond that, A young Italian star will require plenty of time to acclimate to the United States lifestyle and to the NBA version of basketball.

But that’s why this is a Hail Mary option after all.