The Minnesota Timberwolves have undergone a lot of changes this offseason. Most notably, they added LaMelo Ball and Jonathan Kuminga while parting ways with Julius Randle and Naz Reid. Furthermore, Mike Conley, Kyle Anderson, and Joe Ingles all found new homes.
Now, the Timberwolves are one of the league's youngest teams and have fully committed to Anthony Edwards' timeline. As such, it's clear that Edwards is becoming the true leader of this team. Of course, he's long been the team's best player, but throughout his career, Ant has leaned on trusted vets in the leadership department, something he can no longer do with this new-look roster.
During a recent interview with Britt Robson of MinnPost, Chris Finch admitted that they purposefully avoided adding a bunch of veterans to empower Ant and Jaden McDaniels as leaders. This comment also tells me that rounding out the roster with a trusted veteran, including franchise legend Kevin Love, is unlikely.
“We purposefully haven’t added a bunch of veterans to the team this year. My approach with Ant (Edwards), or with Jaden (McDaniels), or with all these guys is: if we’re going to take the diapers off, let’s take the diapers off. Like, it’s your team now. What you say and the way you say it, and setting the tone from the first days of practice—that stuff matters. And it’s time. It is seven years into the league.”
The Timberwolves signing Kevin Love feels unlikely after Chris Finch's comments
After trading Josh Green, Minnesota opened up enough cap space to sign a veteran minimum contract while remaining under the second tax apron. Given this, along with the Wolves' need for frontcourt depth and veteran leadership, the possibility of a reunion with Love seemed logical. And after Jon Krawczynski noted that there's mutual interest in a reunion with Love, this possibility seemed even more feasible.
However, it was never a sure thing, particularly since signing Love (who would likely be a pure depth piece) would increase Minnesota's luxury tax bill by $8.5 million. Frankly, after Finch's comments, I have a hard time envisioning a reunion with Love, and I'd expect the Wolves to keep their 15th roster spot open.
If the Wolves really wanted to, they could have brought in this true veteran presence by now. Regardless, it seems like the Wolves have intentionally avoided signing a player to fill this void in order for Edwards and McDaniels to assume leadership roles.
I'm a big believer that veterans like Conley, Anderson, and Ingles have value. They can calm down a locker room, hold their teammates accountable, and instill wisdom in younger players. Love could certainly provide similar value, even if his on-court impact is limited at this stage of his career.
At some point, you graduate from needing this veteran leader, though. After two conference finals appearances in the last three seasons and six years in the league, it's time for Edwards and McDaniels to become true leaders. Furthermore, most championship teams have their best player as the clear leader.
Doing so with a veteran leader is inherently harder. Edwards and McDaniels have some support, mainly from Gobert and Donte DiVincenzo. Nevertheless, it's clear that Minnesota has approached this offseason with empowering Ant as a leader in mind.
So far, he's risen to the occasion, including helping organize a team trip to Paris to visit Rudy Gobert and recruiting Jonathan Kuminga. While reuniting with Love is a story that every Wolves fan can get behind, it would be counterintuitive to the goal of empowering Edwards as a leader, and Finch's comments make a reunion with Love seem unlikely.
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