On October 1, this Thursday (life moves pretty fast), Jaden McDaniels is eligible for a two-year, $87 million contract extension. While paying someone who has never been an All-Star nearly over $40 million a year may sound steep, the price is well worth it for a player who impacts the game in as many ways as McDaniels does.
As such, on October 1, the Minnesota Timberwolves should be ready to extend McDaniels to the full deal he's eligible for. And given the sheer amount of money on the table, McDaniels could be willing to sign an extension, though he will be eligible for a bigger one down the road.
Regarding the significant financial commitment, it's worth noting that this new deal won't kick in until 2029. Until then, McDaniels will remain on his team-friendly five-year, $131 million deal. That should negate some of the concerns about handing out a big contract.
Now, with Anthony Edwards and LaMelo Ball soon being eligible for extensions, things could get murky down the road. Still, that's a problem for another day.
The Wolves' front office has shown an unwavering level of commitment to McDaniels, including keeping him out of Giannis Antetokounmpo trade talks. To this end, I actually think an extension is pretty likely.
Jaden McDaniels' all-around impact makes him well worth this new deal
McDaniels has long been one of the league's most impactful defenders. He is a jumbo-sized point-of-attack defender who can take opposing stars out of games. Furthermore, he offers value as a defensive playmaker and secondary playmaker. All things considered, he's a top-10-level defender in the league.
His growing offensive game is the other major factor that makes him worth this hefty contract. McDaniels averaged a career-best 14.8 points per game with stellar 51.5/41.2/83.5 shooting splits last season. In the playoffs, he leveled up, averaging 16.3 points. He can create for himself and is a gifted scorer at all three levels.
By all accounts, he's an elite third option. With LaMelo Ball in the mix, don't be surprised if he reaches another level offensively (though Jonathan Kuminga might make that harder). Likewise, the playoffs showed that McDaniels can scale up, and the Wolves should empower him more on the ball. Another offensive leap would surely make this contract age like fine wine.
Having a 6-foot-9 wing who can create for himself and score in complementary ways is a true luxury in the modern NBA. Combined with his elite defense, McDaniels' all-around impact is undeniable. Thus, the Wolves should be eager to lock him up long-term.
OG Anunoby is proof that the Wolves should pay McDaniels
OG Anunoby is a comparison I use for McDaniels a lot. As elite defenders with underrated offensive games, the two players are clearly similar. When OG signed a five-year, $212.5 million extension in 2024, it seemed like a lot. But he quickly proved to be worth it, given how much he impacts winning, and now there's no discussion about his contract.
Just look at how important Anunoby was to the New York Knicks' championship run. That's exactly the role McDaniels plays for the Wolves, and therefore he's worth a similar contract.
McDaniels has some room to grow on offense to reach OG's level. Still, this is a reasonable proposition, and he's not that far away from OG as things stand.
My point is that two-way forwards who are this talented are extremely valuable to winning teams, and the Wolves wouldn't be the same without McDaniels. Given this, there should be no trepidation about extending McDaniels.
The only possible hurdle would be that McDaniels wants to hold out for a longer-term, more lucrative contract. If he's interested in extending now, though, the Timberwolves should back up the brink's truck without hesitation.
Add us as a preferred source on Google