RealGM Basketball Wiretap

21 November 2024

• Anthony Edwards Fined $35K For Making Obscene Gesture During Play

  Minnesota Timberwolves guard Anthony Edwards was fined $35,000 for making an obscene gesture during play. The incident occurred with 3:15 remaining in the Wolves victory over the Sacramento Kings on Friday, November 15.

  Edwards appeared to raise his middle finger to someone in the Sacramento crowd.

• Timberwolves Ownership Arbitration Heads To Deliberation Phase

  The Minnesota Timberwolves ownership dispute has finished the hearings phase. Now the three-person panel has headed into deliberations that could take a few months before completing.

  Current Wolves owner Glen Taylor called off the sale of the team to a group led by Marc Lore and Alex Rodriguez at the end of March. Taylor's side of the dispute says that the Lore/Rodriguez group missed a deadline to make the final payments, which would have seen them assume 80% ownership of the Timberwolves.

  Lore and Rodriguez contend that they met the deadline to submit paperwork which should have extended the purchase agreement for an additional 90 days. The two met in May for mediation but could not reach an agreement. That ultimately led to the arbitration process.

• Opening Night Doubleheader Averages 2.95M Viewers On TNT

  The NBA's opening night doubleheader on Tuesday averaged a 1.6 rating with 2.95 million viewers on TNT.

  The viewership is up 6% from last year.

  The Celtics-Knicks game averaged 3.01 million viewers, with the Timberwolves-Lakers averaging 2.91 million viewers.

  The Celtics-Knicks game was the most-viewed early window game on opening night since 2017.

• Rudy Gobert, Wolves Agree To Three-Year, $110M Extension

  Rudy Gobert and the Minnesota Timberwolves have agreed to a three-year, $110 million extension. Gobert is declining his $46.6 million player option for 25-26 and will receive a completely new contract that gives the Wolves more flexibility and longer term security for him. Gobert has a player option for Year 3 of the extension. Gobert also will have a trade kicker in his new deal.

  The Wolves acquired Gobert from the Utah Jazz during the 2022 offseason and won Defensive Player of the Year last season as they went to the Western Conference Finals.

• Warriors Expressed Interest In Karl-Anthony Towns Trade With Wolves

  The Golden State Warriors discussed a trade with the Minnesota Timberwolves for Karl-Anthony Towns this past offseason before he was eventually dealt to the New York Knicks, sources tell Anthony Slater of The Athletic.

  The Wolves, however, were targeting a specific package type from the Knicks that the Warriors didn't possess. Talks between the two teams didn't progress.

  The Warriors were also linked to Paul George and Lauri Markkanen this past offseason. Without any executable major trades, the Warriors are hoping their additions of Buddy Hield, Kyle Anderson and De'Anthony Melton will help bolster their playoff chances.

• Anthony Edwards On Minnesota: I'm Trying To Be Here For My Whole Career

  Anthony Edwards reached the Western Conference Finals with the Minnesota Timberwolves in his age 22 season and fourth in the NBA. Edwards signed a five-year, $260 million extension with the Wolves during the 2023 offseason to commit his future to the franchise.

  "If I can, I'm trying to be here for my whole career," Edwards told ESPN. "I ain't trying to go nowhere."

  Edwards has already developed a reputation as one of the NBA's most competitive players.

  "If he ever loses [at anything], he's going to make sure that he practices and practices and practices until he's ready to play you again," said Justin Holland, Edwards' longtime trainer and business manager. "And you probably won't win."

  The Wolves are also going through an ownership dispute and there are concerns about their ability to pay the luxury tax over the long-term as one of the NBA's smaller market franchises.

• Wolves Waive Keita Baties-Diop

  The Minnesota Timberwolves have waived Keita Bates-Diop. The Wolves acquired Bates-Diop from the New York Knicks as part of the Karl-Anthony Towns trade.

  Bates-Diop appeared in two preseason games with the Wolves, averaging 5.0 points and 2.5 rebounds in 12.3 minutes.

  Last season, Bates-Diop averaged 3.7 points and 2.1 rebounds in 12.5 minutes across 53 games with the Phoenix Suns and Brooklyn Nets.

• Keita Bates-Diop Appears To Be Odd Man Out For Timberwolves Roster

  Veteran forward Keita Bates-Diop was not at Minnesota Timberwolves practice on Saturday. That suggests that Bates-Diop may be the odd man out as the Wolves finalize their regular season roster.

  Minnesota currently has 16 players on standard contracts. The 15th and final spot is between Bates-Diop and veteran guard P.J. Dozier. The Timberwolves signed Dozier to a $1 million partially guaranteed contract earlier this offseason.

  Minnesota is reportedly exploring the trade market for Bates-Diop. If no deal is found, the Wolves will likely eat the forward's $2.6 million salary for this season.

• Timberwolves Waive Skylar Mays; Mays To Join Fenerbahce

  Veteran guard Skylar Mays is set to join Fenerbahce in Turkey for the upcoming season. Mays went to training camp with the Minnesota Timberwolves, but was waived as part of the team's cutdown process.

  Fenerbahce was on the lookout for guard help, as Scottie Wilbekin recent suffered a torn ACL. Mays will head overseas for the first time after spending the initial four years of his career with the Atlanta Hawks, Portland Trail Blazers and Los Angeles Lakers.

  Last season, Mays split time between Portland and Los Angeles. In 38 total NBA games, the 6-foot-4 guard averaged 4.1 points and 2.2 assists in 11.4 minutes per game.

• Glen Taylor Preferred Wolves Retain Karl-Anthony Towns Over Making Trade Sacrificing Short-Term

  Glen Taylor insisted to Tim Connelly this offseason that he was comfortable with the Minnesota Timberwolves paying a significant luxury tax bill this season and that he preferred to retain Karl-Anthony Towns rather than make a trade that made their team worse this season, sources tell The Athletic.

  Taylor is currently in a dispute over the ownership of the Wolves with Marc Lore and Alex Rodriguez. Taylor remains the final decision-maker with the franchise as the dispute is pending. Taylor told Connelly that he wouldn't sign off on a trade unless it helped them competitively this season.

  Connelly has no interest in starting a rebuild, but he also realized he needed more optionality in the near- and long-term. The Wolves will now save enough money to likely retain Naz Reid and it could open up more roster building mechanisms if they drop below the second apron for the 25-26 season.

  Sources also say there were few other viable options for a Towns' trade beyond what the Knicks were offering as the Wolves wanted established players.