Fresh off their first playoff appearance since 2003-04, the Minnesota Timberwolves have not necessarily been active heading into free agency.
Previous reports earlier this offseason indicated that Minnesota might very well look to make a major move during the summer. Some speculation — since pretty much thrown out altogether — indicated that said move could include trading Karl-Anthony Towns. That’s just not happening.
Instead, it looks like Minnesota is once again looking to complete its migration a bit further south by considering two former Chicago Bulls players.
“The Wolves will also monitor the situations for Joakim Noah and Luol Deng down the road,” The Athletic’s Jon Krawczynski reported. “Both former Bulls are candidates to be bought out of their big deals and the Wolves would certainly consider bringing one of them in on a minimum deal down the road.”
Insert Ryan Reynolds “but why?” GIF right here.
Having already added former Bulls players such as Jimmy Butler and Taj Gibson, acquiring either of these players wouldn’t necessarily make much sense.
Deng, 33, played one game and a total of 12 minutes for the Lakers last season. He has two years and $36.8 million remaining on his contract. Even at the league minimum, is there anything of substance Minnesota can expect him to do moving forward?
Long considered a buyout candidate himself, Noah was a malcontent with the New York Knicks last season. He ultimately left the team completely after averaging 1.7 points in seven games.
Former Bulls head coach Tom Thibodeau might want to just cut his losses here and ignore the ridiculous thought that either of these players can contribute moving forward.