Forward Anthony Tolliver, one of the top free agents left out of a very thin crop, has reached an agreement to sign with Minnesota.
Tolliver's agent, Larry Fox, confirmed to FanHouse on Friday his client will join the Timberwolves. While Fox wouldn't discuss terms, sources said he'll get a two-year deal that could be worth as much as $4.8 million.
almost 2 years ago
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Sounds good
Should put us over the minimum, I think. Another big. A 12th man type. Upgrade over Jawai. At some point, we will move Koufos, I suppose.
ridnour – telfair (for now) – flynn (when healthy)
webster – ellington
johnson – brewer – hayward
love – beasley – tolliver
darko – pek
That’s 12 w/o koufos. Stiesmsa #13?
This allows Rambis to move Beasley to SF
I’d like to see how this line-up does:
ridnour-(flynn)-telfair or ellington
webster-johnson
beasley-johnson
love-tolliver
darko-pek
by ThisIsForSota on Aug 6, 2010 3:14 PM CDT up reply actions
with that line up we will be last in the nba for fast-break points
Klove cant run
beasley can run but he will not be able to outrun other small forwards
Darko ,Webster and ridnour will be ko runner but Hate the idea of having these three run the break.
Rubio changes the whole equation
Beasley will be fine on the fast break with KLove throwing the outlet pass and Rubio leading the break.
by ThisIsForSota on Aug 6, 2010 3:40 PM CDT up reply actions
+1
Man the horse has been beat back to life.
by Timberwolf i.e. Albatross on Aug 10, 2010 11:34 AM CDT up reply actions
Agreed.
I think Rambis would go with this lineup:
Ridnour/Telfair
Webster/Brewer/Ellington
Beasley/Johnson/Hayward
Love/Tolliver
Darko/Pek
Rambis
knows he has to find a way for Beasley and Love to play together. Beasley could be an absolute monster on the fast break IMO. I don’t think Miami ever used him properly.
And how about that second team?!
Bassy, Brewer, Wes, Tolliver, and Pek? You could start those guys and win 15 games next year year…oh wait….
"Styx might be the mullet of bands."
I need to slow down
they would win more than 15 games
our bench is better than last years starters?
and some many think this off season was a bust..
by Timberwolf i.e. Albatross on Aug 10, 2010 11:35 AM CDT up reply actions
I hope so
I liked how last year he was not afraid to put love on the bench. It shows that if you cant run the floor and play defense you better sit your ass down.
This looks good.
Wolves best 5. Starters are somewhat veteran.
by ChicagoViking on Aug 7, 2010 9:51 AM CDT up reply actions
Love, Darko, or Hollins
probably Love most of the time.
Avg double digit points from Jan – on.
Good pick up.
by ChicagoViking on Aug 6, 2010 3:32 PM CDT up reply actions
The gameflow is available, and a handful of us were there on the Wolves' dime.
After the game some of us met with Bickerstaff to talk about player development.
The Wolves were in utter defensive disarray that evening. Meanwhile Golden State started Turiaf, who gimped up and down the court with a bandage and pad the size of an extra pelvis swinging from one leg.
I remember that game.
I showed up expecting a rare Wolves win, considering they were starting someone named “Tolliver.”
And then, he completely scorched us.
We COULD NOT stop him.
Hopefully, this won’t be a classic McHale “Sign The Guy That Scorched Us” Move.
Check out Humdinger TV on YouTube.
http://twitter.com/HumdingerTV
the McHale classic
involves signing the scorcher for 5 years at $6mil / year.
2 years, 2.4 mil / year is safe, even if he plays like Hollins.
Everyone take a breath.
Good guy, too . . .
PERSONAL:
Full name is Anthony Lamar Tolliver…nickname is "A-Train" and was given to him by a college teammate…also answers to the names "A.T.", "Train", "AT&T Long Distance" and "A-Tizzle"…is the son of Johnny Tolliver and Donna Lewis…named his mother as the person that made a difference in his life stating that she is everything to him and taught him how to be a man…says he wouldn’t be where he is today without his mother’s guidance and support…he says his most prized possession is everything his mother has given him…has six sisters (Leslie, RaVonda, Angela, JaVonna, Suzie and Armani)…was named to the Dean’s List all four years at Creighton and graduated with a degree in finance and a 3.53 GPA…he chose his major because he is good with numbers and really good at math…was named to the Missouri Valley Conference Honor Roll and was a 10-time MVC Scholar Athlete of the Week…was named a Senior CLASS Award All-American and a Second Team CoSIDA Academic All-American as a senior in 2006-07…has also been named the NACAD 1-AAA Male Scholar Athlete of the Year and received the MVC Commissioner’s Academic Excellence Award…would like to be a real estate investor when he is done playing…owns a real estate investment company named Say You Can (llc)…says something most people don’t know about him is that he loves going to church…is a member of the Fellowship of Christian Athletes (FCA) and Jays For Christ…also is involved with Habitat for Humanity…his hobbies include cooking, lifting weights, watching movies and hanging out with friends…says something he cooks well is all breakfast foods…selected The Cheesecake Factory as his favorite restaurant and Chinese food as his favorite type of food…his favorite sport other than basketball is football and the Philadelphia Eagles are his favorite team…chose Heroes, CSI and Entourage as his favorite television shows and Friday, Saw and Bad Boys as his favorite movies…enjoys listening to hip-hop and R&B and his favorite musical artists include Drake, Jay-Z, Bobby Valentino…chose Bali as his dream vacation spot and said Hawaii is the best place he has visited…attended the same high school as Brad Pitt…his pre-game ritual includes taking a nap and a shower…has no tattoos…wears size 16 sneakers.
. . . and continues the tat-free philosophy that the team seems to have adopted (which makes me think Buh-Easily might be traded if he can’t Dermabrase away that hideous ink).
Note the AT&T Long Distance nickname
Seeing Tolliver as a replacement for Jawai, as someone did early here, is a bit off. The guy is more of a bench “stretch” forward than any kind of center.
Not a replacement for Jawai
an upgrade in terms of end of bench big.
by ChicagoViking on Aug 6, 2010 3:23 PM CDT up reply actions
I agree
This guy is a solid rotation player and locker room presence for the team. We are fortunate to land him.
Breaking down cognitive dissonance and group think since gasoline was cheap.
Looked good until Bad Boys was a favorite movie...
by Breaking Ankles on Aug 6, 2010 3:22 PM CDT up reply actions
His love of Saw, The Cheescake Factory, and CSI
did not increase my desire to spend quality time with him, either.
Yeah but Bad Boys is a scream for help
by Breaking Ankles on Aug 6, 2010 3:26 PM CDT up reply actions
We ride together
we die together.
BAD BOYZ 4 LIFE!
Interviewer: Can you understand why teams value potential ahead of experience and accomplishment in the draft? Wes Johnson: "Yeah. I understand. It’s the youngness of everything – older guys like young women, so it’s the same way."
Bad Boys is not horrible
At least nothing with Tyler Perry was mentioned.
by TheMorningAfter on Aug 6, 2010 4:49 PM CDT up reply actions
He is an anomaly
Yes, sports fans, anomaly.
Breaking down cognitive dissonance and group think since gasoline was cheap.
More from
a January 2010 piece at Draft Express . . .
He has a pretty clearly defined skillset, providing value mainly through three-point shooting and the defensive glass, as well as by being an extremely high character individual, so if a team is looking for those attributes and is capable of masking some of his deficiencies, he could provide a good fit somewhere as a 12th man or even a little more if the team is battling injuries.
From DraftExpress.com http://www.draftexpress.com/article/D-League-Showcase-Scouting-Reports-3372/#ixzz0vrLyTylt
http://www.draftexpress.com
Wow, pretty high standards at draft express
A 12th man who can occasionally score 30+ points or grab 20+ rebounds, and average double digit points over a good stretch. Sounds like a solid back-up to me rather than a 12th man.
by ThisIsForSota on Aug 6, 2010 3:36 PM CDT up reply actions
A patient man
He is used to waiting for his chance.
He has six sisters, I bet he wanted forever to use the rest room.
Breaking down cognitive dissonance and group think since gasoline was cheap.
by Flagrant on Aug 6, 2010 4:09 PM CDT up reply actions 1 recs
nice
No one is getting Rubio's rights unless they pry them from our cold dead fingers.
by TheEvilProfessor on Aug 9, 2010 2:38 PM CDT up reply actions
KKAAAAHHHNNN!!!!!
I think it’s a pretty good deal for the price, but save the rest of the cap money for an all-star SG.
I think this is a verdict on the likelihood of them
spending money on top SG. But, if they do trade for one, I’d assume they’ll have to send back a young, lowly-paid big man as part of the return package, and right now the Wolves have five to offer.
Childress
I still shake my head at the fact we NEVER heard any noise come from the organization that there was interest in this guy.
by Rascal Flatts on Aug 6, 2010 9:13 PM CDT up reply actions
Ahhhh....
just realized which Childress you were referring to…not the bald one down in Fankato…the one now in Phoenix…check.
"Styx might be the mullet of bands."
Except for moving Koufos
I’d like to think Wolves are done until trade deadline/Jonny’s return.
Wolves have much better athleticism and depth — no one as weak as Pavs, Pech, Cardinal, Hollins, or Wilkins.
Has to = more wins.
by ChicagoViking on Aug 6, 2010 3:22 PM CDT up reply actions
I'm sure eveyone has been waiting for Stinky to weigh in.
Tolli is a great guy. Undersized for a 4, and too slow to be a 3. But he is very good at spotting up formt he 3. This is one guy who benefited from Nellie Ball. He will be a good guy to have on the team and should get 10-12 minutes per as your 8th man.
To love is to forgive!
Sounds like a great guy personally
But where does he get minutes?
SF: Beasley/Johnson/Webster/Hayward
PF: Love/Beasley/Pekovic
C: Darko/Pekovic
"It's tough to make predictions, especially about the future." -- Yogi Berra
If Beasley outplays Klove or equals him klove will be the next one out the door.
Kevin love is one Kevin mchale’s Players so it will be easier for Kahn to get rid of him.
I am not sure that this is the same situation as last year
the two best players on the team were playing the same position and Al was making $13m. The roster is more balanced for the upcoming season and Beasley and KLove are in attractive contracts for the team. I wouldn’t doubt one of them moves by this time next year for a different piece, but I don’t sense there is going to be as much of a “need” to trade one of them this year.
by Breaking Ankles on Aug 6, 2010 4:07 PM CDT up reply actions
The plan seems to be
sign a whole bunch of upside guys for moderate salaries and see who earns the time.
It’s the anti-Heat (and anti-Wolves with Garnett) strategy.
We’ll see.
by ChicagoViking on Aug 6, 2010 3:44 PM CDT up reply actions
Second
right now my guess is that Hayward doesn’t see much floor time in the beginning. It’s almost as if the Wolves are becoming a football team in the sense of bringing in competition at every spot and making guys earn their positions.
At 5 it’s Darko v. Pek, with perhaps a little Love thrown in there.
At 4 it’s Love’s spot to lose, with Beasley getting some time there and Tolliver getting the rest.
At 3 it’s Beasley’s spot to lose, but Wes, Corey, and Webster will all get their chances.
At 2 it’s Wes, Webster, Corey, and Ellington.
If you subtract Love, Beasley, Darko, and Pek from the above players (and their expected mpg totals), you get approximately 80 minutes left over for Wes, Webster, Corey, Ellington, Tolliver, and Lazar (assuming none of them play PG). That seems like too few minutes for these guys, but let’s be honest here – Corey, Ellington, and Lazar aren’t stars here. Wes could be, Webster could be solid, and Tolliver has shown a little. But the honest truth is that initially Wes and Webster will probably get 50 minutes of that 80, and the other guys are simply going to have to wait until someone either gets hurt or plays their way into fewer minutes. Sure beats looking at Stewie, Pavs, Jawai, and Cardinal for competition at the end of the bench.
"Styx might be the mullet of bands."
I want to see Beasley play SF before I pencil him in there
He’s a PF. Not to say he can’t play SF and he said that he’ll play where ever he is needed, but he has been a PF up to this point. i’d love to plug in a guy to that spot and see if Wes can play 2 but I think naturally Wes is a 3 and Beasley is a 4.
by Breaking Ankles on Aug 6, 2010 4:18 PM CDT up reply actions
Hey
I don’t disagree with you, I’m just think that signing Tolliver seems like a strong indication that they are going to try and find ways of playing Love and Beasley at the same time, and the easiest way to do that is by putting Beasley at the 3. That’s all I’m sayin’.
"Styx might be the mullet of bands."
Based on rebounding rate
a frontcourt tandem of Darko and Beasley would be outrebounded by a frontcourt of Love and Jonny Flynn.
Just saying.
I can't believe Warriors
Let this guy walk. He is a good complement to the new Wolves team in virtually every way. Good attitude, a veteran presence, and a nice rotation player.
Breaking down cognitive dissonance and group think since gasoline was cheap.
Not worth $2M per. They won 26 games last year with these types of players.
better to go another route like Louis Amundson.
To love is to forgive!
by StinkyFingers on Aug 6, 2010 3:50 PM CDT up reply actions
2M is nothing in NBA.
Its like wiping your ass on toilet paper
sorry I forget sometimes
What the saying means is that toilet paper is cheap and disposable just like his deal.
you get what you pay for.
To love is to forgive!
by StinkyFingers on Aug 6, 2010 3:57 PM CDT up reply actions
Was that remark customized for...
…Mr. Stinkyfingers?
I would've liked to pick up Lou Amundson too.
Is he still unsigned? Are the Suns not bringing him back?
by princelyfrank on Aug 6, 2010 4:31 PM CDT up reply actions
Not signed yet. He is the type of guy every team needs
Suns are letting him go.
To love is to forgive!
by StinkyFingers on Aug 6, 2010 4:33 PM CDT up reply actions
Well
I will say this for Kahn/Rambis/Ronzone – we should win 5+ more games next year due solely to the vast upgrade in our bench depth. Seriously.
"Styx might be the mullet of bands."
This move definitly makes the TWolves a 50 win team and a solid 4 seed!!!
hahahahahha
To love is to forgive!
your team has no reason to bad
for this long. You have good market in California but still your teams sucks monkey balls why??? your team should always win 45-50 games a year just due to your market size alone.
So true! But we are getting rid of our Cancer and new ownership is gonna make us
much better. Its kind of like you guys being KAHNNNNNNNNNed all the time. Top ownership and Management means so much in this game.
To love is to forgive!
by StinkyFingers on Aug 6, 2010 4:49 PM CDT up reply actions
ownership has nothing to with it
You have one of the top free agent destinations but yet your team still sucks. In fact when was the last time you guys were in the western conference finals???? In sota we have to deal with our bad winters and our lack of diversity to try an get free agents. so don’t give me that bullshit about ownership. and stop with KAHNNNNNNNNNed bullshit you are not the BS guy.
Ownership had a lot to do with the Warriors’ struggles. Cohan had no idea how to run an organization, had huge problems trying to get good GMs, often undermined the guys he did hire by asking his lackey (Robert Rowell) to help out with team management and roster decisions, all while never really having a cohesive plan for structuring an organiztion. It was impossible to tell who was running the show most of the time. The franchise was a mess, and that started with incompetent ownership.
The Warriors have an attractive market and should be able to make money. Hopefully the new owners will do the sort of things that winning franchises do. No guarantees, but losing Cohan is a huge improvement for such an ineptly run organization.
heart of a champion, will of the warrior.
Hope he gets no more than 5 mpg. If he does get minutes it either means we have injuries or Rambis has gone insane. We are LOADED in the front court, that’s where all our biggest talent is.
I don’t get the move
I get the move
with a roster minimum of 12 players, you need 5 bigs and 5 wings and 2 PGS with maybe another developmental PG (or you take a flyer on a vet if the injury bug strikes). Without Tolliver we would have had 4. As an added bonus, it allows Rambis to run Beasley at the 3 some in practice when he has a Darko/Love vs. Pek/Tolliver frontcourts. Without that player, Rambis could never play Beasley at the 3 in practice (so never in a game) without someone else to play the 4 on the B team.
No one is getting Rubio's rights unless they pry them from our cold dead fingers.
by TheEvilProfessor on Aug 9, 2010 3:03 PM CDT up reply actions
Big ups to the MVC!!!
Although, as a Wichita State Shocker fan, I hated Anthony Tolliver’s guts when he was a Bluebird. And Dana Altman is a big D-Bag. Good addition to the team, though, I believe.
Dear Alex Gordon:
I still think you will be awesome, but for the love of God, please stop getting hurt.
Sincerely,
RF
Is it Blue Jay or Blue Bird?
Or Lonesome Dove?
by Rascal Flatts on Aug 6, 2010 9:18 PM CDT up reply actions
Yup
After all the churn, we still have below average PG and SG and very little frontcourt athleticism at the C/PF positions.
by Rascal Flatts on Aug 6, 2010 9:18 PM CDT up reply actions
Ya
I will say this about the C/PF guys though – we may not have ‘elite’ athleticism at those positions (save for Beasley perhaps), but we certainly have some great size and strength there. There is no reason why our guys shouldn’t take a page from Utah and seek to bruise and outmuscle every opponent every night.
"Styx might be the mullet of bands."
He’s a cool cat, but don’t get too excited. He’s a terrible rebounder and defender. He’ll piss you off at times by taking a lot of 3’s and dropping passes that would’ve otherwise been an easy bucket. He’s a smart guy and heart worker though, so I’m sure he’ll pick up the triangle eventually.
"It's like Will Smith, remember the Fresh Prince? Get the ball don't let nobody else shoot? That's kinda what the offense can be sometimes, and they're just standing around waiting for Monta to make a play"
-MT2
My late thoughts
I don’t like this signing, and I feel like a jerk for it, because he seems like a cool guy. We just went out of our way to dump Ryan Hollins’ contract and free up an extra couple million in 2011 cap space. Now we’ve used it up again by signing a guy we don’t need. On a team this bad, preserving that extra space is more important than locking up our 12th man to a multi-year deal.
and then to top it off
the possible signing of a scrub like Joe Alexander makes one scratch your head further. As fans are we being kahned?
To love is to forgive!
by StinkyFingers on Aug 8, 2010 1:35 PM CDT up reply actions
We've essentially traded...
Sessions and Hollins for Ridnour and Tolliver. Salary implications are about the same. Maybe we’re looking to upgrade three-point shooting anywhere possible?
Same strategy as last year...
..with better players. Wolves trying to find the guys who will stick like last year. But, they actually have better pieces to choose from, so they will end up with a core and more tradeable chips.
I don’t see any sure things on the team but a lot of possibly sure things. So, the odds are better this year.
Wolves need to define the core AND add a couple stars (or have a star or two emerge from this group). Maybe Rubio? Maybe 2011 1st pick? Maybe mid-season pickup with the cap space? Maybe 2011 FA.
Lots of possibilities. A lot more than last year. Planning for the future can get old, so Wolves do need to win some this year, too.
by ChicagoViking on Aug 9, 2010 9:56 AM CDT up reply actions
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