:format(webp)/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/49990353/usa-today-9317460.0.jpg)
The last day under the old salary cap could bring lots of news, or it could bring nothing. After all, technically no teams are talking to any players, no agents are talking to any team officials, and no one could possibly break the sacred rules of the moratorium due to begin tomorrow. Right?
Will Kevin Durant be locked in a house by Blake Griffin and a well-placed chair to return to L-... wait, that was last summer. Durant's meetings, as reported by ESPN's Marc Stein, are with his current team, the Thunder, today; the Clippers Friday, the Celtics Saturday and the Heat Sunday. No other teams at this point have meetings and therefore a likely chance. Perhaps Tom Thibodeau will sneak into Durant's meeting location in the Hamptons to see what happens.
After Durant makes his decision, all the other pieces of free agency will begin to move, including the ones affecting the Timberwolves. One of the most common names associated with the Wolves this offseason, former Thibodeau devotee Joakim Noah, seems to already be out of the picture before anything even begins.
The phrasing tends to be the same from every team we ask with Joakim Noah interest: We don't have a chance because the Knicks are his choice
— Marc Stein (@ESPNSteinLine) June 30, 2016
Noah's desire to return home to New York and continue to play with new Knick Derrick Rose appears to override any desire to play under Thibodeau again.
The common offseason need for the Wolves, as it feels like it usually is, is more shooting, and perhaps another power forward. The good news is, unlike the free agent market for point guards (Mike Conley or bust), there are many shooters of various qualities and sizes available. Mirza Teletovic, Jared Dudley, Marvin Williams, Evan Fournier, Allen Crabbe (the latter two both restricted free agents), and many more. The Wolves will get a shooter, the question is which one and how much it will cost.
As for big men, the dream is for Al Horford, also courting offers from around the league in places such as Houston, Detroit, and perhaps Oklahoma City, with or without Durant. ESPN's Zach Lowe's column has many small tidbits and theories, though few directly apply to the Wolves. The Jimmy Butler trade might not be completely dead, for one. The other, a sad reality: Nikola Pekovic may be waived soon.
From free agency to trades to clear room for more free agents, the next days and weeks could be completely crazy. If you don't normally have their tweets coming to your phone, this might be the time for it. The essential follows in my book:
- On the national side: ESPN's Marc Stein and Mark J. Spears, The Vertical's Shams Charania, USA Today's Sam Amick, TNT's David Aldridge, and of course: the inimitable Adrian Wojnarowski, also of the Vertical.
- On the local side, you likely know them all but just in case: the AP's Jon Krawczynski, the Minnesota Star-Tribune's Jerry Zgoda, and KSTP's Darren Wolfson.
What will the NBA look like in two weeks? The Timberwolves? Hard to say, but it's likely going to be fun getting there. Get ready for Friday and don't forget to submit your requests for which free agents you want the most to Thibs. He will definitely read all of the comments on this thread.