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While it was a rather disappointing and unsuccessful work week for the Minnesota Timberwolves, the team did wrap up Friday on a positive note, according to The Athletic’s Shams Charania:
The Minnesota Timberwolves and forward Cam Reynolds have agreed to terms on a multiyear contract, league sources tell @TheAthleticNBA @Stadium. Reynolds‘ second 10-day was set to expire next week.
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) March 15, 2019
A few other important details from our friends at Wolves Twitter:
Ryan Saunders has been a big proponent of Reynolds. There is a belief that he has a the shooting and length to turn into a solid rotation player going forward. https://t.co/O2lOS08YFW
— Jon Krawczynski (@JonKrawczynski) March 15, 2019
Good for Cam -- love what I've seen.
— Dane Moore (@DaneMooreNBA) March 15, 2019
I will say, tho, don't be confused by "multi-year.". These midseason deals are almost always rest-of-season contracts w/ non-guarantees for future.
Remember, Nunnally was a "multi-year" deal but he was let go before the yr 1 guarantee date. https://t.co/yNdxthh66P
I think Cam Reynolds has some game + he kinda looks like a cross between Randy Foye and Michael Beasley so that’s obviously a win. Everyone wants and needs 3-and-D wings in this league. Why not roll the dice on him! Welcome to the Wolves, Cam.
— John Meyer (@thedailywolf) March 15, 2019
My two cents... as Dane points out, let’s not get too carried away with the phrasing of “multiyear contract.” This is a pretty common move for a team once the second 10-day contract expires, and while I still haven’t seen any specifics on contract details, it’s likely Reynolds will have a portion of his contract guaranteed for the 2019-2020 season. Regardless, there’s still significant benefits to a move like this — you keep Reynolds on the roster this summer, allowing him to train at the facility, be around the coaching staff, and just work on his craft in general under the tutelage and guidance of an NBA team. That’s important.
Also, as John mentioned, every single team in the league is dying to unearth hidden 3-and-D gems like Reynolds, so it’s a very smart move that the Wolves locked him up for the foreseeable future so they can work with him and (hopefully) develop him into a consistent role player off the bench.
Final thoughts (in bullet form):
- As Jonny Athletic tweeted, Ryan Saunders is a big fan of Cam Reynolds, and anything Drip is a fan of I am a fan of. Reynolds has averaged just over 20 minutes a game in his last four contests, which is partly due to all the injuries the Wolves have suffered at the wing position, but also partly due to Ryan’s admiration for the 24-year old from Pearland, Texas. While this move could just be an isolated transaction, it does suggest (in my opinion) that we already know who the head coach of the Timberwolves will be next season, considering the franchise is signing players that the interim head coach is fond of.
- As I mentioned above, I don’t believe specific numbers of this signing have been released, but I would assume it’s for a very minimal total. Nevertheless, it’s a tad awkward that a rumored “Lame Duck” GM like Scott Layden would have the green light to add any money to the future books, but maybe I’m overanalyzing how this deal relates to his and Ryan’s future job status.
- In his six appearances since signing with the Wolves, Reynolds is shooting 38% from three (the league average is just north of 35%). I like that very much.
- This final thought has nothing to do with Cam Reynolds, but as I write this post on my second glass of wine (Happy Friday, ya’ll!), I can’t help but be a little nostalgic:
... for Flip. “We over me” pic.twitter.com/DGMFYdXc3r
— Ricky Rubio (@rickyrubio9) March 15, 2019
No, you’re crying.