Minnesota Timberwolves + Rudy Gobert Extension Percolating?

The Minnesota Timberwolves are coming off the best season they’ve had since Glen Taylor had brown hair. That’s 20 years ago, in case you were wondering. Yet, serious questions face the franchise this offseason.

President of Basketball Operations, Tim Connelly, has to decide whether or not the Wolves have an NBA Finals contending roster, entering a season where they have a projected luxury tax bill of $50 million.

Whether Taylor still owns the team, or the Lore/A-Rod group take over, you’d better have an NBA title contender in the building if you are writing that kind of tax check at the end of the season. Unsurprisingly, fans and media members are already weighing in on what Minnesota should, or should not, do.

Some want the Timberwolves to run the roster back, mostly as is. There’s also a decent contingent of those who would like to see Rudy Gobert moved. But most fans and media members who want the Wolves to shake up their lineup, point to Karl-Anthony Towns, whose super-max contract is up to $50 million this season, as Minnesota’s obvious trade candidate.

Minnesota Timberwolves, Rudy Gobert both thinking contract extension

But the only opinion that matters is Tim Connelly’s. So, what is the Wolves’ PoBO thinking? According to Darren Wolfson (SKOR North, KSTP) on the Mackey & Judd Show on Thursday, the Wolves’ plans seem to include Rudy Gobert.

The longtime local insider noted Thursday that both Gobert and the Timberwolves have mutual interest in getting a contract extension done, come July. Why, you ask? An extension would give Rudy some stability into his 34 or 35-year-old seasons and it would give Minnesota some salary relief now.

“Will [the Timberwolves] extend Rudy Gobert in July? I’m told there is mutual interest on that front. So when thinking about the books a year out, that’s one thing the Wolves could do. [Say,] ‘Rudy, don’t exercise your player option, let’s rip that up, let’s extend you’, and you can structure the contract to save some money short-term. And hey, Rudy would love to have some security ages like 33, 34, perhaps even his age-35 season.”

Darren Wolfson says there is mutual interest in a contract extension between Rudy Gobert and the Minnesota Timberwolves (Mackey & Judd – SKOR North)

Related: Rudy Gobert Trade Continues to Pay Off for Timberwolves

At the end of the day, Minnesota Timberwolves brass is trying to figure out how to best build a team around blossoming superstar Anthony Edwards, who will turn 23-years-old this summer.

Do the Minnesota Timberwolves need to make a change this offseason?

After the Wolves’ debacle in the Western Conference Finals vs the Dallas Mavericks, many believe that Anthony Edwards needs a backcourt partner who is more of a threat to score both off the ball, and with it in his hands.

If Connelly agrees, and the above extension rumor is true — remember, Wolfson is directly plugged into Glen Taylor, among others in the Wolves organization — then it appears his planned trade chip this offseason would have to be Karl-Anthony Towns.

Related: Should Tim Connelly, Timberwolves Find Different Help for Anthony Edwards This Offseason?

Can Connelly find a team to take Towns on, when he is just starting a new max contract that will pay $50 million per year? Probably, but it wouldn’t be easy. Of course, nobody is necessarily demanding that KAT be traded either.

there aren’t a lot of fans or media members who would scoff at the idea of the Minnesota Timberwolves running it back. There is a lot to be said about team cohesion, much more so than what most sports fans, reporters (and many executives) believe.

Another year of growth from Anthony Edwards could legitimately be the Minnesota Timberwolves step that takes this roster to a championship level. If that’s what Tim Connelly believes, then extending Gobert, in order to save some money around the edges, may be the only major offseason move you he needs to make.