Well, I was right... along with a few others. The Rumors were the Wolves trading Al + Draft Picks for Carmelo. Seeing as how the draft went, I would have done that trade.

Sigh.

it was al and all our picks for 'melo. and sam smith was not my source. end of bit.

See link from Paul Allen HERE.

Here is live chat to use during the draft. We can talk about how amazingly Kahn does, but more likely will be crying about another patented Twolves draft disaster. You can start chatting now, if you really want to, or wait until later. Whatever works for you.

TNT analyst David Aldridge answered questions from some of the nation's top basketball bloggers on Wednesday. Click HERE for a transcript of that session:

I am amazing, and was the only person to get multiple questions answered.  (Howl to Pants for the assist.)  Here's what I asked:

• Do The Wolves need to consolidate their picks? What are your thoughts on drafting 3 guys in the first round and keeping them all -- not to mention our 2nd round picks?

• What is the buzz around the league about Al Jefferson? He was considered locally and nationally as the 1st guy off the All-Star team 18 month ago. Is there an expectation around the league that after the requisite year off not being at full strength after knee surgery he'll be back at his 20-25 ppg form?

To see what David Aldridge had to say in response to me, and other great questions, PLEASE CLICK HERE to read the entire transcript!

Just a heads up to all the TWB faithful - today we upgraded to a new server.  As a result, some of our comments and forum discussions today were lost, and for that we apologize.  Hopefully it's a good trade off for a faster, more stable TWolves Blog.  And, hey, even if the conversations are lost to the netherworld of cyberspace, at least it was fun talking!

I think that it's pretty safe to say that John Wall and Evan Turner will not be left on the board when it comes time for the Wolves to make the #4 pick in the 2010 NBA Draft. However, there are plenty of players remaining on the radar, and, unless Trader Kahn has a trick up his sleeve, the player the Wolves choose with their #4 pick will play a very large role in the Wolves' chances of returning to respectability.

Before we get into the nitty-gritty of this post, let's take a second to get a good feel for the Wolves' current situation. Myself and many others have gone over ad nauseum why this off-season is THE most important since Sammy C and Spree came to the Twin Cities, but I'll offer a refresher anyway.

#1 - We owe the Clippers an unprotected 2012 1st round draft pick. After this season, the Wolves have ONE more chance to turn things around before both our rebuilding plan and the psyche of the ten remaining members of the fanbase suffer a critical blow. (Thanks, McHale) Needless to say, it's nearly impossible to go from the basement to the playoffs in a single season, so the Wolves need to start getting things turned around ASAP. Next off-season is not the time to try and pull the game-changing move.

#2 - For the foreseeable future, the Wolves aren't going to have as much cap space as they do now. Corey Brewer, Kevin Love, Johnny Flynn, Wayne Ellington... Those guys are all on rookie salaries and won't be for much longer. The Wolves also have seven contracts that have expired. Other than Big Al, the Wolves don't have anybody making more than Ryan Gomes' $3.9M, and even he has a team option on his contract, allowing him to be cut loose. The bottom line is that if we roll that cap room over to next season there will only be less of it for us to work with.

#3 - The 2010 Free Agent crop is the strongest in NBA history. Now is the time to buy if you're in the market for a free agent, because there won't be better ones coming along any time soon. Just like the Wolves will have less cap space in 2011, they will also have a much poorer selection of possible acquisitions to choose from.

#4 - We all know that the owners in the NBA are losing tons and tons of money. The Wolves haven't been relevant in half a decade. The Target Center is an empty cavern on most nights. You have to sell a serious amount of tickets to pay for even Al Jefferson's $12M/year contract, let alone all the other players, coaches, and staff. I think it's safe to say that Glen Taylor lost money last season. He's still made a bundle due to the inflation of the team's value since he purchased it in the mid-90's, but at what point do the Wolves become a liability? If the Wolves continue to lose both on the court and in the wallet, there comes a time when any sensible business man decides to close up shop. Given the state of affairs in Minnesota, if that happens, I'm guessing it won't be to an owner who's intending to keep the team up North.


Are the stakes high enough for you? I can't say that I envy David Kahn. The weight of the franchise rests squarely on his shoulders this summer. To his credit, he isn't taking this burden lightly and has been burning up the phones. Rumors are that he even called the Los Angels Sparks regarding a possible draft pick swap. With that in mind, predicting what will happen in Thursday's draft, July's free-agency, or in the Trade Mill is going to be next to impossible. So instead of prognosticating about some crazy swap of Big Al for a wing, or trading every asset we own for Evan Turner, I'm going to focus on something much more simple. What if we just keep the #4 pick?

The way I see it, if you're picking fourth this season, there are only three realistic options. Depending on what New Jersey does, only two of these three options will be available to Kahn when it's our turn to pick. I'll go over the pro's and con's of each selection and ultimately weigh in on what I believe the Wolves should do.

Option #1 - Wes Johnson

Wes Johnson is the player who has been linked to the Wolves more than any other draftee this summer. He fills a big need for the team as the Wolves are extremely weak at both SF and in the jump-shooting department in general. He's a quality individual who seems like a natural leader. It's hard not to like the guy after listening to one of his interviews. The big question is whether or not Wes can provide the Wolves with the "star" quality that their roster lacks. Many feel that with Johnson, the Wolves would simply be adding a young role player to a roster already filled with young role players.

Pros:
Quality character
Great shooter
Fills a need on the team

Cons:
Can't create his own shot
Low ceiling
Relatively old for a rookie

Best Case: The next Shawn Marion

Most Likely: The next Wally Szczerbiak

Wolves outlook: The #4 pick is the Wolves best opportunity to do something truly franchise-altering. By drafting Wes Johnson, the Wolves would be playing it safe and basically resting the future of the franchise on Kahn's ability to swing a major trade this off-season. Well, either that or landing a top-tier free agent. (Don't hold your breath) If neither of those two pan out, it's now up to the ping pong gods to save the franchise in 2011. Either the Wolves finally get some luck, or it's "Hello Las Vegas Lobos!".

Click "Read More" Below for the rest of this article...

And finally, with the 30th pick in the 2010 NBA Draft, the Washington Wizards select...

Dominique Jones, Shooting Guard from the University of South Florida

Final TWB Reader Draft Board

WTF is going on here!?!?

The Memphis Grizzlies and Minnesota Timberwolves are close to swapping first-round draft picks, a source with direct knowledge of the situation tells ESPN.com's Andy Katz.

The Grizzlies would send their 25th and 28th overall picks to Minnesota for the Timberwolves' 16th pick.

Noooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo!!!

Worst trade ever!

WHY!?!?!

This makes no sense!

We don't want/need FOUR first round picks!

Unless we are doing this to trade for Turner.... then.... $*(@_DFJKFJLKSD#*()$@#$^  I don't know.

UPDATE: Oh wait, there's more......

The Nets are still undecided but leaning towards selecting Wes Johnson with the third overall pick.

If Minnesota wants to secure Johnson, sources tell Yahoo! Sports that New Jersey will require draft picks from the Wolves.

Wait... so now we are going to TRADE UP to take Wesley Johnson!?!?!?!

/stabs self eye. Hopes for brain damage.

We are talking about this ridonkulous trade in the TWB Forums HERE, because we hate our existence as fans of this team.  I need to lay down.

Why oh why god why
This team drives me to the brink
Kahn is the devil

Wolves Trying to Trade Corey Brewer Everyone

From Steve Kyler at Hoopsworld:

Minnesota Is Crazy: The Minnesota Timberwolves have to officially be classified as crazy.

The Wolves have offered virtually every team in the league some kind of trade proposal, so at this point there could be as many as 29 trade combinations that drop.

The Wolves have offered almost everyone on their roster at some point this month and they have tried almost every angle imaginable to obtain another top 10 pick in this year's draft.

Sources close to the Clippers say that Minnesota offered the #16 pick and Corey Brewer to the Clippers in exchange for the #8 pick, they have offered multiple player and pick packages to the Indiana Pacers for the #10, and last night league sources said the Timberwolves had at least agreed to the idea of swapping the #16 and Corey Brewer with the Toronto Raptors for the #13 and Hedo Turkoglu - a deal that couldn't drop until July 1st because of cap reasons.

- Gaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah.  I can't take all these rumors anymore.  I'm just going to sit back and let the show unfold/implode.

TWolves Turn Down Pacers #10 pick for Flynn:

From Ray Richardson at Pioneer Press:

The Timberwolves rejected the Indiana Pacers' offer to trade the No. 10 overall pick in Thursday's NBA draft for Wolves point guard Jonny Flynn, Minnesota president of basketball operations David Kahn said Monday.

"They called last week," Kahn said of the Pacers. "We turned it down in a second."

- Too much here to speculate on, so I won't even begin.  But it would be nice to land Granger (somehow.)  Trade any/everything.  Otherwise, a trade with the Pacers is just crap for crap.

The Debate on DeMarcus Cousins

From Jerry Zgoda at the Star Tribune:

Almost every NBA draft contains a contradiction such as Kentucky center DeMarcus Cousins, a player who excites league executives with his talent and vexes them with serious questions about his maturity and habits.

He's the kind of prospect over whom somebody someday will feel regret.

But will it be the team that drafts him or the ones that don't?

"He is either going to get a general manager fired or get him executive of the year," ESPN college basketball and NBA draft analyst Fran Fraschilla said.

- Oh boy.  Them fightin' words.

What Will the Sixers Do With The #2 Pick

From Phil Miller at the Star Tribune:

Three days before they procure what they hope will be another franchise cornerstone, the Timberwolves are comfortable with their evaluations, and confident that they know how Thursday's NBA Draft will go.

Well, except for one spot.

Philadelphia, picking second, "is kind of the question mark," said Wolves assistant general manager Tony Ronzone. "They're posturing [that they'll pick Evan] Turner, but they talked about Wesley Johnson today. They've talked about [Derrick] Favors, too. They're doing what they should do" by keeping other teams wondering, which could produce a trade offer or two.

- I know what they should do... trade the #2 pick to the Wolves.  There, I solved it.

Interview With Kahn: "We're Right in the Middle of Re-Re-Re-Re-Rebuilding"

From Sean Deveney at The Baseline:

In a little more than a year on the job, Timberwolves general manager David Kahn has retooled his roster, added coach Kurt Rambis and created a reputation for unorthodoxy—especially at draft time, when last year he chose point guards Ricky Rubio and Jonny Flynn with consecutive picks. This offseason, holding the Nos. 4, 16 and 23 picks in the draft, Kahn again figures to be a major player on draft night. He spoke with Sporting News’ Sean Deveney

- Mildly interesting interview.

For more Wolves/NBA/Draft/Rumors & News please click "Read More" to continue...