Minnesota Timberwolves' Joe Smith Penalty Fallout WARNS How Clippers Will Be Impacted In West

0:00This is the Lockdown Podcast Network celebrating 10 years of your team every day. Thank you for making Lockdown your first listen every day. For your second listen, find the Lockdown NBA Podcast where there's no offseason. West Matt and Hayes keep you up to date on contract negotiations, rumors and everything you need to be the most informed NBA fan. Find Lockdown NBA on YouTube or wherever you listen to podcasts. Part of the Lockdown Podcast Network, your team every day. The Tim Rolves own past scandal shows us just how much trouble the LA Clippers are in revisiting the Joe Smith situation from 25 plus years ago next. You are locked on Timber Wolves your daily Minnesota Timber Wolves podcast.

1:00Part of the Lockdown Podcast Network, your team every day. Hello and welcome to Lockdown Wolves podcast. My name is Ben Beacon. I'm the host of the daily Lockdown Wolves show today's episode is brought to you by Square. Right now you can get up to $200 off square hardware at square.com slash go slash NBA run your business smarter with square. Get started today happy Tuesday. Everybody hopefully had a fantastic Labor Day weekend. This week we're doing shows Tuesday Wednesday Friday the next week we're back to daily Monday through Friday. Thank you for joining today a lot to get to I want to start. Well actually we'll finish a little bit later by talking about the roster situation. Just kind of want to talk a little about what the Wolves can do with that final roster spot. Some continued. I guess we talked a little about Kevin Love toward the end of last week. We'll talk about that a little bit more. Also get to the Wolves nuggets rivalry thing which is talked about by ESPN late last week. We didn't get to it on Friday show.

2:00We'll do that later. But I want to start with the the LA Clippers the punishment levied by the NBA because of the co-ilandered incident. There are obvious parallels between what happened to the Timber Wolves or what the Timber Wolves found themselves in because of their own behavior at the ownership in front office level 25 plus years ago leading to the penalties levied by then commissioner David. Sorry, there are obvious parallels between the two and it's super relevant because it takes a team that otherwise would be like it's only fair to assume like the Clippers have been essentially a playoff contender have been competitive in the multiple conference finals. Since you know over the last 20 years or so right going back to the when Garnett was with Minnesota like when Garnett was with the Wolves. Obviously the first time the Clippers were the laughing stock right the Clippers were the franchise that could never get it right they were the team that everyone was laughing at they were the team that nobody would go to LA to choose to play for the Clippers it was the Lakers or bust right.

3:04And then that shifted with the live city Clippers basically you know there there were the the teams prior to that with Darius miles and like there was some Cory McGatty right like everybody thought those teams could be something they weren't and then ultimately it was the live city Chris Paul Blake Griffin Clippers that put them back on the map or really on the map for the first time as a legit NBA franchise and then obviously the the Donald Sterling stuff and then now were into you that kind of that in between era when Sterling left and now you've got Steve Balmer and the Clippers with Kauai over the last few years are supposed to be a perennial contender but outside of being just kind of like a nice playoff team they haven't really made noise under Tai Liu on the bench with Lawrence Frank in the front office the Kauai acquisition the Paul Georgia acquisition everything else that's happened there the the fray agents they haven't gotten and then now because this Kauai Leonard scandal the Clippers would like because they've been a competitive team for the last 20 plus years basically for the most part without it this would just be

4:13another team the wolves enough to contend with in the Western conference and now the Clippers don't have quiet and the Clippers don't have draft picks for the next several seasons and they don't like they're just not going to be a factor in the West and that matters if your Tim Rolves fan and the punishment at least the initial punishment the Clippers are receiving is harsher well well have a harsh of a greater impact and remember the wolves were initially penalized five first round picks two of them were later returned the Clippers are also now being initially penalized five first round picks there's also a massive fine a bigger fine than what the wolves had to deal with ball or the owner has been suspended for a year which is what happened to Glen Taylor I don't believe anybody in the front office on the basketball upside was suspended for the Clippers whereas in the wolves situation then president of asset operations Kevin McCale who you know by all accounts both he and Glen Taylor were very involved in the situation he was suspended for a year I don't want to rehash both actual scandals I want to talk about the impact

5:19but I'll the high level is the Tim Rolves had agreed to essentially under the table contracts with Joe Smith to try and circumvent the cat by giving him below market value deals three consecutive years one year deals every time to then retain his bird rights and be able to pay him often free agency you know probably a little more than what he was worth but it would have given the wolves cap savings on the did give the wolves cap savings on the front end at least those first two years when Joe Smith signed those one your deals with Minnesota and then of course when the wolves were found out which was a function of just a function of just as you leave in his agency there was a lawsuit and then during discovery this whole situation was found importantly just as you know is the same agent that Kevin are net had and apparently there was an actual paper trail which is is how this was all discovered now obviously in the case of the Clippers now it was it was an email trail and and it was there was a smoking gun and there was in the case of the wolves issue back in the early 2000 so for the wolves that penalty of losing the five first on picks was obviously impactful the other thing that was crazy about this of course is it was Joe Smith now over his first three seasons he uses the number one overall pick

6:35in 90 it was in 95 he was out he averaged 16 and almost eight over his first three seasons in the league across Golden State and Philadelphia and other than the wolves just eating other good players to pair with Garnett remember the wolves they had been to the playoffs a couple of seasons but they had obviously advanced out of the first round outside of them sharing the same agent it it it was it wasn't like the most perfect fit he's a good defender find score but it's not like at that time you weren't looking for stretch bigs really and like it just it's an odd thing but the wolf sign in for a couple deals that were around and below $2 million and then it was discovered that there was this under the table deal so the wolves this is this is a 1999 2000 the last draft that they had a pick before these penalties were levied was while he's herbiac who ended up being an all star in his third season in the league was obviously garnets I would say his best the wolves best number two option next to garnet until the O304 season was same

7:41because I'm the Charles Spree well was the herbiac of course was still on those teams but he was banged up a lot and really played a six man rule at times more with those teams at that point in his career but the Tim rules did not have a first wrong pick at that point for the next five years again two picks are eventually returned but three of the next four years after the penalty they didn't have a first a first-round pick and garnet was one of the best probably six players in the NBA he was a perennial first all NBA first or second team but the wolves couldn't crack 51 wins and over that span from 2000 to 2004 their draft picks combined to play in like basically a hundred games in a Tim rules uniform only one was a first-round pick high school or indie ebay and he obviously was not a good pick there were plenty of good players picked after ebay even though it was late in the first round everybody else the second on pick Igor recosa bitch Lauren woods Marcus Taylor Rick Ricker Blake step for a while you can just talk about the wolves just drafting you know big 10 players

8:49of the year right Marcus Taylor I don't think Rickard was actually play the year player the year but Lauren woods was obviously a tournament standout with Arizona like they were picking these older college guys in the second round that weren't sticking his NBA players and you look back at what the wolves did and eventually they went to the conference finals in 04 but that was through a couple of actually really shrewd trades made by Kevin Mikael to land the Charles Sprewell and Sam kiss all that off season but in between there the wolves essentially wasted three or four years of Kevin Garnett's athletic prime I would call it ages like 23 to 27 so right before he's getting to like the true peak in prime which is where he was when he won the MVP but when he was at his peak athletically the Tim rules were consistently a 47 to 51 win team but they couldn't I think their best seed was they were third in the West once you know in 0 304 they were first but I think they were third in the West one season during that span but they just couldn't make any other solid moves and it completely hamstrung what they could do moving forward their best moves then were uncovering some bargain finds like Troy Hudson of sleep by Lopez and then of course they kind of undid some of that could

9:55will by overpaying Troy Hudson to keep him who of course had plenty of injury issues he still is hung around the twin cities and been a pretty good ambassador for the wolves but he was buddies with Kevin Garnett one of the reasons he came back at the price he did it initially was a savvy signing they had to they had to make moves like that and then they missed out on some of these other NBA regulars that were drafted across those four seasons when they didn't have any when they only had the one first drum pick talk a little more about that then I want to get into the clippers implications here next will do all that next on the show today's episode of like that wolves is brought to us by our friends at Fandall welcome to your most rewarding NFL season ever only on Fandall how rewarding are we talking more rewarding than a touchdown with time expiring more rewarding than an eighteen point come back maybe even more rewarding than an alignment catching a touchdown which is always rewarding to watch this season fan doles making the excitement go beyond what happens on the field with the all new Fandall rewards club feature an exclusive offers surprises and more

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12:00the discord chat where we're in there talking about the wolves all the time you can sign up for the every day club at lock then wolves dot super cast dot com again ad free episodes of the audio version of the show plus access to the discord chat lock then wolves dot super cast dot com all right so putting a bow on the previous the wolves punishment in the past because of that the wolves missed out on a lot of good players that were selected in 2001 I believe it was yeah 2001 was the good your 2000 like not a great draft 2002 wasn't awesome 2001 in the range in which the wolves it had been I think the wolves would have been like 20th or 21st if you took their record and dropped it in but between 18 and 28 that year just taking a 10 pick span I wrote about this for Tim rules on Si late last week listen to these names like most of them just end up and be a regular is not necessarily like all stars or you know much less hall of famous well there is one hallfamer here Jason Collins Zach Randolph Brendan Haywood Gerald Walla

13:06Samuel Dalen Bear Jamal Tinsley and Tony Parker of that group like obviously Tony Parker is the best one they like Tinsley would have been a fit for those wolves teams that were always searching for point guard play and didn't find it consistently I mean trail brainy was good obviously stuff Marbury was good first but then trail brainy was solid but hurt right and then eventually same cassel but in that range that was when they had Brandon so he would have been a pick for the city Tony Parker I don't this only think down bear would have been the best fit next to Garnett nor would have Zach Randolph at that time but Jason Collins Brendan Haywood Gerald Walla all would have fit for the wolves and they missed out on it 2002 lighter but Tessanne Prince was picked in that range John Salmons was picked in that range we talked already about the game but it really just kind of hit pause on any sort of real building like building anything or playoff success for the two wolves and it it just wasted a chunk of Garnett's career and it's not the same thing for the

14:14Clippers because the Clippers don't have a Kevin Garnett which which on the one hand it put the wolves in a better place because at least they were still in above 500 team a team that had home court in the playoffs even though they didn't do anything with it one of those years that was still set up for success when they did hit on those trades in 2000 the summer of a three with cassel and spring while coming to Minnesota but on the flip side they had a superstars prime to waste and the Clippers don't have that burden but they also there's no light at the end of this tunnel for L.A. I mean the wolves had Kevin Garnett the Clippers just traded quite much more than that. They have brand and Ingram. He's a two time all star there's already in his prime. Derrius Garland's also two time all stars a couple years younger than Ingram. So you have Ingram and Garland and then you have this year's first year on pick lottery pick Keaton Wagler which is nice but that's it. Everybody else would be better cast as a role player on a true contender whether it's Bradley Beale. Well, I don't know about Bradley Beale. Max Truce, Brook Lopez, Chris Dunn.

15:17The Tim Rolves were in a better position because the roster was completely revolving around Garnett and to a much much much lesser extent. Well, he's Derriak. The Clippers don't even have I guess Derriak was a one time all star at the time of this happening. He was a zero time all star but he at least, you know, I would put him as somebody who had as much to look forward to in his career as say at this point of Brandon Ingram. I'm not necessarily saying while he's Derriak was better than Brandon Ingram but 24 or 25 year old while he's Derriak who's about to make the all star team just as impactful offensively as Ingram or Garland. Frankly, the Clippers are in a tough spot and now they don't have any first round picks for the next five years. They have some cap space next summer and probably even more in 2028 with the way their books are set up and they're not done anything to trade besides Wagler and that would be I think counterproductive. You Wagler is a gung. He hasn't played a game for you yet. Like see what you have.

16:21So I don't, I don't, I don't, like I don't know where you go from here if you're then. If you're the, if you're the Clippers, like they don't, they don't have anything else to look forward to in the rough and tumble Western conference. Now the Clippers could get a pick or two back if the NBA decides to do that, you know, down the road but they're going to wait a couple years before that's even a thing I would imagine. And I just don't understand like other than the potential cap space. There's nothing, there's nothing to look forward to. I want to correct what I said earlier. I missed this in my notes that Lawrence Frank was suspended, but not for a full year. I think it's just for like nine months, six months, something like that. It's, it's a less than your suspension for the guy Lawrence Frank who runs the front office for the Clippers. So I just don't like it would be very difficult to be a Clippers follower right now because I just don't, I don't know where they go from here. You don't have the Garnet piece. You have just Garland, Keaton Wagler and Brandon Ingram. That's it. Besides a bunch of guys in their 30s. So in the Western conference,

17:32that's a tough place to be if you're LA and they could be a friend. I think they're probably a fringe play in team this year, but that doesn't help next year or the year after the year after that. I don't see how this team becomes anything more than a fringe play in team over the next half decade. All right. Let's talk about the Tim Rolves nuggets rivalry, shifting gears here. This was an article that was done last week by Zach Kram, who I've disagreed with on some stuff this off season over at ESPN. He ranked the top 10 rivalries in the NBA heading into this season. Some of them are, you know, whatever. Yo, catch versus Wembe's one, you know, that's on there is number seven, dang Gilbert versus Matt H.B. Of course, cabs, universe, sun zone or number nine. Like, and then you get into Celtics. He get into LeBron Curry, Celtics Lakers, which is goofy because it's always a thing. Pacers next, which has always been a thing. And nuggets, wolves comes in ahead of Celtics Lakers, Pacers, next. I know this is specific to this season and we're not talking about an all-time rival really because obviously Lakers Celtics would be at the top of that list.

18:35But having nuggets, wolves three and then quickly, OK, see, San Antonio to fine and then Boston filling number one. It's funny. Like in Kram even acknowledges, he says, most of the teams on this list are the NBA's most historically successful franchises, which make sense. More deep playoff runs over decades means more opportunities for high stakes, clashes that stir up bad blood. That's not the case for Denver, Minnesota. Two franchises with a total of one finals appearance between them. But they've stirred up enough recent drama via playoff shutdowns in 23, 24 and 26 as well as the 2018 de facto playoff tiebreaker that went to overtime in the last night of the regular season to warrant strong placement on the list. By the way, that 2018 game, of course, was Jimmy Butler and the wolves, the wolves first playoff appearance in what 12 years at that time. No. 16 years at that time by Matt's not working right now. 2004 to 2018. 14 years. Wow. And but I mean, like, Yokech was still on on the nuggets. So like, even though a lot of the rest of the guys are different, still notable.

19:42Most really all the rest of the guys are different. He says the rivalry is just about everything. And then star power to component to dual matchups, go bears efforts to guard Yokech to a healthy dislike between locker rooms, MacDingles, of course saying that all the nuggets are bad defenders. And then he talks about how the wolves have the upper hand for now. Well, I don't know. I mean, like the nuggets don't didn't they once again didn't have the best off seasons. I don't really understand why they wouldn't have the upper hand, which it's fascinating to be see the nuggets get picked ahead of the wolves in certain places like I get it. They have Yokech. That's the only argument. The wolves at least have some of this upside and it seems like Denver is trying to they wish they were the wolves right now. I think that's fascinating. I think it's true. Obviously the MacDingles comments in the playoffs like the nuggets haven't necessarily been able to refute any of that. I think there were some Christian brown comments, you know, regarding that not that long ago that I saw. Yokech doesn't say anything in the off season. We'll see what that looks like as we get into the season.

20:43Obviously going to be a lot of fun. All those nuggets games. I think the wolves don't play the nuggets until December and then they have two the Christmas day game and then the one like right after that. So that's going to be a ton of fun as we get into December to see this match up, but to see it on a list like this. Awesome. Really cool. Awesome. Okay. Let's close by talking about the Timberl's final roster spot. We'll talk a little bit about Kevin Love the finances. The finances of the final roster spot with the wolves can and can't do as they look to fill out the roster will do all that here next as we close out today's show. Today's episode of locked out wolves is brought to us by our title sponsors at square support for today's episode comes from square the system power in so many of the places we already know and love. Whether you're running a packed game day spot a local restaurant or a growing business square gave sellers the tools to run their business without making things more complicated square brings payments inventory payroll invoices customer insights and more together in one connected system. So whether you're one location business or growing into multiple locations square gives you the tools to sell manage and grow without needing an IT team to figure it all out. Look, if you're getting ready for fall and winter nights at target center.

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22:55They'll help set you up with a game plan that works for you like a good neighbor state farm is there coverage options are selected by the customer availability eligibility vary by state. All right so the two will have one roster spot remaining one roster spot. They are reportedly interested in Kevin love we talked about this on Friday show I think it was a Thursday appearance. I think Jim sous hand was on John Krasinski show I think I said this backwards on a talk to on Friday so apologies to John and everybody. John Krasinski acknowledged that the Tim rolls have interesting Kevin love and that he has been told that Kevin love is open to coming back to Minnesota. Now we haven't heard anything from the love side publicly about what Kevin love is trying to do this year of course you played for Utah last season was a valued mentor on that team it seemed like him and will hearty the coach of Utah got along well. There are no Utah's in a weird spot roster wise it seems at this point like he's unlikely to go back there there was talk about Cleveland had a lot of running on back there that obviously didn't happen.

24:02Philadelphia would have to make some moves to bring Kevin love in and I don't think that's feasible so like Miami could be an option I guess but there's no connection other than spulstra in the fact that he was there I mean obviously there's no. The other guys love played with by and large aren't there stop like he has a previous yonness connection so Miami could be an option but we really don't know we don't know what love is trying to do other than that he's trying to play again in Minnesota makes a lot of sense for a lot of reasons. He could play the joingles role but actually play out out liking it more to what Kyle Anderson's role was at the end of last season with Minnesota which was more often the not not in the rotation playing spot minutes here and there and if you have a guy out or suspended in the case of go bear which happened a lot because of the flagrants last year. Love can give you 20 minutes. Like joingles wasn't really able to give you 20 good minutes Kevin love I think is more tread on the tires now we thought that of Joe when he first came to Minnesota a few years ago and that wasn't the case but I do think that's true Kevin love and I don't think and with the world's first part of the news they thought he'd be in the rotation clearly and it wasn't feasible.

25:10I don't think they would bring love in and say hey man you're going to play every night I think they're going to say hey your art 10th 11th guy depending on the matchup foul trouble. You know injuries suspensions game flow you may or may not play and if you play you know you may or may not get a ton of minutes and that's just going to kind of be what Kevin love is signing up for at this point. We know that he gets along generally this is obviously painting with a really broad brush but gets along well with young rosters has been thought of as a positive locker room mentor in the same way as really Mike Conley is a good example and then also angles and Anderson. He can speak both languages in the sense where he can talk to the players gets along well with the younger players and be respected vet somebody who's won a title and been a multiple time all star. And then also speak the language of the coaches and be able to kind of be that liaison's a really aggressive word but be somebody who can be in the middle and in middle man has bad connotations bad connotations you know not ideal connotations but he'd be the guy who can kind of bridge that gap.

26:14And I think he fits that really well from a basketball standpoint the wolves in more rebounding than he more shooting he does those things. And it would be nice if somebody who could pass a little bit to and he can do that too. I use a great fit so hopefully that's what the wolves end up doing in terms of what that last roster spot looks like. The wolves have some flexibility because they waved in stretch John Contra following the trade that they made. That was that that was finalized a little over a week ago that then allowed them to sign Jonathan Kamehiga which was finalized over the weekend they waved in stretch John Contra's contract which means that his cap it is only a little over $2 million. So the wolves traded out 14 point almost seven from Josh screen they brought in Cody Williams in his six million and the two million for John Contra that means that there's $6.6 million in cap space there. And the hard cap then becomes four and a half million. Four and a half million dollars to the hard cap well event minimum it's it's tiered essentially based on how much experience somebody has for a event with that.

27:2110 or more years which is the largest vet minimum contract it's only 3.8 7 million so they could sign a 10 plus year vet like a Kevin lover a Kelli Olympic. And still have what seven hundred and thirty thousand dollars ish little over 700 K in breathing room. So it's plenty of room they could add somebody whenever they want now we've seen the wolves do the thing where they leave it open for flexibility to for one trade signing somebody later promoting somebody from a two way whatever the case might be they could leave it open. They could leave it open until training camp gets underway until training camps over if there's any injuries they can you know pivot because remember one of their 14 spots is being held by Dante even Chenzone who well there's been some more positive kind of chatter and like Matt Lloyd went on. Um I forget what show Matt Lloyd was on the animals GM was talking positively about the even Chenzos recovery like it seems like and this is me talking but like.

28:21Best case scenario for an on court return would be post all star break. And that's like you know 10 months mid February would be pretty aggressive so February March best case maybe. So they're going to be playing short handed essentially in terms of their roster spot. The roster is handicapped basically with with even Chenzo taking up a spot but not being able to play for the majority of the season so they may choose to leave it open just in case you know God forbid somebody gets a bad injury and training camp and they need to add somebody to shore up a certain position. Then they have a little bit more time to do that. And we've talked already about the two way player situation it sure sounds like they're not going to sign Trayck often read he's trying to get back in and play in C. Delay basketball fine. But could the wolf sign in eight Santos could they elevate a. As I and pull in again roster bounce wise I doubt it and then sign a big to a two way maybe those are all possibilities and I think Minnesota probably is going to. My hunch is and this is just my hunch that they're trying to get somebody like a Kevin love.

29:25And they probably have maybe it is just love or if it's loving a linux or love a linux patoon who probably isn't going to stay state side is probably going to play overseas maybe they have a short list and if they don't get those guys they leave it open and they see what happens that's my guess. And I would say if they haven't signed anybody by the start of training camp they're probably planning to leave it open in case they need it for some other sort of maneuvering that they're going to make. You know if necessary maneuvering but obviously something will keep. Keep it in I on alright I'll be back tomorrow we're going to do shows Wednesday and Friday this week will be back to daily next week Monday through Friday and then it will be daily all the way through the season into next off season Monday through Friday bonus episodes every now and again the whole thing so big thank you for making locked that wolves your first listen every single day of course this show is free available everywhere that includes YouTube as well as all of your favorite audio platforms where we like to listen to podcasts you can find locked on wolves. It also lots in the lock down sports Minnesota app on both Roku and Amazon fire TV or minor about the every day club you can sign up for.

30:26Add free episodes of the audio version of locked then wolves at locked on wolves dot super cast calm you also get access to the discord chat where we're in there talking about the wolves on a daily basis again that's at locked then wolves that super cast. Of course locked then wolves is part of the lock down podcast network now the number one sports podcast network your local experts on all the biggest stories once again i'm been beacon this is locked. That wolves podcast will catch you next time. That's network your team every day.