Timberwolves’ Season Ends, Offseason Challenges Loom with New CBA Rules
Timberwolves’ season ends with hope for the future. As the offseason approaches, new CBA rules loom large, affecting draft strategies and payroll decisions. Discover what lies ahead.
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Hello, again. I have returned from a very intentional break. I thought about writing a farewell to the 2024 Minnesota Timberwolves but saw so many of them that you all probably had your fill. It was a great and somewhat surprising season that should leave fans and followers alike encouraged for the franchise’s future, ownership situation pending.
I could have written about the Finals but the numbers tell me that people care much less when I write outside of the Timberwolves, which is perfectly fine. I know why people are here and am happy to accommodate.
Now, we are three days before the NBA draft and free agency looming on the horizon. The Timberwolves actually have a pick but this draft does not have much excitement. I actually think, in my limited knowledge, the teams hunting for stars and superstars at the top might be disappointed but the teams content to find a rotation or helpful starter will probably be content. I will write something over the weekend about whomever the team takes at 27th overall.
A Fascinating Offseason Lies Ahead
What I do think is interesting is how the NBA’s new collective bargaining agreement (CBA) looms over the whole off-season. The new CBA is in effect this summer and introduces the second salary apron. This is for teams that spend above the first luxury tax apron and limits whether these teams cannot take on more salary than they send out in trades, cannot trade picks more than six years out or send money out in trades. Oh, and these teams lose the taxpayer mid-level exception. These measures were implemented to prevent teams like the Los Angeles Clippers and Golden State Warriors from spending freely.
Well, here is what’s interesting about that. The Clippers did not make it out of the first round and have not made a run in four years because their stars are persistently hurt. The Warriors did not even get out of the play-in tournament. Both franchise’s having aging rosters and are seemingly losing their grip as Western Conference contenders, especially if Paul George leaves LA.
Not only that, the projected second apron teams next season are Minnesota, Boston and Phoenix next season. Whoops. While the Celtics are arguably the second-most storied franchise in NBA history, they are not traditionally a destination market. Minnesota and until recently, Phoenix are not either. Hell, the Suns couldn’t get out of the first round with a team led by 36-year-old Kevin Durant and Bradley Beal on the wrong side of 30 surrounding Devin Booker. And the Timberwolves won their third and fourth playoff series in their 35-year history.
What was the problem again?
There are also five projected first-apron teams that will be fighting to avoid the same restrictions: Miami, Milwaukee, Los Angeles (L), Denver and Memphis. Miami and LA consistently top players’ list of desired destinations, but they have the same issues as the Clippers, Warriors and Suns (and Milwaukee). Denver and Memphis will likely do what it takes to avoid hitting the second apron while trying to still field contending teams.
NBA Owners Have Never Been Able To Help Themselves
I’m not trying to fight over what is fair but it seems as if the league was trying to address problems that don’t exist or are largely unsolvable. If an owner is willing to spend hundreds of millions of dollars in luxury tax, how do you stop that? Sure, you can limit the ways they can improve the teams but if these measures are to restrict someone like Steve Ballmer, whose wealth was well-known when the other owners approved his purchase, who is really to blame? It’s similar to 2011 when the lockout ended with an amnesty clause where teams could void one contract of their choosing. Teams have recklessly spent money and casually dealt picks in the name of short-term success since the beginning of time.
None of that accounts for where players want to play, either. You can’t help that players want to largely play in three places: Los Angeles, Miami and Brooklyn in some order. Unless the league relocates these teams from these markets, players are going to continue preferring these warm weather and/or tax-friendly locales.
All of this puts a greater importance on the draft because rookies are relatively cheap compared to high-priced superstars or role players. Now, we’re seeing how the best young player on a team or former high draft pick automatically receive a max. On Monday, the Raptors gave Scottie Barnes a five-year deal up to $270 million. The deal may prove fine but the consensus on Barnes’ two seasons following his Rookie of the Year campaign have not quite met expectations. Barnes could prove that to be a bargain five years from now, but if you are building a team and dollars have heavy consequences and your team is not in LA or Miami, do you think harder about automatically paying him? Oh, and you have some 200 games to make that decision.
What Will The Timberwolves Do?
For the Timberwolves, who won 56 games this past season, they will have to decide by next trade deadline if they accept the restrictions that come with their current payroll. Minnesota made a bold move to acquire a player using the means they had available to them and finally reaped the benefits of it this spring. In the past, the team could decide to stomach the tax bill, run it back and hope to breakthrough to the Finals next spring. Where they go now is much less clear.
We have now had six champions in six years, running in the face of many preconceived notions of the NBA. Three of those titles belong to the Lakers, Warriors and Celtics, but there has been good variety. A team like the Celtics winning a title who spent six or seven years together, overcoming their own shortcomings, is something that is normally rewarding for non-fans of the team. This is especially rare in the NBA in the Player Movement Era and we may see fewer teams like this because of the difficulty in running a team. I would bet we continue to see fewer repeat champions and those that do will be notable.
It’s clear we are heading into a new era of the NBA with several questions about how these changes will affect the league. The unintended consequences seem obvious but hope that I am wrong.