Timberwolves injury updates on Jaden McDaniels and Jordan McLaughlin

The Minnesota Timberwolves today announced the following injury updates on forward Jaden McDaniels and guard Jordan McLaughlin.

McDaniels, who experienced a right ankle sprain at the 7:30 mark of the first quarter in the Nov. 20 117-100 victory over the New York Knicks, was re-evaluated by Dr. Kelechi Okohora and has been confirmed to be progressing well throughout his rehabilitation program with no setbacks. He has been cleared to participate in individual on-court player development basketball and strength training activities.

McLaughlin, who experienced a right knee MCL sprain in the third quarter of the Nov. 2 114-109 victory over the Boston Celtics, has been progressing well throughout his rehabilitation program with no setbacks. He has been cleared to participate in full, five-on-five on-court basketball activities.

Karl-Anthony Towns clutch for Timberwolves in win over Pelicans

Per the Pioneer Press:

As he’s been during much of his recent stretch of strong offensive play, Karl-Anthony Towns was quick and decisive when it mattered most Saturday in New Orleans.

With Minnesota trailing by one in the final 10 seconds of the game, Towns quickly attacked the smaller Dyson Daniels, got to the edge of the paint and threw a floater off the glass to give Minnesota a one-point edge.

“It was a real skilled move. He’s got a lot of skill,” Timberwolves coach Chris Finch told reporters postgame. “We’ve really been harping on him trying to clean up his game offensively. And he’s got so much talent that if he just focuses on the simple things done really, really well, he doesn’t need to kind of create a lot of extra activity around his game. … And he’s really taken to that, so that would be a clear example.”

Brandon Ingram missed a decent look a few seconds later, and Minnesota escaped New Orleans with a 121-120 victory Saturday.

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Warriors forward Draymond Green suspended for incident with Rudy Gobert

Golden State Warriors forward Draymond Green has been suspended five games without pay for escalating an on-court altercation and forcibly grabbing Minnesota Timberwolves center Rudy Gobert around the neck in an unsportsmanlike and dangerous manner, it was announced today by Joe Dumars, NBA Executive Vice President, Head of Basketball Operations. The length of the suspension is based in part on Green’s history of unsportsmanlike acts.

In addition, Warriors guard Klay Thompson and Timberwolves forward Jaden McDaniels and center Rudy Gobert have each been fined $25,000 for their roles in the incident, which started when Thompson and McDaniels became entangled and were grabbing and pulling at one another’s jerseys, and continued when Gobert entered the situation and wrapped up Thompson.

Thompson and McDaniels were each assessed a technical foul and ejected, while Green was assessed a Flagrant Foul 2 and ejected.

The incident occurred with 10:17 remaining in the first quarter of the Timberwolves’ 104-101 win over the Warriors on Nov. 14 at Chase Center.

Green will begin serving his five-game suspension on Thursday, November 16 when the Warriors host the Oklahoma City Thunder.

Timberwolves guard Jordan McLaughlin out with knee injury

The Minnesota Timberwolves today announced the following injury update on guard Jordan McLaughlin who experienced right knee soreness in the third quarter of yesterday’s game vs. the Boston Celtics.

An MRI (Magnetic Resonance Imaging) taken today at Mayo Clinic Square by Dr. Kelechi Okoroha on McLaughlin revealed a right knee MCL sprain. He will be re-evaluated in four weeks and further updates of his progress will be provided at that time.

Timberwolves exercise contract option on Wendell Moore Jr.

The Minnesota Timberwolves have exercised their team option on guard Wendell Moore Jr.

Moore Jr., 22, enters his second season in the NBA after appearing in 29 games (two starts) in his rookie campaign last season, averaging 1.4 points on 41.9% shooting, 0.6 rebounds and 0.6 assists. In his first career start during the Nov. 30 victory over the Memphis Grizzlies, the Richmond, Va. native finished with seven points, a career-high three rebounds and two assists. In eight regular season games for the Iowa Wolves, the NBA G League affiliate of the Timberwolves, Moore Jr. averaged 19.4 points on 42.0% shooting, 4.5 rebounds and 5.0 assists.

Timberwolves sign Jaden McDaniels to contract extension

The Minnesota Timberwolves yesterday signed forward Jaden McDaniels to a multi-year contract extension.

McDaniels’ deal is reportedly a five-year, $136 million extension.

McDaniels, 23, has played all three of his NBA seasons with Minnesota, appearing in 212 games (137 starts), holding averages of 9.6 points on 48.2% shooting, 3.9 rebounds and 1.4 assists in 27.0 minutes per game. Last season, McDaniels established himself as one of the elite perimeter defenders in the league, appearing in 79 games (all starts), averaging career-highs of 12.1 points and a 51.7% field goal percentage to go along with 3.9 rebounds per game and led all qualified wing players in block percentage (1.5%). He totaled 76 blocks and 74 steals during the 2022-23 season, the only player in the NBA last year to tally 75+ blocks and 70+ steals.

The Federal Way, Wash. native has appeared in six playoff games for the Wolves, averaging 9.3 points on 52.9% shooting, including 50.0% from three-point range. In 33:27 minutes of action off the bench during Game 6 vs. Memphis on April 29, 2022, McDaniels ended the game with a playoff career-high 24 points on 8-of-9 shooting, including a playoff career-high 5-of-6 from deep, the most points off the bench in a playoff game in franchise history.

The Wolves originally acquired McDaniels’ draft rights as the 28th overall pick in the 2020 NBA Draft from the Los Angeles Lakers.

Timberwolves sign Brian Bowen II and Javonte Cooke

The Minnesota Timberwolves have signed forward Brian Bowen II and guard Javonte Cooke.

Bowen II, 25, most recently played in all five games for the Timberwolves entry in the NBA 2K24 Summer League 2023, averaging 4.8 points on 47.4% shooting and 1.6 rebounds in 13.9 minutes per game. The Saginaw, Mich. native played in 15 regular season games for the Iowa Wolves, the NBA G League affiliate of the Timberwolves, where he saw action in 15 games and averaged 13.8 points on 46.0% shooting, 7.7 rebounds and 1.4 assists. In two seasons with the Indiana Pacers from 2019-2021, he saw action in 12 total games.

Cooke, 24, appeared in 41 games (nine starts) last season with the Iowa Wolves where he averaged 7.5 points on 42.2% shooting, 2.7 rebounds and 1.5 assists in 19.5 minutes per game. The Columbia, S.C. native finished his collegiate career at Winston-Salem State in 2021-22 where he saw action in 23 games (17 starts), pulling down averages of 16.6 points on 46.6% from the field, including 39.2% from three, 3.6 rebounds, 1.1 assists and 1.5 steals in 29.2 minutes per game.

Timberwolves waive Trevor Keels, Tyrese Martin, DJ Carton and Matt Ryan

The Minnesota Timberwolves have waived guards D.J. Carton, Trevor Keels, Tyrese Martin and forward Matt Ryan.

Carton spent the 2022-23 season with the Iowa Wolves, the NBA G League affiliate of the Timberwolves, where he saw action in 41 games (23 starts). He averaged 14.5 points on 55.9% shooting from the field, including 34.0% from deep, 4.3 rebounds, 5.4 assists and 1.0 steal in 32.5 minutes per contest. The Bettendorf, Iowa native was a member of the Timberwolves entry in the NBA 2K24 Summer League 2023 where he appeared in five games (two starts) and averaged 9.0 points on 45.5% shooting and a team-high 6.8 assists.

Keels, 6-4, saw action in three games last season with the New York Knicks. Prior to joining New York, Keels played in 24 games (all starts), with the Westchester Knicks of the NBA G League, posting averages of 14.5 points, 3.0 rebounds and 3.5 assists in 31.4 minutes per contest. The Clinton, Md. native, was selected by the Knicks with the 12th pick in the second round (42nd overall) of the 2022 NBA Draft after one season at Duke.

Martin, 6-6, played in 16 games with the Atlanta Hawks during the 2022-23 season, averaging 1.3 points in 4.1 minutes per game. Additionally, the Allentown, Pa. native, saw action in 23 games (all starts) for the College Park Skyhawks of the NBA G League, where he averaged 18.0 points on 50.3% shooting from the field, 9.2 rebounds and 1.9 assists in 33.9 minutes per game, including a Skyhawks franchise-record 46-point performance against the Grand Rapid Gold on March 17, 2023. The 24-year-old was selected by the Golden State Warriors with the 21st pick in the second round (51st overall) in the 2022 NBA Draft after being named to the 2022 Big East All-Tournament Team as a member of the University of Connecticut Huskies.

Ryan, 6-7, wrapped up his second NBA season by making 34 appearances (22 with Minnesota and 12 with the L.A. Lakers) averaging 3.6 points, 0.8 rebounds and 0.5 assists in 9.1 minutes per game. He set a career-high with 22:25 minutes of action off the bench on Feb. 7 at Denver and tallied a career-high-tying 11 points on a career-high-tying 4-of-8 from the field, including a career-best-tying 3-of-7 from deep. Ryan also dished out a career-high four assists, besting his previous high of two (2x; MR: vs. Toronto on Jan. 19). The White Plains, N.Y. native has seen action in 35 career games with the Boston Celtics, Lakers and Timberwolves. He owns career averages of 3.6 points, 0.7 rebounds and 0.5 assists per game.

The Timberwolves roster stands at 17 players.

Timberwolves sign DJ Carton, waive Vit Krejci

The Minnesota Timberwolves have signed guard D.J. Carton.

In a subsequent move, the team announced it has waived guard Vít Krejčí.

Carton spent the 2022-23 season with the Iowa Wolves, the NBA G League affiliate of the Timberwolves, where he saw action in 41 games (23 starts). He averaged 14.5 points on 55.9% shooting from the field, including 34.0% from deep, 4.3 rebounds, 5.4 assists and 1.0 steal in 32.5 minutes per contest. The Pineville, NC native was a member of the Timberwolves entry in the NBA 2K24 Summer League 2023 where he appeared in five games (two starts) and averaged 9.0 points on 45.5% shooting and a team-high 6.8 assists.

Krejčí, 6-8, spent last season with the Atlanta Hawks where he totaled 36 points and 26 rebounds in 29 games. Prior to the Hawks, he played his rookie season with the Oklahoma City Thunder averaging 6.2 points on 40.7% shooting, 3.4 rebounds and 1.9 assists in 30 appearances (eight starts). He was originally signed by the Timberwolves on Sept. 14.

Timberwolves sign Vit Krejci

The Minnesota Timberwolves have signed guard Vit Krejci.

Krejčí, 6-8, spent last season with the Atlanta Hawks where he totaled 36 points and 26 rebounds in 29 games. Prior to the Hawks, he played his rookie season with the Oklahoma City Thunder averaging 6.2 points on 40.7% shooting, 3.4 rebounds and 1.9 assists in 30 appearances (eight starts).

The Strakonice, Czech Republic native has played for the Czech Republic Men’s National Team since 2019. Most recently, he played three games in the FIBA Olympic Pre-Qualifying Tournament 2023 Poland-Estonia, where he averaged 14.0 points on 61.9% shooting, 5.3 rebounds and 6.7 assists per game.

Krejčí was originally selected by the Washington Wizards with the 37th overall pick in the 2020 NBA Draft.