Minnesota T-Wolves Blog – Page 93 – NBA Blog

Timberwolves re-sign Ryan Gomes

Minnesota Timberwolves Vice President of Basketball Operations Kevin McHale today announced the team has re-signed restricted free-agent forward Ryan Gomes. Per team policy, terms of the deal were not disclosed.

“We’re really happy to have re-signed Ryan. He was one of our most consistent performers last year, and one of our top priorities this offseason was keeping him in a Wolves uniform,” McHale said. “Ryan is the consummate professional and a great asset to our organization both on the court and in the community.”

The Timberwolves acquired Gomes on July 31, 2007 in a trade with Boston. In his lone season with Minnesota, the 6-7, 250-pound forward averaged career highs with 12.6 points and 5.8 rebounds per game, including a career-high 35-point effort against Golden State on Jan. 21. For the first time in his career, Gomes appeared in all 82 games for the Wolves, starting 74 (including the final 58 contests). Originally selected by Boston with the 50th overall pick (second round) in the 2005 NBA Draft, Gomes has appeared in 216 NBA games, posting career averages of 11.0 points, 5.5 rebounds and 1.5 assists per game.

InsideHoops.com says: Gomes is a good fill-in-the-blanks forward to bring off a bench. The man works hard and is a smart player.

How to determine schedule for any team

The Oklahoman (Mike Baldwin) reports on a team’s 82-game regular season schedule: “Four games against division opponents. Four games against six out-of-division conference opponents. Three games against the remaining four conference teams. Two games against teams in the opposing conference. A five-year rotation determines which out-of-division conference teams are played only three times.”

The Wolves Telfair deal

The Minneapolis Star Tribune (Jerry Zgoda) reports: Sebastian Telfair’s three-year deal is worth $7.5 million and breaks down this way: $2.3 million this coming season, $2.5 million in 2009-2010 and he has the option to come back in 2010-2011 for $2.7 million. Craig Smith signed a two-year deal worth $4.8 million that will pay him $2.3 million and $2.5 million a season.

Wolves want combo guard

The Minneapolis Star Tribune (Jerry Zgoda) reports: Kevin McHale said he’d like to add a combo guard who can serve as a third point guard, but said he doesn’t currently consider it a pressing issue. He said he’d consider one of the team’s summer league guards — Blake Ahearn looked most like a combo guard from a group that included Drew Neitzel, Pooh Jeter and Bryce Taylor — for that spot when those players decide in the coming weeks whether they will play in Europe or the United States.

Timberwolves re-sign Sebastian Telfair

Minnesota Timberwolves Vice President of Basketball Operations Kevin McHale today announced the team has re-signed free-agent guard Sebastian Telfair. Per team policy, terms of the deal were not disclosed.

“Sebastian showed a lot of growth as a point guard and decision-maker last season and bringing him back was a priority for us this offseason,” McHale said. “He gives us another experienced playmaker in the backcourt and I look forward to his continued development.”

The Timberwolves acquired Telfair on July 31, 2007 in a trade with Boston. In his lone season with Minnesota, the 6-0 guard averaged 9.3 points, 2.3 rebounds and a career-high 5.9 assists per game, finishing the season ranked 10th in the NBA in assist-to-turnover ratio (3.20-to-1). Telfair appeared in 60 games for the Wolves, starting 51, before missing the final 21 contests with a sprained left ankle.

Originally selected by Portland with the 13th overall pick in the 2004 NBA Draft, Telfair played two seasons with the Blazers before being dealt to Boston in a draft-night trade on June 28, 2006. In his four seasons with the Blazers, Celtics and Wolves, Telfair has appeared in 274 games, posting career averages of 7.8 points, 1.7 rebounds and 3.8 assists per game.

Wolves to keep Craig Smith

The Minneapolis Star Tribune (Jerry Zgoda) reports: Craig Smith is the first of the Wolves’ own free agents to reach an agreement with the team, coming to terms on a two-year deal he will sign when he is expected to join the summer-league team in Las Vegas today. Now how, or if, Smith will play in the remaining three games is uncertain, but since the summer team’s practice days all have passed, it wouldn’t make much sense for him to travel from his home in Los Angeles to Vegas if he wasn’t going to play at least a game.

2008-09 Salary Cap set to $58.680 million

The National Basketball Association today announced that the Salary Cap for the 2008-09 season will be $58.680 million. The new Cap goes into effect immediately as the league’s “moratorium period” has ended and teams can begin signing free agents and making trades.

The tax level for the 2008-09 season has been set at $71.150 million. Any team whose team salary exceeds that figure will pay a $1 tax for each $1 by which it exceeds $71.150 million.

The mid-level exception is $5.585 million for the 2008-09 season and the minimum team salary, which is set at 75% of the Salary Cap, is $44.010 million.

For the 2007-08 season, the Salary Cap was set at $55.630 million, the tax level was $67.865 million and the mid-level exception was $5.356 million.

In Mayo-Love deal Wolves unload two horrid contracts

The Boston Herald (Mark Murphy) reports: Kevin McHale has said he wants to set things right in Minnesota before he steps down, and judging from what he has brought onboard thanks to Memphis’ all-out desire for Mayo, this may be his best move yet. In sending Antoine Walker, Marko Jaric, Greg Buckner and the rights to Mayo to Memphis for Love, Mike Miller, Jason Collins and Brian Cardinal, the Timberwolves unloaded two horrid contracts that were about to take up $15.8 million of cap space alone next season (Jaric and Walker) and one malcontent (Walker). In return the ’Wolves get Miller, who may be the best shooter that organization has ever had, a solid post defender in Collins, and what they are now selling as a great locker room guy in Cardinal.

Timberwolves to work Eric Gordon out Monday

Eric Gordon (Ht. 6-4, Wt. 215) was the Big Ten Freshman of the Year this season and earned Second Team All-America honors from the NABC and Third Team All-America honors from the Associated Press. He led the Big Ten in scoring with 20.9 points per game while also ranking fifth in free-throw percentage (.834) and 10th in steals (1.3). He topped 20 points in 19 games and scored a career-best 33 in his Indiana debut, the most ever by a Hoosier in his first collegiate game.

Apr. 16: Wolves 110, Bucks 101

The AP reports: Randy Foye scored 10 of his career-high 32 points in overtime to help the Minnesota Timberwolves finish a forgettable regular season on a winning note, 110-101 over the Milwaukee Bucks on Wednesday. In what might have been the end of Larry Krystkowiak’s only full season as coach, the Bucks blew a 16-point third-quarter lead and let Foye and the Wolves blow by them in extra time. Milwaukee (26-56) closed by losing eight straight and 12 of 14… Bogut had 24 points and 15 rebounds, and rookie Ramon Sessions scored a career-high 25 points to go with 14 assists… Al Jefferson finished with 13 points and 11 rebounds in the game.