The Minnesota Timberwolves are predicted to hit the lottery once again, but Bill Simmons and Jalen Rose gave several reasons to be optimistic in the post Kevin Love-era, one of which is Andrew Wiggins' All-Star caliber ceiling in this league.
Andrew Wiggins is next T-Mac: There has been a lot of hype surrounding Andrew Wiggins, also known as the Maple Jordan. At age 19, the first overall pick in last June's draft is still pretty raw to be the main man offensively, but already possesses an elite-level defense that will help him earn more minutes from head coach Flip Saunders.
In his latest NBA season preview of the Timberwolves, Simmons talked about Wiggins' upside and the youngster's projected path as pro baller. The Grantland editor-in-chief believes the 6-foot-8 Wiggins has the tools to become the next Tracy McGrady in his best case scenario.
He thinks the Canadian is athletically gifted to become an explosive scorer, but advises the rookie to find his competitive beast inside for him to make that big step towards stardom.
"You know maybe his destiny is T-Mac," Simmons said of Wiggins' potential ceiling which he believes might be hyped too much by the media last season.
Rubio Could Soon Have A J: Ricky Rubio is in the final year of his contract, making him eligible for a contract extension. Initial reports indicated Rubio's camp is asking a max contract at $83 million over five years. However, the T-Wolves are iffy to commit in that large amount of paycheck to someone, who hasn't made his presence offensively because of his flawed shooting ability.
While Jalen Rose thinks Rubio doesn't deserve a contract above $10M per year, Simmons says he's still buying the Spaniard's potential because he's still 23-years old. However, both of them are hoping that Rubio will learn how to knock down jumpers regularly at some point of his career, as what Jason Kidd did after the first six years of his career.
Here Comes the Bad News: Simmons and Rose both agreed that the T-Wolves will be miserable after the departure of Love, and lottery seems really inevitable. Despite of that macabre fate, the Wolves are expected to be a force in the coming years as long as their young guys develop well under the tutelage of Saunders.
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