NBA
Minnesota Timberwolves Putting Bull’s Eye on Luol Deng
Breaking news! Luol Deng has been getting interests from the Minnesota Timberwolves and head coach Tom Thibodeau. Wait a minute. That’s breaking news from 2016. Here we are again in 2018 with the same rumor floating around. This time though it seems much more realistic and likely.
Deng was just recently released by the Los Angeles Lakers. They had signed him to a very generous contract for 4 years $72 million in July 16th. Since that signing he hasn’t played up to that contract. His first year on the contract in 2016 he played a solid vet role for a young Laker team, but numbers weren’t matching it. He battled injuries that year which limited him to only 56 games. In 2017 he played only the first game and still got paid $18 million that year.
How Luol Deng Could Help The Wolves
Now since Deng doesn’t have the gross contract connected to his name anymore he can now get a more suitable contract. That can be quite tantalizing for teams that are looking for a veteran role for a cheap price. Deng already knows Thibs system and how to handle all the barking that coach Thibs loves to do. He could be a leadership role for the young wings like Andrew Wiggins and new rookies Josh Okogie and Keita Dates-Diop.
Deng played for coach Thibs from 2010-2014 as a Chicago Bulls member. He was a 2-time all star with his time with the Bulls. Both times he was playing under Thibs. He would be also reuniting with former Bulls teammates Derrick Rose, Taj Gibson, and Jimmy Butler.
Photo credit to BRIAN WANG via Flickr
