The Minnesota Timberwolves have undergone some serious roster changes this offseason after shipping out Kevin Love, Alexey Shved, and Luc Mbah a Moute and signing Andrew Wiggins, Anthony Bennett and Thaddeus Young in a three-way trade involving the Cleveland Cavaliers and Philadelphia 76ers. The Timberwolves, though, missed out on unloading JJ Barea to the Sixers, according to Jerry Zgoda of the Minneapolis Star Tribune.
He wrote, "They'll try to trade him - they tried to get Sixers to take him with no luck - but if that doesn't happen, they'll buy him out, I'd think."
Barea, who has a year and $4.5 million left on his contract, is nearing the end of his prime at 30 years old. While he can still replicate the things that he did for the Dallas Mavericks in its route to their first NBA Title in 2011, his performance wasn't that impressive in his three seasons with the Timbwerwolves. Barea shot 39 percent from the field and 32 percent on three-point shooting area, as James Herbert of CBS Sports pointed out. The rebuilt Sixers may not require a veteran role player like Barea, so it was no a surprise why the Wolves weren't able to successfully unload Barea in the Kevin Love blockbuster trade.
The Timbwerwolves are also in the same rebuilding situation as the Sixers, so it was also evident why they would want to ship out an aging point guard whith a relatively expensive contract before the trade deadline. Philadelphia could have easily absorbed Barea and his contract in the Love trade, but, fortunately for them, they were able to prevent it from happening.
Dan Feldman of ProBasketballTalk, however, thought that the Timbwerwolves could still use Barea's contract for a trade this coming season and that it would be best if they hold on to him for a while until the February trade deadline. He said in his piece, "Minnesota has 15 guaranteed contracts, so the roster limit isn't a huge concern. Barea's $4,519,500 expiring contract could facilitate a mid-season trade, but that option is off the table if he's cut."
The Timbwerwolves clearly find no value for Barea after they tried to dump him to the 76ers. However, it is most likely that they would use his expiring contract to faciliate another deal that would benefit them in the coming season. For fans of the team, it also makes sense that the Wolves would buy out his contract if no trade partner arises after the trade deadline. Either way, it may be end of the line for Barea with the Timbwerwolves in the final year of his contract be it before or after the trade deadline.
Join the Conversation