Word on the Street: Love to Minnesota?

by: Jonathan Givony - President
May 27, 2008

McHale in Love with Kevin Love?

Numerous sources with varying ties to Minnesota confirmed to DraftExpress over the past few days that Timberwolves GM Kevin McHale has locked in on UCLA freshman Kevin Love as possibly his favorite prospect in this draft. McHale reportedly likes the skill-level and all-around feel for the game that Love brings to the table, as well as his winning mentality, and sees him as an excellent potential compliment to Al Jefferson in Minnesota’s front-court.

Picking 3rd in this draft, many would consider it a reach to take Love, although numerous advanced statistical formulas have identified him as being the 2nd most productive player in this draft, behind Michael Beasley.

There is already some talk that Minnesota will look to make a trade with Memphis GM Chris Wallace, who would then have the option of fortifying his front-court by drafting Brook Lopez at #3, or swinging for the fences and taking O.J. Mayo. Memphis could offer Minnesota the young prospect of their choice in Kyle Lowry, Hakim Warrick or Javaris Crittenton to help facilitate the deal. Wallace only has two more years left on his contract and needs to make as big a splash as possible in this draft to jump-start Memphis’ rebuilding process, meaning he could be leaning more towards taking Mayo, especially if his team is drafting 5th.

Seattle Locking into Bayless at #4?

Although Sam Presti has to be considered one of the best GMs in the league in terms of holding his cards as close to the vest as possible, early indications are that the Supersonics are heavily targeting Arizona freshman point guard Jerryd Bayless, barring poor workouts or background checks. Reports we’ve gotten indicate that Bayless will measure out extremely well as far as his intangibles are concerned, as he’s a highly motivated and engaging person who comes from a strong background.
Bayless fits the up-tempo early-offense system that P.J. Carlesimo has implemented in Seattle, and can play minutes alongside their existing point guard rotation of Earl Watson and Luke Ridnour until he’s ready to man the position full-time. Seattle had the 4th fastest paced offense in the NBA last year, but finished dead last in points per possession and near the bottom in true shooting percentage. A big time athlete and shooter like Bayless could help in that regard.

NBA teams we spoke with indicated that their intel suggests that Presti is also high on Indiana shooting guard Eric Gordon, although he might be a bit of a reach with the 4th overall pick.

Is 7th a Reach for Augustin?

In desperate need of help at the point guard position, and with D.J. Augustin in their sights holding the 7th overall pick, the Clippers are pondering whether to pull the trigger on the extremely productive sophomore playmaker from Texas. Augustin will clearly be the best point guard on the board, but may be a bit of a reach where they are selecting. Workouts will play a big role in the decision of Elgin Baylor and key decision maker Mike Dunleavy Sr. They will also likely nab a big man with the 35th pick.

Adding interest is the fact that Augustin has reportedly decided to hire Thad Foucher of Los Angeles-based agency Wasserman Media Group as his representation. Foucher is from Augustin’s home-town of New Orleans, and the agency has strong ties to the Texas program, currently representing LaMarcus Aldridge. If Augustin is selected in the top 10, WMG could have 5 of the top 10 picks in the draft, as they also represent Derek Rose, Brook Lopez, Danilo Gallinari and Anthony Randolph. There are rumors that they may end up signing Russell Westbrook as well.

Augustin has numerous fans in the lottery, including Charlotte and especially Indiana, and likely doesn’t slip past Sacramento at #12 at worst. He is one of the 9 players who will be participating in the very exclusive NBA pre-draft camp media session, which is a very good sign for him.

D.J. White Promise?

D.J. White may a promise from the Detroit Pistons at the end of the first round, according to sources with ties to the player. The Pistons have the 29th overall pick and may like the way White’s length and toughness fit into their team’s overall culture. They have not been shy in the past about identifying players they like early on and being aggressive pursuing them—having made a promise to draft Rodney Stuckey with the 15th overall pick right around this time last year, and reportedly also giving DeVon Hardin assurances they would select him in the late first round before he decided to return to school. They did the same exact thing with Jason Maxiell a few years back, which caused him to pull out of the NBA pre-draft camp after just one day, despite then being projected as a 2nd round pick.

White has scheduled many workouts with NBA teams for the weeks leading up to draft, which is not unusual even for players like Stuckey or Maxiell if year’s past is any indication. He will not be playing in the NBA pre-draft camp, which is a pretty good sign that he feels comfortable with where he is projected to be drafted.

If this is so, then that guarentees us a shot at either Randolph or Mayo. I'd be ecstatic with either one.

Wow, if this whole article is true, then the top 5 is pretty much set with Beasley, Rose, Love, Lopez and Bayless going in the top 5.

1) Beasley (Again I say please please please please)
2) Rose
3) Love
4) Bayless
5) Lopez

Posted by sebstar:

Having that idiot McHale ahead of us could indirectly be the best thing that has happened to this organization in a while. It could mean that somehow, Mayo Randolph could slip into our wheelhouse. I'm sure some voice of reason will talk some sense into him before draft day, tho

I corrected that for you. You're welcome.

I was hoping the Knicks would have a shot at Love.

And who is your target (@ # 4) in that deal?

Posted by TMS:

Posted by BRIGGS:

Simple deal

offer Seattle 3mm$[they want cash] to swap from 4 to 6 Memphis is not picking a PG so Bayless would be there at 6 and they gain 3mm in cash +they save on Bayless contract over 3 years nearly 2mm $

who do you want at 4 that you don't think will be there at 6?

So you looking to screw Memphis out of picking whom?

this would be awesome...then we can draft mayo or lopez at 6. i really hope some team ahead of us takes love

Posted by martin:

Posted by TMS:

Posted by BRIGGS:

Simple deal

offer Seattle 3mm$[they want cash] to swap from 4 to 6 Memphis is not picking a PG so Bayless would be there at 6 and they gain 3mm in cash +they save on Bayless contract over 3 years nearly 2mm $

who do you want at 4 that you don't think will be there at 6?

I think Briggs was responding to this post:

Posted by PhilinLA:

I was hoping the Knicks would have a shot at Love.

was unclear on that cuz i've never heard him talking up that kid much... seems like his target players are Westbrooke & McGee, both of whom could easily be gotten at #6 or lower.

Once he gets into the league, Love will instantly be one of the best passing big men in the league, with the best outlet pass in the league. He will also have one of the best outside shots in the league. I'm not talking about other rookies, I'm talking about other bigs in the league.

Also, there are few other bigs who can score so well from outside and from the post. Duncan comes to mind. At the same time, Love is a very good rebounder. This is a guy who's going to make an immediate impact - forget about 'upside'. He's David Lee plus a jump shot, plus a low post game and is an even better passer than Lee.

I'm not a fan of McHale as a gm, but this is not a bad move.

I would give them, Curry, Lee, and Robinson for 3rd pick in the draft if McChale really wants to do something stupid.