With only three games remaining in their 2016-17 season, the Timberwolves are once again missing the playoffs, a 13-season streak that has been as frustrating for owner Glen Taylor as it has been for fans of the team.
Taylor, who also owns the Star Tribune, was asked if he has any idea what coach Tom Thibodeau thinks the team needs to improve and break that streak next season.
"I think he would say the same thing that I observe and stuff like that, he needs some players that will come off the bench and keep us going and not give up the lead," he said. "I think he would say if he can get some guys with experience that would be helpful, so he can mix them in with our young guys during those substitution times. I think that will be a priority.
"We could also always use another big guy. If we back up a year and we were hoping that Pek [Nikola Pekovic] would be part of that and be a big, strong guy that would come in and take minutes off, so Karl [-Anthony Towns] didn't get beat up so much and play so many minutes. But that didn't happen, and with [Nemanja Bjelica] Belly getting hurt that even made it a little worse lately."
Taylor said that Pekovic, who at one point was one of the more unique and bruising big men in the league, might have played his last game due to long-term injuries.
"I don't think so," he said when asked if Pekovic would play again. "I mean, that's for him and his doctors but just listening to what the doctors have told me and what he has said, I'm not expecting it in our plans going ahead. We won't rely on him."
Salary cap questions
The Wolves will have Pekovic's contract numbers off the books for next season, and because he did not play this season, his contract is covered by insurance, so that means their current salary cap should be in the $66 million range, which will leave them roughly $35 million to spend on their own players and free agents, if the recent reports of the NBA salary cap increasing to $101 million for 2017-18 are correct.
"We're all right going into next year," Taylor said. "We won't have any problems there in any manner. All of the young guys will be on their old contracts, Gorgui [Dieng] is signed and Ricky [Rubio] is signed, and we have a couple of guys on the bench — [Kris] Dunn is signed, [Tyus] Jones is signed, [Cole] Aldrich is signed, so we won't have any problem there."