Former number one pick and Rookie of the Year Andrew Wiggins is finalizing a $148 million over five years deal with the Minnesota Timberwolves. The 22-year old forward out of the University of Kansas missed only one game in his first three seasons in the NBA.
According to Darren Wolfson, the deal is expected to be finalized on Saturday before training camp starts. The reason for the delay is that Minnesota Timberwolves' owner Glen Taylor wants to have a meeting with Andrew Wiggins before they finalize the deal.
Minnesota's great offseason
Minnesota started their great offseason by trading for All-Star forward Jimmy Butler, sending Kris Dunn, Zach LaVine, and Lauri Markkanen to the Chicago Bulls.
Bulter is a great two-way player that would help the Timberwolves close out games which they failed to do multiple times in the past NBA season.
The Timberwolves then got rid of their starting point guard Ricky Rubio. The Timberwolves signed Jeff Teague to replace Rubio for the job; Teague is a major upgrade to Rubio who had struggled to produce from the three-point line in the past few seasons.
They were also able to sign defensive big man Taj Gibson and former Sixth Man of the Year Jamal Crawford. Taj Gibson will be competing with Gorgui Dieng for the starting power forward spot, while Jamal Crawford will lead the Timberwolves second unit. The Timberwolves were also able to re-sign forward Shabazz Muhammad to a $1.6 million one-year deal.
Andrew Wiggins' young NBA career
Andrew Wiggins was drafted by the Cleveland Cavaliers in the 2014 NBA draft but was traded to the Minnesota Timberwolves as part of a three-team trade that involved a few notable NBA players including Kevin Love, Luc Mbah a Moute and Thaddeus Young.
Wiggins won the Rookie of the Year award during the 2014-2015 NBA season and was part of the All-Rookie first team.
He averaged 16.9 points, 4.6 rebounds, 2.1 assists, 1.0 steal, and 0.6 blocks per game.
Andrew Wiggins has shown big steps towards stardom -- he has been consistently producing bigger and bigger number while he is gaining more experience in the NBA. During the 2016-2017 NBA season, he averaged 23.6 points, 4.0 rebounds, 2.3 assists, 1.0 steals, and 0.4 blocks per game.
He averages 20.4 points, 4.1 rebounds, 2.1 assists, 1.0 steals, and 0.5 blocks per game throughout his young career. Wiggins is also shooting 45 percent from the field, 32.9 percent from three, and 76 percent from the free-throw line.
With the combination of Andrew Wiggins, Karl Anthony Towns, and Jimmy Butler, the Minnesota Timberwolves are looking to be set for the future. If the front office succeeds in maintaining this core, it is just a matter of time before we see Minnesota compete for the Western Conference title or maybe for the NBA championship.
