New deals give Timberwolves two big men for the price of one

Naz Reid signed a five-year, $125M contract that will pay him $21.55M next season. Julius Randle reupped for three years and $100M, with next year's salary reportedly coming in around $31M. Towns will make $53.1M next year, meaning the Timberwolves get the Reid-Randle combination for less than what the Knicks are paying Towns.

That's important because the Timberwolves are very close to the second luxury tax apron. With Anthony Edwards and Rudy Gobert making over $80M combined, paying Towns his max salary would have kept the Timberwolves dangerously thin. As things stand, they're very likely to lose backup wing Nickeil Alexander-Walker, but it would be even tougher with Towns.

Not that Towns isn't a great player. He made the All-Star team, averaged 24.4 points and 12.8 rebounds (second in the NBA) and led the Knicks to their first Eastern Conference Finals in 25 years.

But Towns played just over 2,500 minutes last season. Reid and Randle both played 2,200 minutes last season, Reid hitting that mark exactly. The difference between Towns and the Wolves duo is nearly 21 minutes per game. Minnesota also got Donte DiVincenzo in the Towns trade, who logged over 1,600 minutes and will make just under $12M next season.

That's life under the NBA's new CBA, which harshly punishes teams for spending too much. The Timberwolves lost an All-Star in Towns, but they preserved enough depth to get them to a second straight conference finals. After pulling off this two-for-one deal, they've got a great shot at making it three in a row.