Taurean Prince agrees to two-year extension with Timberwolves

Taurean Prince is returning to the Minnesota Timberwolves on a two-year, $16M extension, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski.

Prince was headed to unrestricted free agency but had expressed a strong desire to remain in Minnesota. Shortly after the season, Prince said he planned to return, adding that the strong camaraderie in the Timberwolves’ locker room is something he hasn’t experienced since college. He praised head coach Chris Finch, comparing him to Mike Budenholzer, who coached Prince in Atlanta at the start of his NBA career.

The second year of the contract is non-guaranteed, per Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic. It’ll be a pay cut of sorts for Prince, who signed a two-year, $25.25M contract with Brooklyn in 2020.

Prince averaged 7.3 points and 2.5 rebounds per game on .454/.376/.756 shooting in 69 regular season games during his first year in Minnesota. The Timberwolves held his Bird rights, so they had the ability to go over the cap to re-sign him without using any of their mid-level exception.