Minnesota Timberwolves guard Anthony Edwards Bruce Kluckhohn-USA TODAY Sports

Finances could hinder future Timberwolves' title hopes

By Sai Mohan | Last updated May 31, 2024 3:10 PM ET

Despite getting outclassed by Luka Doncic's Mavericks in the Western Conference Finals, the Timberwolves have ample reason to feel optimistic about their future. Their 22-year-old star Anthony Edwards, arguably a top-5 player already, just guided them to their deepest postseason run in 20 years and by all indications will get incrementally better in the coming years.

Every NBA franchise seeks "the guy" they can hitch their wagon to for an extended period. The Timberwolves have found their cornerstone. The problem is that Edwards' supporting cast is expensive and probably too inadequate to help him reach the mountaintop.

The Timberwolves have nearly $200 million in committed salaries for the 2024-25 season, which ranks up there with the Suns ($209 million), Nuggets ($193.7 million) and Heat ($189 million) among the teams currently slated to fall under the second apron of the luxury tax (subject to change in the offseason).

The offseason in Minnesota https://t.co/cSsbgKnvwI pic.twitter.com/I9DVTNb6SH
— Bobby Marks (@BobbyMarks42) May 31, 2024

Are the Timberwolves as currently constructed really good enough to win it all? Especially in a crowded West? The obvious solution would be to trade either Karl-Anthony Towns or Rudy Gobert, but that's easier said than done, per ESPN's Bobby Marks.

"Even in the scenario in which Minnesota wanted to make a roster change, trading the $221 million owed to Towns for example is extremely difficult under the current CBA," Marks wrote. "His $49.4 million salary next season is one of the largest in the NBA and would trigger the first apron hard cap for teams looking to acquire the forward."

The Timberwolves' repeater-tax penalty is reportedly expected to exceed $75 million and projected to increase in 2025-26 due to the burgeoning payroll. This year would mark only the second time since 2007 that they will pay the luxury tax.

Will an embattled Timberwolves ownership really continue to commit all that money?

Sai Mohan

A veteran sportswriter based in Portugal, Sai covers the NBA for Yardbarker and a few local news outlets. He had the honor of covering sporting events across four different continents as a newspaper reporter. Some of his all-time favorite athletes include Mike Tyson, Larry Bird, Luís Figo, Ayrton Senna and Steffi Graf.

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