Timberwolves President of Basketball Operations Tim Connelly, earlier Wednesday, said the team was going to be looking for players who were good fits in their locker room to round out the roster for the rest of free agency.
The Wolves ended up signing someone who is well-known on the team and the in front office in agreeing to a one-year deal with Joe Ingles.
Ingles, 36, spent the first eight of his 10 seasons with the Jazz playing alongside Wolves starters Rudy Gobert and Mike Conley. The 6-9 native of Australia also played under Wolves front office executive Dell Demps.
Ingles will help the Wolves move on from the departure of Kyle Anderson, who agreed to a deal with the Warriors on Tuesday. The Wolves can only sign free agents to minimum contracts, thanks to their status as a second-apron luxury tax team, so Ingles' deal will be worth around $3.3 million, according to the minimum scale of contracts.
The Wolves also added guard PJ Dozier on a one-year deal. Dozier had a strong 2020-21 season with Denver when Connelly was GM there, but played last season in Serbia after his NBA career was derailed because of knee surgery.
"We're just looking to continue to add versatile pieces," Connelly said Wednesday at the news conference to introduce draft picks Rob Dillingham and Terrence Shannon Jr. "Certainly we've had a lot of success not just type of players, but types of people. Self-motivated. … We can't control wins and losses, but we can control the environment we create for these guys. We're very respectful of how delicate that locker room balance is."
Ingles played with Orlando last season and averaged 4.4 points in 17.2 minutes per game. The 2020 Olympic bronze medalist shot 43.5% from three-point range last season and is a 41% three-point shooter for his career. Ingles also spent a season in Milwaukee before joining the Magic.
With the Wolves, Ingles will likely provide a veteran option for coach Chris Finch as Finch juggles how to dole out minutes in the back end of his rotation at the guard and wing positions among Ingles and a crop of young players like No. 8 pick Dillingham, 27th pick Shannon Jr., Leonard Miller and Josh Minott. Ingles' ability to space the floor and make plays fits with what the Wolves need at that end of the floor.
Connelly wants Gobert extension
Connelly said his focus has been on this current period of free agency but that he would like to sign Gobert to an extension at some point. Gobert has a player option for next season, but the Wolves hope he'll be here beyond that.
"We'd love Rudy to be here for a very long time," Connelly said. "We're still in the middle of free agency. We haven't jumped in deeper beyond that. Obviously, we're not here without Rudy, not in the Western Conference finals without Rudy and we hope this is Rudy's last stop."
Gobert, who just turned 32, has an option worth $46.6 million for next season, but the Wolves will be looking for a way for him to tear up that option and give him longer-term security as he enters his mid-30s.
