Kahn's had some okay moves, sure. I love Martell Webster and think he's a championship piece. He's basically Bruce Bowen if Bowen could dribble drive and dunk on you. And I like Beasley, although he's one dimensional his one dimension (scoring) is particularly useful in a game like basketball. With that said, every other move he's made this offseason has been bonkers insane. Overpaying for Darko and Ridnour (who's now their starter since Flynn is injured). Trading Sessions for nothing. Trading Jefferson for nothing. The Wes Johnson pick, especially since they knew they were trading Jefferson, why not draft a cheap, young, injury free replacement in Cousins? All these salary dump moves and for what reason? Nobody wants to play there. Why dump good players for nothing when you can get something in return? A market like Minnesota and nobody is going to want to sign there. No one is. Ever. They have no go to scorer, no one who commands a double team and thus, will be one of the worst teams in the league.
The Wolves are going to be a completely different team this year! ... personnel-wise. They'll still suck. Maybe even worse.
I also liked the moves for Beasley and Webster. The move to dump Jefferson was also a good one for Minnesota (they weren't going anywhere, regardless of who their GM was, so why pay Jefferson $14M per in the interim?). I guess I disagree with most people when I say that the Luke Ridnour signing was a good one. I think Kahn and Rambis realized last season that the team was just too darn YOUNG. Ridnour gives them a legit veteran to mentor the younger players. Sessions could not really provide that aspect. Ridnour's contract is reasonable, too. Take a look at his offensive efficiency numbers. He's a quality player. Darko at $5M per is not ridiculous. Is he overpaid? Yes. But not wildly so. Darko is a good defensive presence and gives the Wolves what they need at their starting C spot next to either Kevin Love or Michael Beasley. Nikola Pekovic was a great pick and can now show his mettle in the NBA. I suspect that he will have a nice rookie year. Depending on how many minutes he gets, he could make an All-Rookie Team (maybe the second unit). On the Wesley Johnson pick (taking him over Demarcus Cousins), I guess Kahn just decided that Cousins wasn't worth the risk. But for a decision that big, it had to come from Glen Taylor. So, I'll hold back judgment on Kahn for that one. I suppose if you look at their respective comparisons, it was the Wolves deciding to take a Shawn Marion over a Derrick Coleman. Understandable. The Lazar Hayward pick at #30 was another good move by Kahn. He was a four-year player who will most likely stick in the league as a role player. I also have a feeling that if Hayward had slid into the second round, Morey might have bought a pick to take him. Just a hunch. Overall, Kahn deserves a lot more credit than he's getting for his moves this offseason.
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