The first place in the West is decided!Soon to trade Lee Kyle!Three-point shooting rate is only 17.2%
According to NBA reporter Brett Siegel, the Timberwolves are willing to trade Kyle Lee in order to upgrade the roster and are interested in Hawks guard Bogdan. At present, the Timberwolves are ranked first in the West, and they still need to make reinforcements? Lee Kyle's current contract is two years and $18 million, which expires this summer, and there must be a team willing to take over.
Bogdan's current contract is four years and $72 million, which also expires this summer. In March last year, Bogdan signed a four-year, $68 million contract extension with the Hawks, extending his contract until 2028! Bogdan was born on August 18, 1992, and will be 36 years old when his new contract expires. So, this is the last long-term contract of Bogdan's career.
The Timberwolves have a total salary of $162.9 million this season, more than $2 million short of the luxury tax threshold. However, starting next season, Downs' four-year, $224 million and Eva's-five-year, $260 million contracts will officially come into effect. Their combined salaries are only $49.55 million this season and $84.6 million next season.
In addition, McDaniels' contract is also effective next season, with an annual salary of $22.59 million. Add to that Gobert's $43.83 million and Reed's $13.99 million, and the five have a salary of $165 million. The NBA luxury tax threshold for next season is $172 million, and if the trade gets Bogdan, the Timberwolves will have to pay tens of millions in luxury tax.
Bogdan has four years left on his contract and a salary of more than $16 million a year, which is a burden on the Timberwolves. Lee Kyle defends better, but doesn't have Bogdan's projection ability. This season, Kyle Lee averaged 6.2 points, 3.5 rebounds, 4 assists and 0.8 steals in 22.3 minutes per game while shooting 45.7%, 17.2% and 67.8% from three.
Lee Kyle previously shot a career-low 26.5 percent from three-point range (2018-19), and last season he shot 41 percent from three-point range and averaged 1.5 attempts per game. This season has plummeted to 17.2 percent, averaging 0.6 three-pointers per game. This is not the level of shooting that a normal rotation player should have, so why can't Lee Kyle suddenly shoot threes?
Lee Kyle has only 50.9 percent true shooting percentage this season, which ranks 256th in the league (out of a total of 274 players on the list). Although Lee Kyle ranks 6th in the league in defensive efficiency, he ranks 252nd in offensive efficiency and 126th in the league in net efficiency. Lee Kyle earns $9 million a year, is worth $8 million defensively, and may only be worth $1 million offensively.
Bogdan is the opposite, attacking strong and defending weak. This season, Bogdan averaged 17.1 points, 3.1 rebounds, 2.6 assists and 1.3 steals per game while shooting 43.1%, 37.1% and 90.3% from three. He averaged 8.4 three-pointers per game, accounting for 59.6 percent of his total shots. Bogdan ranks 59th in the league in offensive efficiency and 210th in defensive efficiency.
Lee can organize offense, rush to grab rebounds, and is willing to do the dirty work, but he can't open up space. Judging from Bogdan's performance, the 4-year contract of 68 million is not big, but the Timberwolves have too much maximum salary. Now I don't know how high the Hawks' asking price for Bogdan is, and the Timberwolves may have a hard time making it if they don't want to pick up the draft pick.
Lee Kyle and Bogdan, who do you think is a better fit for the Timberwolves?