Миннесота Тимберволвс багийн удирдлага Леброн Жэймсийг өөрийн эгнээнд нэгтгэхээр хүчин чармайлт гаргаж, түүний агент Рич Полтой тогтмол харилцаатай байгаагаа илэрхийллээ. Багийн ерөнхийлөгч Тим Коннелли шинээр ирсэн Ламело Болл болон Энтони Эдвардс, Жэйден Макдэниелс, Руди Гобер нараас бүрдсэн залуу бүрэлдэхүүн нь Жэймст аварга авах хамгийн том боломжийг олгоно гэж үзэж байна.
Миннесота Тимберволвс сүүлийн таван улирал дараалан плэй-оффт шалгарч, 2024 болон 2025 онд бүсийн финалд хүрсэн амжилттай юм. Өнгөрсөн улирлын дараа багийн бүрэлдэхүүнд өөрчлөлт оруулж, Жулиус Рэндлийг Брүүклин Нетс рүү, Наз Ридийг Шарлотт Хорнетс руу илгээн Ламело Боллыг авчирсан нь Эдвардс болон бусад тоглогчдод дэмжлэг үзүүлэх зорилготой байв.
Тим Коннеллигийн хэлснээр, баг нь Жэймсийг гарааны тавтын хүчний довтлогчийн байрлалд тоглуулах боломжтой бөгөөд энэ нь түүнийг аваргын төлөө дахин өрсөлдөхөд чухал түлхэц болно. Хэдийгээр тэднийг энэ алхмыг хийхэд хүндрэлтэй гэж үзэж байгаа ч Миннесота Тимберволвс нь Жэймс болон түүний төлөөлөгчдөд өөрийн давуу тал, залуу бүрэлдэхүүний ирээдүйг танилцуулж, бүрэн дүүрэн анхаарал хандуулж байна.
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MINNEAPOLIS — Seated on the dais at an introductory news conference for LaMelo Ball, Minnesota Timberwolves president of basketball operations Tim Connelly was asked about the Wolves’ recruitment of free agent LeBron James. Connelly nodded his head toward Ball, his new 6-foot-7 point guard, as one of the reasons James should consider continuing his career in Minnesota.
“I like who we are and we’re pretty proud of who we are,” Connelly said on Tuesday. “Hopefully that’s appealing, not just to LeBron, but to any free agent.”
The Wolves have been one of several teams aggressively pursuing James, trying to convince the best player of this generation — and perhaps the greatest of all time — to sign with a young team that has been knocking on the door in the Western Conference for the last three years. Cleveland, Golden State, Philadelphia and Miami are among the other teams competing for his services. The Wolves believe they can offer James the best chance to win a fifth championship.
The Wolves have been in regular contact with Rich Paul, James’s agent and close friend, to try to sell them on the idea of teaming up with Ball, Anthony Edwards, Jaden McDaniels and Rudy Gobert to make a run at the San Antonio Spurs and Oklahoma City Thunder in the West.
“The recruitment is just this team,” Connelly said. “Obviously, he’s an unbelievable player. Whatever decision he makes is going to be the right one. There’s a lot going on. When you’re as great as he is, you should have optionality. When you look at our team, it’s hard not to be excited about what we have.”
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The Wolves have been the playoffs for five straight seasons, the third-longest active streak in the league. They went to back-to-back conference finals in 2024 and 2025, then took a step back this season when an injury-plagued group lost a six-game second-round series to the Spurs. When the season was over, Connelly traded Julius Randle to Brooklyn and sent Naz Reid to Charlotte for Ball to give Edwards some much-needed backcourt help.
The Wolves think they have the best basketball fit for James, with Ball and Edwards there to help him on the offensive end, and Gobert and McDaniels to take the pressure off him on defense. They are not alone.
“We have the best coach. We have amazing fans,” Connelly said. “In the last couple years, our success has been as good as anybody — outside of the guys who’ve won it all. Not just speaking to LeBron, but to any free agent, this is a place you’re going to have a lot of fun and win a lot of games.”
That the Wolves are even in the running is notable for a team that has long had difficulty attracting free agents. The harsh Minnesota winters, coupled with a history of losing, had worked against the organization for a long time. But with Edwards leading the way on the court, and Marc Lore and Alex Rodriguez bringing a new energy on the ownership side, the Wolves can no longer be overlooked.
“We’re trying to change the narrative of how this organization is viewed,” Connelly said. “We’re kind of proud of who we are, and certainly, wherever LeBron ends up, he’s going to make that place much, much better. But it’s hard not to look at LaMelo and Jaden and Rudy and Ant and Josh (Green). We saw what (Terrence Shannon Jr.) did in the postseason.”
Connelly also mentioned second-year center Joan Beringer, who was impressive in his first Summer League game last week, and Ayo Dosunmu, who signed a five-year, $112 million contract to remain in Minnesota, as more reasons for James to consider the Wolves.
Perhaps most of all, the Wolves have a hole at power forward after trading Randle and Reid. They signed veteran Trey Lyles from Europe, and also can put Jaylen Clark or Shannon at the 4 against smaller lineups. But adding a player like James, who even at 41 years old still packs a playmaking and scoring punch, could be the final piece that vaults them into championship contention.
The Wolves believe that means they have the best of both worlds. Not only do they need James, but they also have the young personnel to surround him and take some of the burden off him in the regular season.
It remains unclear when James will make his decision. Privately, the Wolves know that it’s a long shot to land him. But they also believe James and Paul are giving them full consideration.
So they sit and wait, trusting that they have a good argument for why the best thing for one of the all-time greats is to come to Minnesota. That is quite a statement in and of itself.
