Timberwolves Rumored to Have 'Several' Teams Competing for Free Agent Executive

Minnesota Timberwolves president of basketball operations Tim Connelly and Walker Kessler at a press conference. Kessler would be traded for Rudy Gobert two weeks later.
Minnesota Timberwolves president of basketball operations Tim Connelly and Walker Kessler at a press conference. Kessler would be traded for Rudy Gobert two weeks later. / Bruce Kluckhohn-Imagn Images

Tim Connelly is one of the premier free agents in the NBA this summer. The Minnesota Timberwolves president of basketball operations has an out in his contract as the team is coming off its second straight trip to the Western Conference finals.

According to The Athletic's Jon Krawczynski, multiple teams are interested in the executive that Alex Rodriguez and Marc Lore stole away from the Denver Nuggets in 2022.


Now that the season is over, both sides are expected to discuss a new contract for Connelly, who received interest from the Detroit Pistons last offseason. Several other teams have been monitoring his contract situation, team sources said, to see if he becomes available, but two team sources said the Wolves are optimistic he will remain in Minnesota.


Connelly started his career in the scouting department with the Washington Wizards. He spent a few years as assistant general manager for the New Orleans Hornets before joining the Denver Nuggets, where he helped build the team that would eventually win the 2023 NBA championship. In Minnesota he helped put together a team that has now been to two straight conference finals.

Having built multiple Western Conference contenders, it's easy to see why teams would be interested. If he does remain with Minnesota, he'll have to navigate a tough salary cap situation with Nickeil Alexander-Walker's contract expiring, plus Randle and Naz Reid being able to opt out of their contracts as well.


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Stephen Douglas
STEPHEN DOUGLAS

Stephen Douglas is a senior writer on the Breaking and Trending News team at Sports Illustrated. He has worked in media since 2008 and now casts a wide net with coverage across all sports. Douglas spent more than a decade with The Big Lead and previously wrote for Uproxx and The Sporting News. He has three children, two degrees and one now unverified Twitter account.