Where could Naz Reid and Nickeil Alexander-Walker land if Wolves let them walk?

Free agency begins July 6 and this could be a crazy summer in the NBA.

Dec 8, 2024; San Francisco, California, USA; Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry (30) dribbles upcourt against Minnesota Timberwolves center-forward Naz Reid (11) and guard Nickeil Alexander-Walker (9) in the third period at Chase Center. Mandatory Credit: David Gonzales-Imagn Images | David Gonzales-Imagn Images

Naz Reid in a Pistons uniform would be a strange visual to get used to. Not just because he's spent all six of his NBA years in Minnesota, but also because Reid was the focal point of a brawl between the Wolves and Pistons in a March 30 game at Target Center in Minneapolis.

Remember that scrap?

Reid got fouled driving to the hoop and then Donte DiVincenzo and Ron Holland II started shoving each other and a massive brawl unfolded, leading to a lengthy video review and seven ejections between the sides: Reid, DiVincenzo and assistant coach Pablo Prigioni — and four for the Pistons — Holland, Marcus Sasser, Isaiah Stewart and head coach J.B. Bickerstaff.

Quite the brawl here at Target Center in the Wolves-Pistons game. The play is under review. pic.twitter.com/KwNVa3m5Mx

— Bring Me The Sports (@BMTNSports) March 30, 2025

Where could Reid wind up if he doesn't pick up his $15 million player option and the Wolves don't re-sign him to a long-term deal? According to NBA insider Marc Stein, the Detroit Pistons are monitoring Reid and his situation in Minnesota.

"The Pistons are among the teams with interest in Timberwolves big man Reid, league sources say," Stein wrote recently on his Substack. "Detroit is known to covet a floor-spacing big man and, according to sources, is likewise said to hold interest in Indiana's Myles Turner."

"Whether the Pistons have a tangible shot at acquiring either player, mind you, is far from clear," Stein added.

There will surely be other suitors if Reid becomes a free agent on July 6, but Detroit is one team that appears to be seriously interested.

What about Nickeil Alexander-Walker? Watch out for the Orlando Magic.

Minnesota got great minutes off the bench from Alexander-Walker at a bargain price of $4.3 million this season, but they could have trouble re-signing him since he's going to command a healthy raise and they still have to decide what to do with Julius Randle ($30.9 million player option) and Reid.

"The reality, though, is that Alexander-Walker is bound to generate the most significant external interest of the three — especially coming off a season in which he earned just $4.3 million," Stein reported. "Next season's full midlevel exception will be worth more than three times what Alexander-Walker made last season at $14.1 million … with rumbles already in circulation that Orlando is a team to watch as a potential suitor."

Alexander-Walker seems to be the least likely of three to return simply because Minnesota has young wing players capable of taking on bigger roles who are waiting in the wings, namely Jaylen Clark and Terrence Shannon Jr.

The obvious caveat with Clark and Shannon Jr. is that neither is a point guard, and Alexander-Walker gave the Wolves a lot of backup point guard minutes in 2024-25.

The other elephant in the room that needs to be discussed is the chance that Minnesota goes big-game hunting in the trade market. Will they trade for Kevin Durant or an established point guard? If they do, a roster shakeup is unavoidable.