The Minnesota Timberwolves are reportedly one step closer to becoming the official home for all former Chicago Bulls. After acquiring Jimmy Butler, Taj Gibson, and Derrick Rose, the jokes started flooding in of coach Tom Thibodeau frantically signing every player he could get his hands on who played under him in Chicago. Those jokes just keep getting louder as the Wolves plan to make a run at recent free-agent Loul Deng. Marc Stein of the New York Times reports they make their run official as of this Wednesday.
The Wolves have launched their planned pursuit of @LuolDeng9, league sources say, after the veteran forward became a free agent by clearing waivers earlier this week
Deng played his best seasons under Thibodeau in Chicago, making the all-star team twice and establishing a reputation as a gritty and versatile player. However, in recent years Deng has been sitting on the end of the bench for a Lakers team that has been solidly mediocre. In one of the most blatant acts of tanking in NBA history, the Lakers shutdown Deng along with Timofey Mozgov with almost 30 games left in the 16-17 season with no injuries and for no apparent reason besides to lose games and give their younger players more time on the court. This past season Deng played in one game for thirteen minutes and scored exactly two points the entire season. It’s possible that Deng can still be a contributor, but it’s hard to come to that conclusion when he hasn’t even been on the court for much of the past two seasons.
The Timberwolves are looking for depth on the wing, and Deng will be a body they can play at that position, but it’s unclear if he can still play at the NBA level. However, rest assured, Tom Thibodeau is ready and willing to find out for himself.
