Evan Turner went from the Hawks to the Timberwolves in a four-team trade shortly before the deadline.
But he hasn’t played for Minnesota and was reportedly discussing a buyout.
Could he join the Clippers?
Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports:
Minnesota Timberwolves forward Evan Turner will workout for the Los Angeles Clippers today, league sources tell Yahoo Sports.
— Chris Haynes (@ChrisBHaynes) February 15, 2020
Turner has received permission with a buyout pending. https://t.co/baHGQ4ykzF
— Chris Haynes (@ChrisBHaynes) February 15, 2020
The Timberwolves are $1,136,270 over the luxury-tax line. On a rest-of-season minimum-salary contract – the most he could get in L.A. – Turner would earn $803,543.
Would Turner leave money on the table and get Minnesota completely out of the tax? I doubt it. But he could be joining a championship contender. More likely, he’d just get the Timberwolves closer to dodging the tax. They could also buy out Allen Crabbe and get fully under the tax line.
The Clippers have so much depth at forward – Kawhi Leonard, Paul George, Marcus Morris, Rodney McGruder. Turner wouldn’t add much value. His poor outside shooting would probably keep him far outside the playoff rotation. But he could theoretically eat up some regular-season minutes on a team that prioritizes keeping its stars well-rested.
Turner is a quality distributor for his position, and he has the size to be a credible defender. At least that’s he showed prior to this season. Turner looked pretty bad as Atlanta’s backup point guard. Maybe that’s because he was playing out of position with unready young teammates. Or maybe it’s because Turner, 31, has slipped too far.
Hence, the rare workout for an established NBA player.