The first step to keeping familiar faces in Minnesota and building continuity on their roster, the Timberwolves must retain Nikola Pekovic.
The Montenegrin center has been a sensational value pick ever since being drafted with the first pick (31st overall) in the second round of the 2008 draft. In 2011-12, he had a player efficiency rating of 21.47, more than a 10-point increase from his rookie season (per ESPN). That year, he had more points in the paint on a per-minute basis than LeBron James, Blake Griffin and Dwight Howard.
At 27 years old, he is no longer green, but he should have five or more good years left in him. Even though he only has only three years of service under his belt, he has proven to be an overpowering, physical player that is capable of scoring underneath the basket. Unless he demands unreasonable money—he does not deserve a max contract—Minnesota should do everything in their power to lock him up for the next few years.
Right now, I see four of the five starting positions locked up:
Ricky Rubio as point guard. He needs to shoot more accurately both from the field and beyond the arc, but h ...
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Article written by Tom Schreier
The Definitive Case for Minnesota Timberwolves Keeping Nikola Pekovic
February 19th, 2013 by Tom Schreier Leave a reply »
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