Alex Rodriguez Eliminating Anthony Edwards’ Exit Rumors Could Fracture Timberwolves’ Future

Despite failing to secure the majority ownership of the Minnesota Timberwolves, former MLB star Alex Rodriguez still plays a role in the overall running of the franchise as one of its minority owners. Before the team’s elimination at the hands of the Dallas Mavericks, Rodriguez made headlines after he and entrepreneur Marc Lore put up a proposal that would put “a sizable retreat in roster payroll.” If it had gone through, it would have deeply affected the annual pay of 22-year-old Timberwolves star player Anthony Edwards. It would have even compelled him to take his talents to another NBA franchise. Fortunately, thanks to a recent update, the player seems not to be going down. He is going up. And that too on a relatively high-powered rocket! Unfortunately, his good news only creates more problems for the team.

Prominent NBA journalists Jon Krawczynski and Shams Charania recently wrote an article for ‘The Athletic’ covering the journey the Timberwolves will undertake post-season. According to it, Anthony Edwards’ salary is not set to decrease but rather increase by an exorbitant amount. While he reportedly earned over $13.5 million during the 2023-24 season, ‘Ant-Man’ is expected to receive over $42.3 million next season. That is over a 213% increase in salary within just one year. Furthermore, according to Hoops hype, by the time Edwards reaches the 2028-29 season, he will earn around $55.836 million annually!

Anthony Edwards’ sudden increase in pay may be attributed to his overall performance during this tournament. Besides putting up a memorable average score in the regular season and the playoffs, ‘Ant-Man’ recorded over eight 30-point playoff games. He became the only player after Kobe Bryant to record consecutive 40-point games before crossing the age of 22 and secured other feats to his name. Under his leadership, the Timberwolves reached the Conference Semifinals for the first time in 20 years. Knowing the player’s value for the franchise, he is now being compensated accordingly.

While the player’s pay raise is well deserved, this sudden move will harm the Minnesota Timberwolves in the long run. Along with Edwards, the salary of power forward Karl-Anthony Towns will increase to $49 million, while center Rudy Gobert will be paid approximately $44 million. This means that the Timberwolves are spending around $135 million on just three players. According to the NBA guidelines, any team that spends more than $172 million on salaries will be liable to pay the mandatory luxury tax penalty. Furthermore, according to a relatively new rule, a ‘Second Apron Tier’ has been set to around $190 million. Any franchise crossing this limit can only acquire players who would be willing to come in under minimum-level deals.

By including the pay of Jaden McDaniels, Naz Reid, and Mike Conley, the Timberwolves will spend around $181.5 million on just six players. They have already crossed one set limit and are nearing the other. Alex Rodriguez may have been preventing this dilemma by putting up his “sizeable retreat” proposal. Unfortunately, the same did not go through.

Timberwolves owner Glen Taylor was against Alex Rodriguez’s plan to lower the salary of Anthony Edwards and others

According to the proposal put forward by Alex Rodriguez and Marc Lore, a potential decrease in the Minnesota Timberwolves payroll would have brought the total salary expenditure to just $171 million. This would be just a million shy of the luxury tax limit. Furthermore, it would benefit the franchise since instead of spending over $25 million in paying the luxury tax benefits. Staying below the limit would award them $6.5 million as part of a tax distribution.

While the proposal looked good on paper, it was something that Timberwolves majority owner Glen Taylor was against. According to reports, the 83-year-old was ‘spooked’ by the baseball’s legend thought process. Taylor believed that lowering players’ salaries “would jeopardize the franchise’s ability to compete for a championship”. ESPN reporter Adrian Wojnarowski reported that this proposal was one of the primary reasons. The majority owner backed out from his decision to sell his team to the former New York Yankees star.

By standing up, Taylor ensured that Anthony Edwards would receive his due and wouldn’t even consider exiting the Timberwolves. However, this move also put the franchise in a position that will be tough to get out of.

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