Wayne Ellington

Wayne Ellington
SG, 6’4, 200lbs, 29 years old, 8 years of experience

Cast up far more three-pointers than ever before, and hit 37.8% of them, leading to a career high .565% three shooting percentage and a career-best season. Ellington also cut his turnover percentage to 5.0%, and while his offensive game is becoming increasingly one-dimensional, that is seemingly a good thing, because it is improving his performance; he can’t dribble, so he’s stopped trying. Ellington does not however fit the three-and-D wing profile because his defence is poor, with no ability of note to keep his man in front and a fair few missed rotations. His unguaranteed contract pays a reasonable market price for a shooter, yet the defensive questions do leave him in the firing line.

Player Plan: Unguaranteed $6.27 million contract for 2016/17. Can likely be waived and brought back for less, should he be wanted enough. There is probably enough room between the current salary picture and the tax limit to re-sign important players while adding to the team from outside without going over it, but why risk it for Wayne Ellington?

Wayne Ellington

Wayne Ellington is Minnesota's only shooting guard, and yet they still won't play him. Ellington was forced (as were we) to watch Sasha Pavlovic and Damien Wilkins play a combined 2,462 minutes last season, while both playing really really badly (particularly Pavlovic, who was arguably the worst player in the league last year that actually played). And when he did get to play, he didn't do especially well either improving as the season went on but finishing at only 6.6 points per game on 42% shooting. Nevertheless, Ellington shot 40% from three point range, which gives him a use on next year's Timberwolves squad. (If he's still there.)

More importantly, he's not the right player for the Timberwolves. You've just drafted Wesley Johnson, you've just traded for Martell Webster, and you've already got Corey Brewer. Do you really need another small forward? Brewer is the best half-court creator and playmaker of those four, and that's not an endorsement of Corey Brewer. Last year was the point guard draft; this year is the small forward draft. We can only hope that next year, Kahn finally realises the huge shooting guard hole. Either that, or he's as big of a Wayne Ellington fan as I am. (Despite the overwhelming evidence to the contrary, I maintain that he is the next Voshon Lenard. And I base that on absolutely nothing.)