Bjelica is gone to the 76ers, but Tolliver is an upgrade for Wolves
Welcome to the Thursday edition of The Cooler, which feels like the Monday edition because of the holiday. I’m all messed up, but let’s try this anyway:
*Nemanja Bjelica, the intriguing forward with three-point range and a habit of missing 15-20 games per season, is done in Minnesota after three seasons.
That was pretty much settled when the Wolves withdrew their qualifying offer and let him become an unrestricted free agent, then signed Anthony Tolliver to essentially take his role. But it’s confirmed as of this morning, with Woj tweeting that Bjelica is signing a one-year deal with the 76ers.
Bjelica might have had more upside than Tolliver, having been in the league just three seasons, but he’s already 30 and probably is what he is to a certain degree. Tolliver, 33, definitely is what he is, but in terms of short-term production — two guys on one-year deals — I’m going to go ahead and say Tolliver is a slight upgrade.
Tolliver shot the three-point better and more frequently (10.4 attempts per 100 possessions to Bjelica’s 6.7) last season and has appeared in 24 more games in the last three seasons than Belly (Bjelly? Bjeli? Beli?)
It would have been nice to have both, but if I had to choose one of them on a one-year contract, it would be Tolliver even if they reportedly had to pay him a little more.
*It sounds like Sacramento is considering signing former Wolves guard Zach LaVine to an offer sheet. LaVine, a restricted free agent who joined the Bulls in the Jimmy Butler trade, is finding a pretty thin market (as are many other RFAs) this offseason. The Bulls would still have the right to match the offer and retain LaVine, which one would have to imagine is likely given the price they paid to acquire him.
*Bleacher Report’s Doug Farrar took a look at the 12 most unblockable pass rushers in the NFL. You won’t find any Vikings on the list, but it’s still interesting.