2019 NBA free agency tracker: Grades for every deal so far
Jake Layman: 3 years, $11.5 million (Minnesota Timberwolves)
Portland restricted free agent F Jake Layman is signing a three-year, $11.5M deal with Minnesota, agent Mark Bartelstein of @PrioritySports tells ESPN. Minnesota is acquiring Layman in a sign-and-trade agreement with the Blazers.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) July 4, 2019
Using the trade exception they created in the Dario Saric trade with the Phoenix Suns, the Minnesota Timberwolves have agreed to a sign-and-trade for Jake Layman on an affordable three-year deal.
Layman isn’t a household name, but he showed signs of breaking out with the Portland Trail Blazers in his third season, posting 7.6 points and 3.1 rebounds in 18.7 minutes per game. Even better, he shot 50.9 percent from the floor and upped his 3-point percentage to a career-high 32.6 percent — which isn’t saying much, but still showed drastic improvement across the board.
With Rip City facing a cap crunch, the Wolves chose to strike on a 25-year-old wing who can pad their bench a bit. He’s an explosive athlete and reasonably useful player, so although this wasn’t quite the offseason Minnesota hoped for, this is a good pickup.
Grade: B-