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Jordan Hill to Timberwolves: Latest Contract Details and Reaction

Tyler Conway@jtylerconwayX.com LogoFeatured Columnist

Apr 2, 2016; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Indiana Pacers center Jordan Hill (27) warms up before a game against the Philadelphia 76ers at Wells Fargo Center. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports
Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports

Jordan Hill found his third NBA home in as many seasons on July 20, the Minnesota Timberwolves announcing a deal with the power forward.

Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical reported on July 13 that the two sides had agreed to a two-year, $8 million deal. On Saturday, Darren Wolfson of 5 Eyewitness News in Minneapolis reported the second year of that deal is non-guaranteed. 

Hill, 28, spent last season with the Indiana Pacers. He averaged 8.8 points and 6.2 rebounds per game as a backup behind Myles Turner and Ian Mahinmi. 

While Hill was a productive member of the rotation for most of the year, his minutes evaporated down the stretch. Former Pacers coach Frank Vogel played Hill for only 15 total minutes in Indiana's first-round series loss to the Toronto Raptors and didn't play him at all in five of the team's final seven regular-season contests.

Vogel struggled to give Hill game time behind Turner and Mahinmi, reverting to small ball with Solomon Hill as the nominal 4 when either big needed a blow. New Pacers coach Nate McMillan seemed to indicate the team would be making a more concerted push to an uptempo style.

“Yeah, OK," McMillan said, per Candace Buckner of the Indianapolis Star. "We can play that. It’s fun, it’s exciting. That’s the way I played. I want to get up and down. I want to go and I want to defend and, excuse me, but I want to get all up on yo' (tail), and we want to play. I want to do that.”

That all but sealed Hill's fate. Never a star-level talent matching his lottery promise (No. 8 pick in 2009), Hill has found a role everywhere he's been in the NBA. He's a tough defender and a good rebounder, using his length and athleticism to make plays near the basket. There were few better pick-and-roll runners available than Hill at this price. 

Defense has never been Hill's specialty, and he's not a floor-spacer. Calling him a forward in today's NBA might be an exaggeration. He's more of an undersized center who can occasionally make a few plays out of the high post.

Still, a team could do a lot worse at this price range. The NBA's massive influx of cap space after the new television deal meant Hill and other mid-tier veterans were bound to be overpaid. The Timberwolves took advantage of Hill's falling out of the rotation in Indiana and got what could look like a real bargain once everything shakes out. 

In Minnesota, he'll find himself down the pecking order behind superstar Karl-Anthony Towns and Gorgui Dieng. But there are minutes off the bench to be had in the frontcourt for Minnesota, and Hill could establish himself as a nice piece in the rotation.