When the Minnesota Timberwolves chose not to exercise their option to extend wing Nickeil Alexander-Walker with a qualifying offer for $7 million for one season, the fear of the Timberwolves losing a young and promising prospect on the whim of creating salary cap space for the upcoming 2023 NBA Free Agency market spread rapidly among Timberwolves fans.
Of course, the Timberwolves were not done with NAW just yet, a point made even as the young wing found himself unexpectedly heading for NBA Free agency. In the end, all’s well that ends well. The Timberwolves did extend Nickeil Alexander-Walker, but on a two-year deal that is far less costly on a per-year basis.