Coming out of Roselle Catholic High School in 2018, Nazreon Hilton “Naz’ Reid was tagged as a five-star college recruit and the No. 22-ranked prep player the country. He received offers from 15 NCAA Division One schools, including Kansas, Maryland, UCLA, and Villanova. But ultimately, the New Jersey native opted to attend Louisiana State University.
But something happened between when he left high school and declared for the NBA draft after a single season at LSU. Despite an impressive freshman year, averaging 13.6 points and 27.2 minutes over 32 games, playing a key role in taking the LSU Tigers to the Sweet Sixteen that season, when draft day came in 2019, Reid never heard his name called.
The word was that the 6’10”, 264-pound Reid was out of shape and, according to one scouting report, “coasts at times and plays content …doesnât always assert himself down low … (and) rarely sprints up the court, tends to go at his own pace.”
Nonetheless, the Minnesota Timberwolves took a flyer on Reid, signing him to a two-way G-League contract which they soon converted to a standard NBA contract.
Reid Wins 6th Man Award Ahead of Free Agency
Three years later, the Timberwolves signed Reid to a three-year, $42 million contract. The power forward repaid their faith in him by winning the NBA’s Sixth Man of the Year Award in 2023-2024, beating out Sacramento Kings guard Malik Monk and Bobby Portis of the Milwaukee Bucks.
In the current season, Reid is continuing what he did to get him the award, averaging 14.7 points per game compared to 13.5 last year, and shooting at a 48.2 field goal percentage, up slightly from 47.7.
And that is most likely why Reid is now expected to decline the player option for the third and final year of his contract with Minnesota. The option is worth $15 million, but Reid reportedly believes he can land a bigger deal on the free agent market.
Or can he?
According to NBA insider journalist Jake Fischer of The Stein Line newsletter, teams such as the Cleveland Cavaliers, Dallas Mavericks and San Antonio Spurs who pursued Reid before he re-upped with Minnesota will have diminished interest this time around. Most have filled the frontcourt needs they would have addressed by acquiring Reid in other ways, according to Fischer.
The Team Most Likely to Sign Reid is…
So where will Reid end up if he enters free agency? According to a report by SI.com, the team with the best chance of signing Reid is â the Minnesota Timberwolves.
“As a team currently above the second apron of the luxury tax, the Wolves are currently limited in the types of moves they can make. But they are on track to be under the first apron next season,” according to the SI.com report. Getting under the first apron would allow the ‘Wolves flexbility to re-sign Reid with a substantial raise â more than the $21 million per year maximum they could offer him under the Collective Bargaining Agreement rule limiting veteran extensions to 140 percent of a player’s most recent salary.
Minnesota holds Reid’s “Bird Rights,” officially named the Qualifying Veterans Free Agent Exception, which means that they are allowed to re-sign him even if it means violating the salary cap.
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