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The Minnesota Timberwolves have agreed to a five-year, $136 million rookie extension with young wing Jaden McDaniels, according to The Athletic's Shams Charania. McDaniels, now entering his fourth NBA season, has grown into one of the very best 3-and-D players in the NBA, and he's a key part of Minnesota's hopes to seriously contend this season.

While McDaniels' 3-point shooting volume is relatively low at 3.4 attempts per game last season, he made 39.8% of his shots from deep last season, a major improvement over his first two campaigns. More importantly, McDaniels has become one of the most disruptive wing defenders in the league. He nearly earn All-Defense honors last season and should be a strong contender again this year.

When Minnesota infamously traded a massive package of players and draft picks to land Rudy Gobert, McDaniels was reportedly the one asset that the Timberwolves refused to include. That decision proved wise, as McDaniels is now a core player for the Timberwolves.

Of course, keeping that core together won't be cheap. The Timberwolves also agreed to max rookie extension with star guard Anthony Edwards earlier in the offseason. Gobert and Karl-Anthony Towns are both on super-max deals, and the Timberwolves paid to retain top backup center Naz Reid earlier in the offseason as well. That will make the Timberwolves a luxury tax team for the next several years barring other moves. Owner Glen Taylor has typically avoided such spending, but the new ownership team of Marc Lore and Alex Rodriguez appears more motivated to spend on a team that could be very strong next season.

Wings are among the priciest players in the NBA due to their scarcity. Very few players can do what McDaniels already can, and given his upside as a ball-handler, he seems to have plenty of room to continue growing. As expensive as this deal is for Minnesota, McDaniels is well worth the price.