Wolves pass on Cody Williams, keep Shannon and Beringer

Jon Krawczynski had the news, and the reason is about as plain as front-office reasons get.

Jon Krawczynski

@JonKrawczynski

The Wolves will not be picking up the option on Cody Williams. From what I understand, they’ve really liked what they’ve seen from him so far. This is much more about finances. He would’ve been due $6M+ next season and that’s a lot to squeeze into a very tight cap situation

The money is the story. Hoops Rumors puts the 2027-28 option at $7.67M. For a guy who isn't playing, that's a lot to carry on a cap sheet that, per Krawczynski, is already very tight. Minnesota says it likes Williams. It just doesn't like him at nearly $8M when every dollar is already spoken for.

Williams has only been a Wolf for a couple of months. Utah took him 10th overall in 2024, he spent his first 2 seasons with the Jazz, and Minnesota traded for him in August. He's the younger brother of Thunder star Jalen Williams, and his Jazz years never looked like that kind of pick paying off. With the Wolves so far he's scoreless in 11 total minutes across 3 games. Teams don't pay $7.67M for that kind of start, whatever they think of his practices.

The other half of the news is easier to like. About an hour earlier, Krawczynski reported the Wolves were picking up the options on the 2 young guys who are actually playing.

Jon Krawczynski

@JonKrawczynski

The Timberwolves are exercising the contract options for next season on TJ Shannon and Joan Beringer, a source tells @TheAthletic. No surprise there. Both have played very well early in this season and are big parts of the Wolves future.

Those 2 are also cheap, which is exactly why this was easy. Shannon, the 27th pick in 2024, now has a guaranteed $5.05M for 2027-28 and is eligible for a rookie scale extension next July. Beringer went 17th in 2025 and is due $4.62M next season. Put together, they cost a little more than Williams alone would have, and both are in the rotation.

Declining the option doesn't cut Williams. He's still on the roster this season on his current deal, and next summer he becomes an unrestricted free agent. That also makes him an expiring contract with some name value for the rest of the year. If his minutes don't grow, keep his name in mind as the trade deadline gets closer.

From Minnesota's side, this is a team over its budget making sure next year's money goes to Shannon and Beringer. For Williams, it's a 6'8" former lottery pick on his 2nd team in 3 seasons, with 1 year left to show someone he's worth more than a cap number.