The NBA trade deadline is on Thursday, March 25th at 2 pm CST. That means we have less than 24 hours of chaos that are about to ensue. Every year the NBA trade deadline sees a handful of the league’s stars being passed around. With Gerson Rosas in charge of the Timberwolves, we shouldn’t be surprised to see some involvement.
2020 NBA Trade Deadline
Last year’s deadline saw one of the bigger moves in franchise history. Rosas made a trade that the Minnesota fanbase had been waiting for in dumping Andrew Wiggins. He went to Golden State, in return for D’Angelo Russell. A year later, this move looks dicey. Moving on from Wiggins and his max contract is still a net-positive move, but Russell has been mostly injured, so we’ve yet to see what can happen between him and KAT working together. On top of that, the Wolves had to attach their 2021 first round pick to the deal to incentivize the Warriors. A top 3-protected pick leaves the Wolves with a 40.1% chance to retain the pick in the lottery this year. In a loaded draft class, the Wolves could miss out on an impact player.
2021 NBA Trade Deadline
This year’s deadline could once again involve significant moves from the Minnesota Timberwolves. Rumors have been swirling for weeks and even months. As we get closer to Thursday’s deadline, even more names are beginning to surface in trade talks.– Two of the biggest names that have been rumored for a while are John Collins and Aaron Gordon. The Timberwolves desperately need to improve at Power Forward next to KAT. Towns is the franchise player, but has yet to play with a strong player in the front court. Adding Collins or Gordon would provide much needed defense while locking down the PF position for future years. Gordon would come on a reasonable contract, but if Collins is the move, he would require an offseason contract. Atlanta offered Collins for Malik Beasley and a first round pick, but was declined by Minnesota. As it should have been, it’s a joke of a trade.
– Ricky Rubio is another obvious name that could be on the move in the coming hours. Teams, including the Clippers and other contenders, are looking to solidify their backup PG for a title run. As well as he has played lately, his contract would be a good one for Minnesota to shed. If they can move on from Rubio’s two-year deal in return for expiring money and/or picks – that could be of great salary cap benefit for next year.– Other names that could (hopefully) be traded are Jake Layman, Josh Okogie, and Jarrett Culver. There isn’t much value in Okogie or Culver at this point, but Layman could be an asset that a contending team could acquire to be an end of the bench player.
Future Outlook
Although the Timberwolves still hold the worst record in the NBA, it seems like their foundation for the future is in place. They will get D’Angelo Russell back from injury soon and Malik Beasley is eligible to return from suspension this weekend. Adding those pieces around KAT and Anthony Edwards provide what looks like a promising offensive team.D’Lo – Beasley – Ant – _______ – KAT
That’s the future.
Rookie Jaden McDaniels has shown some bright flashes on both ends of the court, but there’s definitely room for improvement. There’s a lot to be desired defensively and potentially adding one of the mentioned power forwards could do a lot for that. The other option is hoping they hit the 40.1% chance (as long as they finish bottom three in the NBA) in the lottery in order to draft one of the top options, or use it as a trade asset.
Around the NBA
Not Timberwolves related, other big NBA names that could be moving by Thursday are:
Victor Oladipo, Kyle Lowry, Demar Derozan, Lamarcus Aldridge, Lonzo Ball, Malcom Brogdon, Spencer Dinwiddie, Kelly Oubre, Javale McGee, and many more.
The NBA trade deadline is always crazy. A lot will be determined in the next 24 hours. Buckle up.