When it comes to Kevin Love the rumour mill is running overtime trying to keep up and crank out tidbits and updates as the leaks permit. At this point in the speculation concerning Love’s eventual departure from Minnesota nothing has been confirmed and no trade partners have officially come forth to publicly state their interest and intentions.
That being said the rumours and leaked source information tells us that the Cleveland Cavaliers and the Golden State Warriors are at least the front runners, if not the only teams, working on trying to complete a deal for the All-Star power forward. There might be a suitor or two who are working quietly behind the scenes in attempt to take the Association by surprise, but a deal like this often gets leaked for public consumption and dialogue prior to being consummated.
Taking what we know, or at least what we believe to be true, the respective deals that are on the table look a little something like this;
Cleveland is believed to willing to part with Andrew Wiggins and Anthony Bennett as well as a first-round and second-round draft pick.
Golden State is reportedly dangling David Lee and Harrison Barnes in hopes of convincing Minnesota that their deal is the best one out there.
Now there might be some role players and contracts involved from both the Cavaliers and the Warriors to make the numbers work, but as of now it is Wiggins and Bennett who headline Cleveland’s package while Barnes and Lee are leading the charge out of the Warriors camp.
On the surface of these two proposed deals it would appear to be a no-brainer as to which one would benefit Minnesota more at this point in their rebuilding process. There isn’t anyone out there who could make a reasonable argument against taking Wiggins, Bennett and the draft picks over Barnes and Lee; however, as with most high value transactions there are some intricacies that could flop the balance of power here.
The Timberwolves are rumoured to be pushing for Golden State to give up Klay Thompson as a part of the deal here. If this is true then Thompson would likely be taking the place of Barnes rather than just being added to the heap. If media reports are to be believed then Golden State is reluctant to give up on Thompson and that in itself could very well be a deal breaker.
Let’s play along for a minute and say that Minnesota convinces Golden State to package Thompson and Lee along with a lottery protected first round pick in exchange for Love and let’s hold onto the theory that Cleveland is willing to part with the protege that is Wiggins. Now faced with these two options, which team presents a better deal for the Timberwolves?
Starting with Golden State’s offer we immediately see that Thompson is headed towards restricted free-agency or potential open market free-agency come the 2015-16 offseason. We also know that Lee is under contract for the 2014-15 and 2015-16 season at a whopping $15 million-plus per year. Now it is also believed that Thompson will be seeking a max-deal on his next contract and while that kind of money may not come to him (see Eric Bledsoe) it is enough to put a bit of a scare into perspective teams.
A question that the Wolves brass must ask themselves is do they want David Lee at $15 million a season and are they prepared to let him walk for nothing at the end of his deal and are they inclined to pay Klay Thompson the kind of money he wants moving forward? I have to believe that the answer to both those questions is an emphatic no!
Trading Love away is going to be hard enough for Minnesota basketball fans to come to terms with. Trading him away and then seeing the only two assets you got in return then leave two years later without compensation might just touch off rioting in the streets.
On paper the proposed Golden State deal looks good, but after a season the contractual situation will become a nightmare to deal with. Factor in that the Timberwolves need to rebuild through acquiring young talent on inexpensive deals and whom the team has control over for three or four years at minimum and the Golden State deal loses luster pretty quickly.
Now looking at Cleveland’s proposed deal it does offer young talent and perhaps a real superstar talent in Wiggins; however, in taking Wiggins and Bennett the Wolves are going off pure potential not proven track records. Having said that, the Timberwolves are a lottery bound team again next season regardless of which deal they ultimately accept so why not take the younger, less expensive talent with whom one can lose games with at a fraction of the cost.
Potential on the other hand can be a wonderful thing. In the case of Wiggins it could excite a fan base and create some market interest from around the league. Even if Wiggins grows into a star player in the league down the road, he might never reach the production of a Kevin Love; but one thing is for sure he will create more intrigue than either Thompson or Lee combined.
If I’m Minnesota and I’m contemplating whether or not to trade Kevin Love and to whom, I would be quick to make the following determinations;
1- Kevin Love is leaving at the end of next season regardless of the money being offered so it behooves me to get as much value now for him as I can. If the season starts and Love were to injure himself then the potential loss of value for him mid-season could be huge.
2- Andrew Wiggins has the makings of a potential NBA stud. He has been scouted since he was thirteen, he has been followed by hoops aficionados and basketball junkies from pickup games through to the NCAA tournament and he has been in the basketball media spotlight for the past five years and through it all no one has found much fault with his game.
Given the information that is out there, Minnesota needs to call Golden State and say thank you for your interest but keep your contractual dilemma to yourself. They then need to call Dan Gilbert in Cleveland and ask him how soon he could get Wiggins on a plane to Minnesota because I would want to hold a press conference immediately.
There is no doubt that Cleveland proposal is far and away the better of the two and in all likelihood the best that will be received. Minnesota needs to jump at this offer and pull the trigger on the deal. The sooner the better for all involved as they could bring Wiggins and his crew to Minnesota, work on a marketing plan and start integrating the young man into the community and into the team.