The Minnesota Timberwolves took a big risk in 2020 when they traded former 1st overall pick Andrew Wiggins along with a first-round pick in the 2021 NBA Draft to the Golden State Warriors for D’Angelo Russell. D’Lo was coming off an All-Star season with the Brooklyn Nets but had struggled to have the same impact on a Warriors team missing Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson.
Wiggins has developed into a complete two-way player and was crucial to the Warriors’ 2022 championship run. The pick Minnesota sent the Warriors ended up becoming Jonathan Kuminga, making that trade a lopsided one in Golden State’s favor.
Russell has been solid, but his playoff struggles were too glaring to miss. With Minnesota looking to cement their position in the Western Conference playoffs, writer Matt Moore is reporting that they are actively looking around the market for a suitable partner in a possible D’Angelo Russell trade.
The Minnesota Timberwolves are ‘actively’ shopping D’Angelo Russell, per @HPbasketball pic.twitter.com/elbHn86vas
— NBACentral (@TheDunkCentral) June 29, 2022
Russell has struggled with fitness and consistency in his time with the Timberwolves. Considering he is one of Karl-Anthony Towns’ best friends, Minnesota has tried making it work. However, the emergence of Anthony Edwards means that the Timberwolves are paying $31 million for a third option. They can reinforce the team for a contract of that size.
Russell’s trade value won’t be very high and the market has already started shaping up around key available guards. Jalen Brunson seems to be the target of the summer and will reportedly accept a contract that averages $27 million a year from the Knicks. Many consider that a risky contract, so it doesn’t look like Russell’s contract will be accepted with open arms.
With his contract expiring at the end of the season, maybe the Wolves find a short-term trade partner. They are better off starting the season and hoping Russell can improve his value and then look at possibly moving him towards the deadline, or holding onto him for the rest of the season.
