NBA Trade Deadline portfolio: Minnesota Timberwolves

Heading into the 2016-17 NBA trade deadline on Thursday, Feb. 23, the Minnesota Timberwolves look to be sellers more than anything. Minnesota is poised to miss out on the Western Conference Playoffs for the 13th straight season, the longest active playoff drought in the NBA. The Timberwolves were expected to take a leap forward under new defensive-minded head coach Tom Thibodeau. Instead of being a team on the rise pushing as many as 50 wins this season, Minnesota will be lucky if it achieves 35.

Thibodeau’s team is still tremendously young with most of its star players in their early 20s. The offense of this young bunch is well on its way, but it appears it will take time for the Timberwolves to fully buy-in and execute to Thibodeau’s aggressive defensive scheme.

From a bird’s eye view, it seems that the Timberwolves are on the back-half of their lengthy rebuild. They have identified two, possibly three, future All-Stars on their roster: center Karl-Anthony Towns, small forward Andrew Wiggins, and shooting guard Zach LaVine. Towns projects as a player with top-10, MVP-level potential. He is only in his second year in the league and will be just fine in time with the Timberwolves.

Wiggins projects to be the primary running mate of Towns in Minnesota. He could be a scoring champion in the league as a finite ceiling. Wiggins can’t be the best player on this team, but if he is No. 2 to Towns, Minnesota has a shot at winning championships in the coming decade. LaVine is the only one of the trio that could be moved in a trade deadline deal. He is intriguing due to his ball-handling ability, his elite play above the rim, and all-around athleticism. The problem is that LaVine’s is a red herring since he tore the ACL in his left knee on Feb. 3.

Overall, Minnesota has a dynamic young corps that bodes well for a bright future with Towns, Wiggins, and maybe LaVine. The Timberwolves have tabbed the right head coach for the job in Thibodeau. Defensive installation and the maturation of budding star players still needs to be realized in the Twin Cities before Minnesota can even think about contending.

So if they already have much of their young corps in place, why do the Timberwolves need to be active on the trade market? Frankly, the perception of staying pat at the deadline when the world knows that Minnesota isn’t sniffing the playoffs wouldn’t play very well. Particularly when preseason expectations were so, albeit unrealistic.

Keep in mind that it has been 12 years since Kevin Garnett led the Timberwolves to the 2004 Western Conference Finals. Minnesotans want to see the Timberwolves organization at least try to make a few incremental adjustments to hopefully better position the club for the playoffs next season. Overall, Minnesota needs three things heading into the trade deadline: better wing defense, more dynamism off the bench, and a bruising veteran in the frontcourt to help instill the defensive teachings of Thibodeau.

For the sake of keeping it simple, here are three players that would look great in a Timberwolves uniform if they came over in a trade deadline deal: Chicago Bulls power forward Taj Gibson, Boston Celtics point guard Marcus Smart, and Philadelphia 76ers power forward Nerlens Noel.

Gibson played for Thibodeau in Chicago as a major rotational piece in his usually dominant Bulls defenses. Minnesota could start Gibson at power forward right away, gradually phasing him into the first big man off the bench in his rotation. In a way, Gibson would be the perfect on-court defensive teacher for the Timberwolves, replacing the veteran role Garnett had the previous two years.

Smart could be a much-needed ball handler for this team. He has become a great defensive player for the Celtics, but continues to struggle as a shooter. Smart could get more playing time in Minnesota than he would in Boston. He seems like a player that Thibodeau would covet in his defensive strategy.

Noel may want to start for an NBA team, but he could become what Gibson was for Thibodeau’s Bulls teams as the first big off the bench in his rotation. He feels like a player that could play off Towns quite well. Being fellow Kentucky Wildcats doesn’t hurt either.

As for players that might be on the way out for the Timberwolves, the big ones are point guard Ricky Rubio, small forward Shabazz Muhammad, and center Nikola Pekovic. Rubio is still under contract through the next two seasons, after signing his rookie extension in 2014. He is easily the most intriguing trade asset the Timberwolves could part ways with this February. Rubio is an elite passer and ball handler, an above-average defensive player, but not much of a shooter.

It’s a point guard driven league and most teams have a good one. However, there are a few middling teams that could use an upgrade at the position. The Milwaukee Bucks, the Orlando Magic, and the Sacramento Kings immediately come to mind.

Muhammad hits restricted free agency this summer. Minnesota could look to bring him back, but may want a different backup at the three to Wiggins. Muhammad may view himself as a certain starter in the league. The wing out of UCLA could be an interesting trade piece before he hits restricted free agency.

Pekovic hasn’t played at all this season because of an Achilles’ injury and still has one more year on his weighty contract. He has almost no value as an on-court presence but might be useful as salary matching for a team looking to unload a longer deal.

Next: The 20 best NBA players who could be available at the trade deadline

The trade deadline is usually not as crazy as we expect it to be. However, Minnesota is more likely to be one of the teams active before the Feb. 23 deadline. Expect them to sell more than buy but they could locate the right rotational piece for the right price.