A typical week in the NBA is never complete without some drama. The Minnesota Timberwolves just let go of Gersson Rosas, their President of Basketball Operations. This didn’t sit well with star player Karl-Anthony Towns. The Timberwolves are in no position to upset their top players, let alone top star in Towns, but may have done just that. Towns is one of the NBA’s premier big men, and perhaps this is the final straw that will drive him to be traded.
Karl-Anthony Towns Trade Ideas
Oklahoma City Thunder End the Tank
The trade: The Timberwolves send Towns and Taurean Prince to the Oklahoma City Thunder for Derrick Favors, Darius Bazley, Theo Maledon, Jeremiah Robinson-Earl, and a future first and second-round pick.
The intentions for the Thunder are clear. Sam Presti is all in on the rebuild, but not often does the opportunity arise to acquire a star. Towns comes in and forms a great young duo with Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. They’ll instantly form one of the better duos in the league. In addition, the Thunder will also have defensive stopper Luguentz Dort and rookie Josh Giddey. This wouldn’t thrust them into the playoff hunt immediately, but it allows the Thunder to take the next step and be an offseason away from playoff contention.
Minnesota likely won’t trade Towns unless he wants to be traded. If that’s the case, the Thunder are one of the best places to look for assets. Favors comes in as a veteran big man to ease the burden of losing Towns. Bazley has a plethora of untapped potential and forms a young, athletic, and exciting duo with Anthony Edwards. Maledon is another solid young guard to add to the rotation, whereas Robinson-Earl is a rookie who showed flashes of strong potential in the Summer League. Future picks are always a bonus as well.
Charlotte Changes Course
The trade: The Timberwolves send Towns and Josh Okogie to the Charlotte Hornets for Gordon Hayward, P.J. Washington, Kai Jones, and two future first-round picks.
Charlotte is full of young talent lead by Rookie of the Year LaMelo Ball. The youngest of the Ball brothers looks special, so the Hornets would be wise to beef up now. Charlotte’s weak spot is also in the frontcourt, so Towns addresses these issues while also becoming the team’s top player. Add in Miles Bridges, Terry Rozier, James Bouknight, and others, and this team is special. Okogie is also a tough defensive-stopper.
Hayward joins Minnesota to make the salaries work but remains a great veteran and player. He helps the team now, and can perhaps serve as a mentor for the exciting Edwards. Washington is a do-it-all frontcourt player, who eases the loss of Towns. He’s also young and fits the timeline of the Timberwolves’ youth. Jones was one of the better big men in the 2021 NBA Draft, and his athleticism has unlimited potential. He can become an excellent rim-runner and shot-blocker in no time. The first-round picks are a great bonus as well, also considering that the Eastern Conference is quite deep and this trade doesn’t necessarily make Charlotte a surefire playoff team.
Boston Targets a Championship with Karl-Anthony Towns
The trade: The Timberwolves send Towns and Jake Layman to the Boston Celtics for Jaylen Brown, Aaron Nesmith, and Grant Williams.
Boston will always be a playoff team with Brown and Jayson Tatum. Injuries have affected them in the playoffs before, but perhaps it’s time to break up the Brown and Tatum duo. They’re both great, but also similar players to an extent. The solution here would be to swap Brown with another star in Towns. Boston addressed frontcourt issues by adding Al Horford and extending Robert Williams, but Horford is aging whereas Towns can play alongside Williams. This team changes their identity but keeps their top star in Tatum.
If Towns wants to leave, which of course hasn’t happened, acquiring Brown is possibly the best-case scenario. Brown is an extremely intelligent player, a superb athlete, and an excellent two-way player. Minnesota has a solid young core, and Brown comes in to feature as their top player and can form a strong partnership with Edwards. Nesmith and Williams are also young prospects who come in as instant role players.
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