Shooters Shoot: The Nets Apparently Asked The Timberwolves For Both Karl-Anthony Towns And Anthony Edwards In Exchange For KD
Jordan Johnson. Getty Images.
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I'm sorry…what!?!?!? Hold on, I need a minute to compose myself after reading that tweet. Entertain yourselves for a second and I'll see you back here shortly.
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OK, now that I've stopped laughing, let's dive into this. On one hand, there's no shame in asking for the moon in these types of situations. We see GMs do it all the time. You can't get what you don't ask for, even if what you are asking for is patently insane. Let's just think about this from the Wolves perspective. What I'm curious about is if this came before or after the Rudy Gobert trade. That matters of course because the Wolves gave up a billion picks in order to pull that off. If it was after the Gobert trade, why would the Nets think the Wolves would give up 4 more picks through like 2035 or some shit? All for a 34 year old? Not only that, but then you factor in the players that the Nets are asking for, and on what planet does that make any sense? Even if it was before the Gobert trade and the Wolves still had all those initial picks, that doesn't really change anything.
Imagine what their roster looks like with this trade if it were to go through. What are they left with? KD and D'Angelo Russell (and Gobert if this was after that trade)? You're asking for the two franchise building blocks for an aging Kevin Durant, one of which is 26 years old and the other is 20. That's so outrageous I almost have to respect the attempt by Sean Marks. I'm supposed to believe KD would be down to be on that team and wouldn't immediately demand another trade? Yeah OK, sure.
There's a chance Sean Marks was under the impression that he was talking to the David Kahn Era Wolves front office, so if that's the case I get it. Unfortunately, Tim Connelly is very smart (despite what you might think of the Gobert trade). As a Wolves fan, this would give me confidence. It's not like players of KD's caliber are making their way to MIN all that often, but resisting the temptation is the first step in the right direction. You made legit progress last season with one of the more exciting runs the team has had in years. You just locked in KAT to a new massive extension. Anthony Edwards looks like he's on his way to being a perennial All NBA caliber player. Everyone is young as shit and their window hasn't even really started yet. This is the time to stay the course, not gut all your best players/picks for Kevin Durant.
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This type of report just goes to show what a pickle the Nets kind of find themselves in at the moment. Teams are not really interested in either A) gutting their team B) getting into a bidding war for KD
Which means at some point, the Nets either have to keep KD or ultimately lower their price a smidge. Word on the street is they want the biggest return in NBA history….for a 34 year old. What I find interesting about this whole thing is my guess is they are trying to use the fact that KD is signed long term as a way to ask for more. But considering he just demanded a trade with 4 years left, what good is that? Clearly it doesn't mean shit because if it did, the Nets wouldn't be going through this right now. So if I'm an opposing team, especially someone like MIN, why should that long term deal matter at all? If KD can demand a trade with 4 years left in BKN, why couldn't he do it with 3 years left on his new team? I'm not sure that leverage play from the Nets is doing what they think it should be doing.
Now remember, we all said that Daryl Morey was asking for too much in regards to Ben Simmons, and ultimately that ended in James Harden. Sure they still didn't get out of the 2nd round and Harden disappeared per usual, but from a talent perspective not too many people said Simmons' value was James Harden. You never know.
But one thing I do know is the Nets were out of their minds if they thought they were going to get that package from the Wolves. I don't care how good KD is, at this stage of his career there's just no way anyone would do that.