Minnesota Timberwolves: 3 Potential Andrew Wiggins trades
With the NBA offseason now in full swing, here are 3 trades the Minnesota Timberwolves could consider if they chose to move on from Andrew Wiggins.
Just like that, another action-packed NBA season has concluded, and another offseason for the Minnesota Timberwolves is upon us.
While it may be referred to as the “offseason”, it is arguably one of the busiest and most exciting times of the year for NBA fans. General managers and front offices of all 30 NBA
teams are constantly looking for ways to upgrade their respective rosters, whether that is through the NBA Draft, recruiting eligible players in free agency, or making trades with other teams to bring in new players.
After a disappointing regular season full of trade drama, coaching turmoil and missing the playoffs, the Minnesota Timberwolves are one such team that finds themselves looking to upgrade and improve their roster.
As the newly hired Gersson Rosas has alluded to since taking over as President of Basketball Operations this past May, Minnesota is not known to be a popular free agency destination. The Timberwolves’ best options for improvement come from draft picks and trades.
The Minnesota Timberwolves currently hold the No. 11 and No. 43 overall picks in this upcoming 2019 NBA Draft. Outside of the top three picks, this year’s draft is considered by many to be relatively shallow, with many potential NBA role players and few players with actual star potential.
As seen with years past, this type of speculation can be proven to be inaccurate and premature. However, for a team like the Timberwolves who are looking to improve and maximize the talent around a star player like Karl-Anthony Towns while he is still under contract, the best option this offseason may be to improve their roster through trades.
Andrew Wiggins is one such player who the Timberwolves could look to trade away to improve their roster. The former first overall pick in the 2014 NBA draft has been a large disappointment, not living up to the potential he was originally believed to possess.
Wiggins had an incredibly disappointing 2018-2019 season. He shot a career-low 41.2 percent from the floor and a 46.1 percent field goal efficiency percentage which is the second worst since his rookie season. He also had a career-low true shooting percentage of 49.3 percent. Along with all of his offensive struggles, none of those stats even take into consideration his poor performance on the defensive end.
Wiggins signed a five-year extension last season, worth roughly $147.7 million over five years. This next season alone, he will earn a base salary of $27.5 million per Spotrac.com.
Taking his significant salary into consideration, combined with his poor overall production, it is easy to see why Wiggins would be a prime trade candidate for the Timberwolves. Not only that, but ESPN’s Zach Lowe reported back in February that a couple of teams, “kicked the tires” on a potential trade for Andrew Wiggins.
If the Timberwolves do decide to attempt trading Wiggins this offseason, the following are three intriguing trades Minnesota could explore for Andrew Wiggins.