Minnesota Timberwolves: Wolves stand pat as trade deadline passes

The Minnesota Timberwolves didn’t make any moves this NBA trade deadline. Was that the right move to make?

The NBA trade deadline passed and as has been the case in recent years, it did not disappoint.

While the Minnesota Timberwolves chose to stand pat, players like Marc Gasol, Kristaps Porzingis, Tobias Harris and Nikola Mirotic were moved, creating a new look for a lot of NBA teams around the league.

The Wolves, for their part, had quite a few players that were on expiring contracts that may have been appealing to other teams around the league, including Anthony Tolliver, Taj Gibson, Derrick Rose and Jeff Teague, who has a player option for next year. However, they didn’t find any takers.

Tolliver was perhaps the most likely candidate to be moved because of his contract and value as a stretch-four. While Rose has had a big season so far, he had the power to veto any trade, which was probably a big reason he didn’t ultimately get moved.

It’s rather odd that the Wolves were unable to even acquire a second-round pick for Tolliver, although if general manager Scott Layden is to be believed, standing pat was a signal that the organization still believes they have what it takes to make the playoffs.

Layden lays out that the reason there was no moves to be made was because it didn’t benefit the team long-term or position them to make the playoffs for the second-straight season. Whatever the case may be, the Wolves will have to make the playoffs at this point to feel good about the trade deadline outcome.

The Los Angeles Clippers, Los Angeles Lakers, Sacramento Kings, Dallas Mavericks and the Timberwolves will likely be battling it out for the eighth and final playoff spot. After Thursday’s loss in Orlando, the Wolves stand four full games back from No. 8.

One thing that was noticeable leading up to the deadline was the amount of good players that were had for little value. For instance, Otto Porter was traded for Jabari Parker and Bobby Portis, while Gasol’s trade was headlined by Jonas Valanciunas with C.J. Miles and Delon Wright.

It sure seems as though the Wolves could have acquired a player without giving up much of their assets.

In terms of potentially bigger splashes, David Aldridge of the Athletic suggested Minnesota trade for Bradley Beal by giving up just Josh Okogie, Jeff Teague and a top-two protected first round pick. As much as the first-round pick and Okogie would be nice to keep, a lineup with Karl-Anthony Towns and Beal would be fun to watch.

Regardless, the deadline came and passed and the Wolves came away empty-handed.