Minnesota Timberwolves: How could Wolves acquire D’Angelo Russell?

Step Four: Trade Andrew Wiggins

While I am still a believer in Andrew Wiggins, the Wolves will ultimately need to unload him if they want to trade for D-Lo.

Wiggins is somehow just 24 years old and he could be a potential trade target for teams on draft night. Given the nature of his max deal, it would likely be a 3-team trade, but let’s examine a few potential 2-team trades.

Trade 1: Atlanta Hawks

Andrew Wiggins could still net a first round pick in a trade based solely on the athleticism and potential he has put on display in his first five seasons.

Miles Plumlee is an expiring contract and the Wolves would have back-to-back first-round picks in this month’s draft at No. 10 and No. 11. Here, the Wolves would gain $12 million in cap space, pushing them to a rough total of $37 million in space, providing more than enough room to afford Russell.

Trade 2: Orlando Magic

Here, the Wolves would acquire more draft capital at No. 16 and an expiring contract in Timofey Mozgov, who would likely not play for Minnesota. The Wolves would give up a first-rounder here, as the Magic have other sizable multi-year contracts on the roster and would need an incentive to take on more salary, although the bet here is they would do the deal because of the potential upside that still exists with Wiggins.

Dumping Wiggins would give the Wolves an additional $10.7 million to use in free agency, totaling roughly $35 million total.