Minnesota Timberwolves trade Jarrett Culver to the Cleveland Cavaliers
Sending Jarrett Culver to the Cavaliers in a deal for Larry Nance, Jr.
For the Wolves, sending Culver to Cleveland in a deal for Larry Nance, Jr. makes sense because of positional needs and a need to balance rosters.
Though the team recently signed Juancho Hernangomez to a new contract and traded for Ed Davis, the team lacks a solidified starter at the power forward position.
Nance has primarily been in a backup role to Kevin Love in Cleveland but has put up respectable numbers given his minutes, putting up a career-high 10.1 points and 7.3 rebounds in 26.3 minutes per game this past season. Nance has the build and physicality of a true power forward, which at this point is a real need for the Wolves.
For the Cavs, this trade is a way to fill out the roster by trading a bench player. Nance is never going to start ahead of Love, so it makes sense to use him to fill other voids in their team.
As a team looking to rebuild, the Cavs need to establish a defensive culture, and Culver and Jake Layman are two players on affordable contracts that were two of the Wolves’ best defenders last season.
The value of this trade for the Cavs ultimately comes down to A) how much the Cavs value Nance Jr. in the long term, and B) the Cavs’ perceived ability to trade Kevin Love.
If the team sees an avenue to trade Kevin Love, which has been nearly impossible over the last few years, it would make sense to keep Nance as their power forward of the future.