Minnesota Timberwolves: Wolves players most likely to be traded

Gersson Rosas and the Minnesota Timberwolves front office are always on the lookout to make a big splash.

Rosas hasn’t been on the job for two years, and he’s already completed eight trades involving a total of 30 players who have appeared in an NBA game, not counting draft picks or rights to players who have not taken the court.

Sure, there’s a bit of shuffling of deck chairs going on here, but he’s also brought in a former All-Star on a max contract and continues to be on the hunt for the next big move.

Minnesota Timberwolves: Players who are most likely to be traded

There is, of course, plenty of irony in Rosas trying to trade for another star. His best moves to this point have clearly been on the fringes, unearthing talent that other teams may have overlooked: undrafted free agents Naz Reid and Jordan McLaughlin, drafting Jaylen Nowell in the second round and trading for former second-rounder Jarred Vanderbilt.

That quartet has yet to establish themselves as true, rotation-caliber talent on an NBA playoff team, but all appear to at least be strong value plays, even if the needle-moving is minimal when it’s all said and done.

But Rosas knows he’s highly unlikely to find a third All-Star on the proverbial scrap heap. No, that’s what the trade market is for, and now that we’re wading into the unofficial “trade season”, we’re going to begin to hear rumors left and right regarding plenty of big names.

Let’s group the Wolves roster in a few categories, from those who simply won’t be traded to those who are candidates to be moved prior to the March 25 trade deadline for a variety of reasons.

Minnesota Timberwolves players who will not be traded

You can book it. There are at least four Wolves players who are not about to be sent packing.

Karl-Anthony Towns

Towns will not be traded this year. There are no two ways about it. In 16 months, following a 2021-22 season in which the Wolves again don’t make the playoffs? Maybe. But not until then, at the absolute earliest.

Malik Beasley

Beasley just re-upped for $60 million over four years. He’s played up to the value of his contract thus far, and if he continues to improve defensively and a desire to be part of the turnaround in Minnesota, it wouldn’t make any sense to trade him.

D’Angelo Russell

Russell was acquired to be the 1B to Towns’ 1A. That hasn’t exactly happened, as the duo has appeared in only five games together in the past calendar year. But not only do the Wolves not exactly know what they have in the Towns-Russell pairing, Russell also hasn’t exactly performed up to the standards of his max contract, either, and it would be a challenge to conjure up requisite value in a trade involving D’Lo at this point. It’s highly unlikely he’s moved anytime soon.

Anthony Edwards

Edwards was just drafted No. 1 overall. The Wolves chose to take Edwards instead of trading the selection, which is, at least on some level, proof of their desire to have him on the roster. While his first one-third of an NBA season has been disappointing at times, the flashes have been encouraging. It would be a genuine surprise to see Edwards traded prior to the deadline.