The Minnesota Timberwolves may be struggling to find enough bigs to handle the minutes in the absence of power forward/center Karl-Anthony Towns and now the more recently injured center Rudy Gobert, but the challenge has also placed a number of key young centers in full display of other NBA teams who are shopping for help before February 9, 2023, the date of the rapidly approaching NBA Trade Deadline.
That has become the perfect stage to lure interest from other NBA teams in the Timberwolves’ young center Naz Reid, per Hoops Hype Michael Scotto. In Scotto’s latest NBA Rumors update, he names both the LA Clippers and the Denver Nuggets as two teams who are hot on the trail for Reid right now.
New Timberwolves Rumors
And it makes sense. This is the last year of the contract for center Naz Reid, and while there was publicly reported interest in extending him, Reid wants to and deserves to be an NBA starter. Extension talks have shown little progress, and Reid’s expanded playing time this season has only driven the price of re-signing him to a new contract up.
Meanwhile, the Minnesota Timberwolves have to be pleased with the pleasantly performing young center Luka Garza, who very much looks like an NBA-ready center right now. With Garza pushing hard for more minutes, and Reid outgrowing his role on the Timberwolves roster, and at a point of needing a bigger role, it makes sense that he is one of the most tradeable players on the Timberwolves roster right now.
Even as the Minnesota Timberwolves have been gauging interest among NBA teams for PG D’Angelo Russell, their belief is that Naz Reid is the most tradeable player on the Timberwolves’ roster. Not only is he similarly in the last year of his contract, but he has a more versatile role for NBA teams, filling either a starting or backup role this season, and essentially auditioning for that starting role with his new team.