4 Timberwolves players who have improved their trade value in 2023

Player III: SG Nickeil Alexander-Walker

Small but mighty describes the amount of time that Nickeil Alexander-Walker spent on the Minnesota Timberwolves roster. If you didn’t realize it, Nickeil Alexander-Walker was the ‘other guy,’ who was acquired at the NBA Trade Deadline in a three-team trade that involved the Los Angeles Lakers and the Utah Jazz.

In that trade, the Minnesota Timberwolves exchanged PG D’Angelo Russell (on the last year of his contract) for a pretty decent return in the form of:

1. PG Mike Conley Jr. (through the 2023-24 NBA season)
2. SG Nickell Alexander-Walker (through the 2022-23 NBA season)
3. 2024 2nd-round pick (lesser of Memphis or Washington picks)
4. 2025 2nd-round pick Utah
5. 2026 2nd-round pick Utah

And the reality is that many did not see a player like Nickeil Alexander-Walker as more than a salary weight in the trade, a player who was ultimately included simply to balance out the exchange of dollars and ensure that the trade would go through.

And yet, he competed hard in 23 games for the Minnesota Timberwolves. Hard enough, in fact, to earn four starts for the Timberwolves in Round 1 of the NBA Playoffs. Best of all, his level of play got tougher for the Timberwolves when the lights got brighter:

The Timberwolves should not, cannot, let Nickeil Alexander-Walker escape the team via the NBA Free Agency market. In the scavenger hunt for complementary players who can play defense, can contribute meaningful minutes, and have a robust perimeter shot, Alexander-Walker knocked it out of the ballpark.

The Timberwolves wanted to find a player just like NAW, and now that they have found him, they must find a way to extend him. His trade value has skyrocketed in the short amount of time he has played for the Timberwolves. Hopefully, the team can extend him for a few more NBA seasons.

Nickeil Alexander-Walker is a free agent in 2023.