The Timberwolves’ Rudy Gobert trade is aging better by the day

3. Malik Beasley

In the fall, Malik Beasley will be joining his third team since leaving the Minnesota Timberwolves. After being dealt to the Jazz last July, he spent half the 2022-23 season in Salt Lake City before being sent to the Los Angeles Lakers in the D’Angelo Russell trade at the deadline.

Just ten days ago, the Lakers declined to pick up his option for next season, making him a free agent. From there, he signed a one-year minimum deal with the Milwaukee Bucks. It is clear that Beasley’s value has gone down significantly from where it was a year ago.

To add a little context, the Timberwolves signed Malik Beasley to a four-year, $60 million contract ahead of the 2020-21 season. After being a player that was worth paying an average of $15 million a year for, Beasley will now be making just $2.7 million total in his one-year deal with the Bucks.

So what happened? It is not as if Beasley’s production fell off a cliff, nor has he has sustained any major injuries in the last three years since signing his $60 million contract. The reason for his sharp decline in value largely comes from his archetype as a player. Beasley is a spot-up three-point shooter that can drill from outside the arc.

But his game is not so expansive beyond that. Three-point “specialists” like him have become less desirable in recent years, something that Timberwolves President Tim Connelly likely factored in when deciding to trade Beasley. As we see the demand for players like him dipping, it is clear that Minnesota made the right choice moving on from him.