The Minnesota Timberwolves trading a future first-round pick and a pick swap to draft Rob Dillingham was an immense risk. Unfortunately, it backfired as badly as imaginable, with Dillingham proving to be incredibly raw. He struggled in his limited minutes and never earned Chris Finch's trust.
Tim Connelly made a fantastic pivot at the trade deadline by shipping Dillingham, Leonard Miller, and four first-round picks for Ayo Dosunmu. Thankfully, Ayo proved to be an ideal fit, and assuming the Wolves re-sign him this summer, he will be a key part of their future.
Essentially trading a future first-round pick and a pick swap for Dosunmu isn't bad in a vacuum, but there's no denying that the Wolves will miss those picks as they pursue a trade for a star this summer.
As it stands, the Wolves only have the No. 28 pick, a pick swap in 2028, and their 2033 pick to trade. The No. 28 pick and a pick swap in 2028 hold minimal value. Since the picks used to trade for Dillingham were slightly further out (2030 and 2031), it's fair to expect that these picks would have had more value.
Without a doubt, not having these extra two picks will hurt the Wolves in their pursuit of a star.
Trading for Ayo was an amazing pivot, but the Timberwolves will miss the picks they gave up for Dillingham
I want to be clear, Ayo is an awesome player. From the get-go, he proved to be a seamless fit with the Wolves, providing rim pressure, connective playmaking, spot-up shooting, and disruptive defense. Re-signing Dosunmu is an essential move for the Wolves this offseason, whether they trade for a star or not.
However, make no mistake, the Timberwolves are laser-focused on landing a co-star alongside Anthony Edwards this offseason. Whether it's Giannis Antetokounmpo, Kawhi Leonard, Kyrie Irving, or anything else you could think of, the Wolves' potential trade packages lack draft capital.
Maybe Tim Connelly will work his magic, and this won't matter, but Minnesota's lack of draft capital undeniably makes things harder. It's fair to expect the Wolves to make some level of a star swing this summer. Regardless, if they miss out on their top-tier targets, fans will understandably point to a lack of draft capital.
In the end, not having these two picks might make the difference between getting a star and not.
Now, some fans might argue that trading Rudy Gobert was the original sin; after all, the Wolves are still missing two first-round picks because of the Gobert trade. Let's be clear, though, the Wolves wouldn't have made two conference finals (or won a playoff series this year) without Gobert.
At some point, trading first-round picks is an inevitability for contending teams. Regardless, trading the extra draft capital for Dillingham (even if they were eventually able to trade him for Ayo) certainly hinders their flexibility, this offseason and beyond
Ultimately, while Ayo is a clear long-term piece and the Wolves' best possible pivot after their Dillingham blunder, possibly missing out on a game-changing star alongside Edwards would sting.
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