There are plenty of legitimate reasons to question the likelihood that the Minnesota Timberwolves trade Julius Randle before the deadline on February 6. Firstly, it does not seem that is the direction the organization is determined to take. Chris Finch has repeatedly made his opinion of Randle clear, and it feels they are poised to continue trying to make things work with him more than they are trying to move him.
Secondly, there is the issue of practicality. How many of these fake Julius Randle trades that we see on a daily basis actually make Minnesota a better team? Perhaps the goal in some people's minds is simply to ship Randle out regardless, but the usefulness of such a move comes into question as well. Even so, with Tim Connelly's resourcefulness, we should still not be surprised if the unexpected does happen and Randle ends up with a new team in two weeks.
One of the newest fake trades involving Randle was constructed by prominent NBA podcaster Bill Simmons. On the latest episode of The Bill Simmons Podcast, Kevin O'Connor sits down with Bill and they construct a three-team deal that would land the Timberwolves Khris Middleton, with two other players moving in the deal as well.
Timberwolves get Khris Middleton in this proposal
Along with Middleton moving to Minnesota, the Milwaukee Bucks would get Tobias Harris from the Pistons, while Detroit would land Julius Randle. While a relatively simple trade concept with no picks involved, this is certainly still a bold play, and I don't think it's one that really moves the needle for the Timberwolves.
Let's think about this - you effectively swap out Randle for Middleton. What does this do exactly? You're trading for a player three years older than Julius who, once again, is brand new to Minnesota's system and would need time to acclimate. Once he does, are you confident he brings more to the table than Randle? I'm certainly not.
Middleton is already seeing a decline in his overall production over the last couple of seasons while dealing with some injury troubles. Even if he was performing at his peak, he still does not have the physical tools Randle does. Julius is going to be far more effective against bigger players in the post than Khris due to being a couple of inches taller and more than 20 pounds heavier.
Overall, this feels like a deal Connelly would immediately hang up the phone on. The real big winner in this proposal is the Pistons, and there's little reason to believe the Timberwolves would ever consider doing something like this.