The Wolves got obliterated in a win-or-go-home game for the third consecutive season, but now more than ever, change is desperately needed. Julius Randle and Rudy Gobert combined for three points in this game, and now it wouldn't surprise me if both, or at the very least one of them, is moved this offseason.
The goal needs to be to acquire a star that can take the scoring pressure off of Anthony Edwards, but also one that can fit alongside Edwards.
A lot of people are going to gravitate towards Giannis Antetokounmpo, as they should, but his price tag will likely be too high for the Wolves to match (I could be wrong), and he is also not a shooting threat. Instead, they should pivot to Kyrie Irving, one of the most dynamic guards of all time, and he'll be much more attainable than Antetokounmpo.
Kyrie Irving should be available -- and the Wolves need to jump on it
The Dallas Mavericks entered a rebuild last season when they traded Anthony Davis in what was essentially a salary dump. They'll look to build around Cooper Flagg, their lottery pick this year, and other guys like Dereck Lively and Max Christie.
They can certainly hold onto Kyrie in an attempt to be competitive, but acquiring younger assets for him and shifting the core to strictly around Flagg makes more sense.
Randle is from Texas; maybe it means nothing, but maybe playing at home would light a fire under him. Irving's value is somewhat of a mystery; on one hand, he's on the other side of 30 coming off an ACL injury.
On the other hand, when he's healthy, he's a walking 25 points per game, and someone who can be elite with and without the basketball.
Kyrie Irving is a dream fit next to Anthony Edwards
If you were to build a second star in a lab to pair with Edwards, you would give it great ball handling, great shotmaking, playmaking chops, and the ability to hold its own on defense. Well, Kyrie Irving is probably the greatest ball handler of all time. He's near the 50-40-90 club every season, and he averages over five assists per game consistently.
Kyrie and Ant would be a completely electric backcourt, and if they're surrounded by defenders and shooters, I don't think you can put a cap on the ceiling for the team.
I'm not completely sure if the Mavericks would want Randle or if there would be three teams in the trade. Regardless if I'm Tim Connelly, I am banging the doors down on Masai Ujiri's office, and doing everything in my power to bring Kyrie to the Twin Cities.
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