Stunning Trae Young trade proves Timberwolves were right to ignore polarizing star

Well, the first major trade of the NBA trade season occurred, as Trae Young was shipped off to the Washington Wizards in exchange for CJ McCollum (who is on an expiring contract) and Corey Kispert. The Minnesota Timberwolves were linked to Young. However, as reported earlier on Wednesday by Jake Fischer, his enormous $45.9 million contract (and $48.9 million player option) made the Wolves uninterested in Young or any other star point guard, for that matter.

Now, after seeing such a minimal return for Young, you might be thinking: Why didn't the Wolves pursue him more seriously? Simply put, as a first-tax apron team, the Wolves had no contracts they would be willing to part ways with to match salaries. To pull off such a trade, the Wolves would have had to trade either Julius Randle and depth or Naz Reid and even more depth. Specifically, it would have likely had to be a three-for-one with Randle or a four-for-one with Reid.

Neither scenario would have been ideal for the Timberwolves, who already have limited depth. With Randle being a flat-out better player than Young, this deal would have been especially unwise.

The Timberwolves were smart not to pursue a Trae Young trade

Earlier on Wednesday, Fischer mentioned that outside of Washington, active suitors for Young are "difficult to pinpoint." This is largely due to concerns with matching salaries, but also fit concerns given Young's poor defense and ball-dominant style. After that, Shams Charania reported that Young prefers a trade to Washington (hats off to Trae's PR team) and, of course, a deal came into fruition hours later.

The Wizards' trade package for Young (and the lack of suitors) shows that his value around the league was limited. Nevertheless, as noted, if the Wolves traded for Young, they would be forced to overpay for him, making such a deal not worthwhile.

Listen, I don't mind the Wizards buying low on Young, and if the Wolves had a large expiring contract that wasn't a long-term piece to make a move, sure, they could have pursued Young. However, they didn't, and this always made a possible deal impractical.

I also don't mind the idea of overpaying for a player who would have been a perfect fit -- but Young had clear risks. How would he fit in defensively? Is his down season a fluke or the new norm? How would his playstyle fit next to Anthony Edwards? There was simply no reason to make a move if you're the Wolves.

With trade season officially kicking off, more moves could be on the way. If the Timberwolves make a trade for a point guard (which seems likely), it will be for a mid-tier-salaried player such as Collin Sexton, Dennis Schroder, or even Coby White. Cheaper targets such as Kris Dunn or Jose Alvarado could also be worth monitoring.

Regardless, Timberwolves fans should be happy they didn't shake up their proven core for a big name who has been expensive and a questionable fit.