Many (non-LeBron James) headlines surrounding the Minnesota Timberwolves right now involve LaMelo Ball. That’s understandable because the Timberwolves have wanted a star lead guard to pair with Anthony Edwards for quite some time, and they now have that.Â
Josh Green was also a part of the trade that helped the Timberwolves net Ball. It has been speculated, though, that Green's salary could be used to bring in a power forward, since he is one of their few remaining trade chips and the Wolves sorely need another forward.
Could his salary be used to bring in Jarred Vanderbilt, a former member of the Timberwolves and a player not necessarily in his current team’s plans?
 Vanderbilt is a familiar face for Timberwolves fans
Yes, the Timberwolves finally brought in a power forward by signing Trey Lyles to a one-year deal. After a year playing overseas, the team still could use more at the position. Now, transactions by the team may have to wait until they hear which team LeBron has chosen to play for, but using Green to bring back Vanderbilt could work as a one-for-one trade without other pieces needing to be involved if both teams were interested in the swap.
Vanderbilt has spent the last three full seasons with the Los Angeles Lakers. Prior to that, he was on the Wolves in 2020-21 and 2021-22 (also played two outings for them in 2019-20). Now 27 years old, the 6-foot-8 power forward averaged 4.4 points and 4.5 rebounds in 17.4 minutes per game for the Lakers in 2025-26.
The eight-year veteran was essentially taken out of LA’s rotation in the playoffs, only playing nine total minutes against the Oklahoma City Thunder in the Western Conference semifinals. Regardless, he is a highly impactful defender.
Adding Walker Kessler and Sandro Mamukelashvili this offseason seems to have pushed Vanderbilt further down the frontcourt depth chart. Someone like Green might be able to find a role on the Lakers, particularly if rookie Cameron Carr is deemed not to be ready for rotational minutes to start the year.
Chris Finch is already familiar with Vanderbilt, and he was the starting power forward for Minnesota in their 2022 opening-round matchup against the Memphis Grizzlies. A potential negative to the deal is that Green has just one year remaining on his contract, while Vanderbilt has a $13.26 million player option for 2027-28, which almost certainly will be picked up barring a career-best season in 2026-27.
Still, Vanderbilt fits a position of need much more than Green does. Of course, a trade like this won’t happen until LeBron makes his decision, but it's something for the Timberwolves to keep in the back of their minds.
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