Camden wrote:
I can't fully agree with that, Lip. I think multiple top-four finishes -- conference finals appearances -- shows that the move was worth making. And going from the play-in tournament to an NBA Finals appearance would pretty clearly make the trade a success. If they make it a second time, then that's even better. I think damn near everything has to go right just to get there and there will likely be some more roster tweaking until then, and that will be Tim Connelly's doing. The first part of that isn't even Timberwolves-specific. It's hard to make the Finals let alone win the damn thing.
You're right that Gersson Rosas deserves some level of credit for Minnesota's future success, but this roster has quickly become Connelly's already and he's only been on the job for six weeks. Trading for a player as significant as Rudy Gobert changes everything. And while we should mention that he overpaid for Gobert, the reality is that he hit his mark and acquired one of the elite players in the game. If increased success follows that move specifically, then Connelly absolutely deserves the bulk of the credit. That trade will have been a massive catalyst to this organization.
I think this is about where I'm at as well as not finishing top 4 in the West as a failure.