Derrick Williams Trade

[Lipoli390]

Latest on the Williams trade is that it's Derrick straight up if Luc's knee checks out. Yes, we are trading the 2nd pick in the 2011 draft for a defensive specialist with a bad knee. But this is the Timberwolves organization, so what else could we expect.

[Lipoli390]

Honestly, if Luc's knee is 100% then I see this as a decent deal for the Wolves given Derrick's limited value. I read a report that Flip refused to trade Williams this past summer. I hope that report isn't true because after a pretty strong finish last season I suspect that Derrick's value was higher this past summer than it is now after being so publicly in Adelman's doghouse.

Luc is listed as a PF, but I've always looked at him as more of a SF. I'm not sure where he'll fit in our rotation. Will it be as PF with our second unit? If so, what happens to Dante? Will it be at SF with our second unit? If so, can he fit with Dante and who will be able to put points on the board? In another thread I identified adding a rotation defender to the roster as one of three key things this team needs to do. Adding Luc may satisfy that need, but he brings no scoring and it's hard to see exactly where he fits in the rotation.

The Wolves are 9th in the Conference right now behind Denver. I believe we are tied with Memphis in that 9th slot. Even the Lakers, without Kobe and Nash, are barely behind us at 7-7. Yes, the schedule has been tough, but we lost winnable games at Cleveland and Washington while losing most of our close games overall. The horizon looks really cloudy right now and I don't see the Derrick-Luc deal doing much to clear those clouds away.

Having acquired Luc, my gut is telling me that Dante and Shved will be dealt soon. Dante is perhaps the only player the Wolves would trade who also has some market value. Shved is a guy some team might be willing to take a flyer on. The two packaged together with a 2nd round pick might land Courtney Lee or someone similar. We'll see, but I think the Luc acquisition makes Dante somewhat expendable for the right return.

I'd still like to get Evan Turner, but I just don't see how we could make that happen.

[Monster]

Kings fans seem sad to see him go. Lip Williams has basically perfectly healthy and what did that get us? I keep crossing my fingers that the trade goes through. Rather have a guy that can play that may have a balky knee than a healthy guy that basically is worthless many nights

[Monster]

Luc will be playing SF Lip he is a wing defender which was a massive need and I would be shocked to see Daunte go anywhere like we would actually get a better player in that deal anyway. Daunte is a FA though but the way he has played as a wolf I just don't see him being dealt.

[Lipoli390]

Good points, Monster. Makes sense.

[AbeVigodaLive]

I get it.

The Wolves bench is the worst in the L and can't score. So instead of trying to find guys who can score, Minnesota is going to try to stop the other team from scoring.



[Note: I can't remember another time in NBA history when 1-on-1 defense was less important than it is now. There are ways to hide almost any defender with the right scheme.]

[AbeVigodaLive]

I don't care for the trade. I don't think Luc Mbah a Moute is a difference maker. Yes... he can play defense. But, he's a niche player. He provides next to nothing offensively (relatively speaking).

I guess Flip is convinced that Love and Martin should be taking 20+ shots per night.

With Mbah a Moute and Rubio... they're going to need to.

[Macwolf527 [enjin:7980173]]

I finally made it over from TwolvesCentral.

If healthy, I'm actually seeing Luc as the eventual starter at SF because he provides better defense and rebounding at that spot. Corey has proven in Denver that he can deliver 12+ points off the bench. He's the ideal energy guy off the bench with JJ and Chase who can also provide some defense on the second unit. Once Turiaf is healthy also, that 2nd unit will be more than serviceable.

I like Luc the most because he provides two much needed assets, defense and rebounding from the SF spot. Teams are starting to catch on to Corey leaking out and really crashing the offensive boards from the wings. The Pacers sent both Stephenson and George to the glass hard last nights and they got their hands on a lot of 2nd chance rebounds as Corey was standing at half court. The SF has to crash the glass, especially against team with big SF' s which is a lot in the West.

[BizarroJerry [enjin:6592520]]

With the acquisitions of Martin, Brewer, and the eventual return of Bud (maybe?), Derrick wasn''t going to be seeing more than his 5 ppg average. I think Luc can equal that and give us better D and rebounding than Derrick. Does this open the door for Muhammad? We need to find more offense from the bench even if Bud makes it back.

[AbeVigodaLive]

With the acquisitions of Martin, Brewer, and the eventual return of Bud (maybe?), Derrick wasn''t going to be seeing more than his 5 ppg average. I think Luc can equal that and give us better D and rebounding than Derrick. Does this open the door for Muhammad? We need to find more offense from the bench even if Bud makes it back.

Sure. But couldn't the Wolves have used that $6M (Williams extension) more effectively this offseason?