CoolBreeze44 wrote:Monster, if he could easily be moved in a trade he would be gone already. When you are talking aging vets like Conley and Lowry as trade possibilities, it's clear he doesn't have much value. You sign him to a 3 or 4 year deal at above market value, I think he would be nearly impossible to trade.
Minnesota is only going to trade D'Angelo Russell if the value in return exceeds the value he provides on the court. His play over the past 2-3 months has been much better than what they've likely been offered -- evident by them declining whatever Miami had been offering in a Kyle Lowry deal. I would also guess that Los Angeles has offered some combination of Luke Kennard, Terance Mann, Marcus Morris, John Wall, and Reggie Jackson. None of that is better than Russell alone.
That doesn't mean that Russell can't be moved or isn't easily movable, but rather the Timberwolves are aware of his value for them and have no reason to trade him unless they receive appropriate value in return -- value that makes it a good deal for them.
The way you worded it makes it sound like the Timberwolves have to trade him but they can't find someone to take him. That's obviously not the case.
Talk about trading DLO by the deadline remains rampant. We're seeing more chatter about trading KAT, which we can't do until after the season. Then there's the elephant in the room - Rudy Gobert. The Wolves bet the farm on him and owe him max money over the next three years as he advances into his 30s. The trade that brought him here hasn't helped the team win. This team is barely over .500 and slightly under .500 in games he's played - both with and without KAT. Individually, he hasn't been the same player defensively he was in Utah. His offensive limitations are stark and his clumsiness with the ball a bit stunning. The deal hasn't worked - at least not up to this point with 26 games remaining.
I think we should stick with the group we have, including Gobert, until the end of the season and see if this team can pull off a finish like last season, in which case we'd finish with about the same record. However, if the Wolves want to make a major deal before the deadline, they should move Gobert. I suggest a deal with the Nets. Gobert, Nowell and Forbes to the Nets in exchange for Claxton, O'Neal, Joe Harris, the Dallas first-round pick they received in the Irving deal and the Nets' 2026 2nd-round pick.
Unfortunately, Lip, I believe Nic Claxton is a much better player than Rudy Gobert this season while being just 23-years old, and therefore having significantly more value than Gobert, especially on his supermax deal. I would think Claxton is close to untouchable for Brooklyn no matter how they reshape their roster after the Kyrie Irving trade and eventual Kevin Durant departure.
Like you, I want to let it ride with the current roster for the rest of this season and then reevaluate, but I'm also still keeping my eye on the Nets in the off-season. I still think a very nice buy-low target is Ben Simmons if the twin towers experiment falls flat.
Camden wrote:Unfortunately, Lip, I believe Nic Claxton is a much better player than Rudy Gobert this season while being just 23-years old, and therefore having significantly more value than Gobert, especially on his supermax deal. I would think Claxton is close to untouchable for Brooklyn no matter how they reshape their roster after the Kyrie Irving trade and eventual Kevin Durant departure.
Like you, I want to let it ride with the current roster for the rest of this season and then reevaluate, but I'm also still keeping my eye on the Nets in the off-season. I still think a very nice buy-low target is Ben Simmons if the twin towers experiment falls flat.
I actually agree with you that the Nets would turn that deal down if offered because Claxton alone has a higher value than Rudy Gobert. I think you're right about Ben Simmons being a potential buy-low target either now or after the season. But before dealing for Simmons, even at a buy-low price, the Wolves would have to engage in some very serious due diligence regarding Ben's physical and mental condition.
CoolBreeze44 wrote:Monster, if he could easily be moved in a trade he would be gone already. When you are talking aging vets like Conley and Lowry as trade possibilities, it's clear he doesn't have much value. You sign him to a 3 or 4 year deal at above market value, I think he would be nearly impossible to trade.
Cool what would you say is Russell's market value?
CoolBreeze44 wrote:Monster, if he could easily be moved in a trade he would be gone already. When you are talking aging vets like Conley and Lowry as trade possibilities, it's clear he doesn't have much value. You sign him to a 3 or 4 year deal at above market value, I think he would be nearly impossible to trade.
Cool what would you say is Russell's market value?
It's enhanced because he is an expiring contract. But in terms of what he can fetch, I'm guessing Lowry/Conley and maybe a 2nd.
lipoli390 wrote:Talk about trading DLO by the deadline remains rampant. We're seeing more chatter about trading KAT, which we can't do until after the season. Then there's the elephant in the room - Rudy Gobert. The Wolves bet the farm on him and owe him max money over the next three years as he advances into his 30s. The trade that brought him here hasn't helped the team win. This team is barely over .500 and slightly under .500 in games he's played - both with and without KAT. Individually, he hasn't been the same player defensively he was in Utah. His offensive limitations are stark and his clumsiness with the ball a bit stunning. The deal hasn't worked - at least not up to this point with 26 games remaining.
I think we should stick with the group we have, including Gobert, until the end of the season and see if this team can pull off a finish like last season, in which case we'd finish with about the same record. However, if the Wolves want to make a major deal before the deadline, they should move Gobert. I suggest a deal with the Nets. Gobert, Nowell and Forbes to the Nets in exchange for Claxton, O'Neal, Joe Harris, the Dallas first-round pick they received in the Irving deal and the Nets' 2026 2nd-round pick.
Kat and Rudy have like 10-15 games so how can we possibly judge if this a success or not.
If you watch every game it's clear this team defense is a dumpster fire when Rudy goes to the bench. All you have to see is Kek constant 5 straight basket posts when Rudy leaves the game. There is at least one per game.
I will maintain this line or thinking if Kat and the rest of the group missed this many games last season this team would've been top 5 in the lottery. But know we finally have team that can withstand arguably there best player going down for pretty much whole season and still have chance make playoffs if not even host playoff series and we still bitching and want to trade the guy we got to make that happen.
lipoli390 wrote:Talk about trading DLO by the deadline remains rampant. We're seeing more chatter about trading KAT, which we can't do until after the season. Then there's the elephant in the room - Rudy Gobert. The Wolves bet the farm on him and owe him max money over the next three years as he advances into his 30s. The trade that brought him here hasn't helped the team win. This team is barely over .500 and slightly under .500 in games he's played - both with and without KAT. Individually, he hasn't been the same player defensively he was in Utah. His offensive limitations are stark and his clumsiness with the ball a bit stunning. The deal hasn't worked - at least not up to this point with 26 games remaining.
I think we should stick with the group we have, including Gobert, until the end of the season and see if this team can pull off a finish like last season, in which case we'd finish with about the same record. However, if the Wolves want to make a major deal before the deadline, they should move Gobert. I suggest a deal with the Nets. Gobert, Nowell and Forbes to the Nets in exchange for Claxton, O'Neal, Joe Harris, the Dallas first-round pick they received in the Irving deal and the Nets' 2026 2nd-round pick.
Kat and Rudy have like 10-15 games so how can we possibly judge if this a success or not.
If you watch every game it's clear this team defense is a dumpster fire when Rudy goes to the bench. All you have to see is Kek constant 5 straight basket posts when Rudy leaves the game. There is at least one per game.
I will maintain this line or thinking if Kat and the rest of the group missed this many games last season this team would've been top 5 in the lottery. But know we finally have team that can withstand arguably there best player going down for pretty much whole season and still have chance make playoffs if not even host playoff series and we still bitching and want to trade the guy we got to make that happen.
There's no evidence that Rudy has kept this team afloat without KAT. We have a better winning percentage in the games Rudy wasn't playing. You can point to the record of the teams we beat when Rudy was out, but that still doesn't provide any evidence that Rudy has done more than Vanderbilt, Beverley and Beasley would have done in KAT's absence. Yes, our defense is better when Rudy's on the court, but our offense is worse. Moreover, we have a worse defensive rating as a team this season than last and I doubt that's because of KAT's absence.
The guy who has kept us afloat is Edwards. He's been helped by the improved play of McDaniels, the excellent steady play of Kyle Anderson and the terrific play of DLO the last six seeks.
No disrespect towards Kek or Jester, but those "five straight baskets without Rudy" comments are often cherry-picked. How many of those buckets came at the rim in the halfcourt? How many of them were transition buckets? How many of them were made jumpers that had little to do with who was playing center?
Comparatively, how many times could we say "five straight wasted offensive possessions with Rudy" and it be true? Again, it's not always about him.
Rudy's still an impactful defender and positive player overall, no doubt, but he's not the dominant force that he once was, and that's who Minnesota blew their load on. The two-big experiment may work out or it may not, but Rudy's overall decline is very noticeable this season if you watched much of him in the past.
lipoli390 wrote:Talk about trading DLO by the deadline remains rampant. We're seeing more chatter about trading KAT, which we can't do until after the season. Then there's the elephant in the room - Rudy Gobert. The Wolves bet the farm on him and owe him max money over the next three years as he advances into his 30s. The trade that brought him here hasn't helped the team win. This team is barely over .500 and slightly under .500 in games he's played - both with and without KAT. Individually, he hasn't been the same player defensively he was in Utah. His offensive limitations are stark and his clumsiness with the ball a bit stunning. The deal hasn't worked - at least not up to this point with 26 games remaining.
I think we should stick with the group we have, including Gobert, until the end of the season and see if this team can pull off a finish like last season, in which case we'd finish with about the same record. However, if the Wolves want to make a major deal before the deadline, they should move Gobert. I suggest a deal with the Nets. Gobert, Nowell and Forbes to the Nets in exchange for Claxton, O'Neal, Joe Harris, the Dallas first-round pick they received in the Irving deal and the Nets' 2026 2nd-round pick.
Kat and Rudy have like 10-15 games so how can we possibly judge if this a success or not.
If you watch every game it's clear this team defense is a dumpster fire when Rudy goes to the bench. All you have to see is Kek constant 5 straight basket posts when Rudy leaves the game. There is at least one per game.
I will maintain this line or thinking if Kat and the rest of the group missed this many games last season this team would've been top 5 in the lottery. But know we finally have team that can withstand arguably there best player going down for pretty much whole season and still have chance make playoffs if not even host playoff series and we still bitching and want to trade the guy we got to make that happen.
There's no evidence that Rudy has kept this team afloat without KAT. We have a better winning percentage in the games Rudy wasn't playing. You can point to the record of the teams we beat when Rudy was out, but that still doesn't provide any evidence that Rudy has done more than Vanderbilt, Beverley and Beasley would have done in KAT's absence. Yes, our defense is better when Rudy's on the court, but our offense is worse. Moreover, we have a worse defensive rating as a team this season than last and I doubt that's because of KAT's absence.
The guy who has kept us afloat is Edwards. He's been helped by the improved play of McDaniels, the excellent steady play of Kyle Anderson and the terrific play of DLO the last six seeks.
How many years have we been if we only had a Top 10 defense our offense is so good? Well right now were sitting here #9 overall. Since January they are 3rd in Defensive rating. But I guess Rudy has no part in that.
But hell the 21-22 team that was fully healthy all year finished #12
Wolves Record without KAT 2020-2022 6-24
2022-2023 19-16 but hey lets only give credit to half the team besides Rudy
