Minnesota Sports Forum

Q-is-here wrote: ↑Mon May 25, 2026 8:54 am I think it's truly Ant 2.0 when Rudy is gone. He has such a profound effect on both the defense and offense that the identity of the team cannot shift more completely to Ant & Co. unless he's gone.

That doesn't necessarily mean we're ultimately better as there is a ton of risk that we can't come close to making up for his defense. But given his age, contract, and the hard ceiling we've run into the last two playoffs against OKC and the Spurs, may be it's time to trade him while we can still get quite a lot of value for him. Rip the band-aid off.

FNG wrote: ↑Mon May 25, 2026 9:24 am I hear a lot about Ant 2.0, but I'm not exactly sure what it means. It seems to me Ant 2.0 happened when we traded away a lot of his teammates for Rudy, and then we had Ant 3.0 when we traded his co-star KAT for Randle and Donte...those were both very significant roster changes designed to put exactly the right combination of players around Ant. But while both of those moves were prudent I thought, they haven't proved to be enough. So now we are likely on the cusp of Ant 4.0, and we're all curious to see what TC is going to do.

I've stayed away from the PG thread because it's silent (except for Q's opening summary) with respect to my first choice and one that seems to be gaining a lot of steam...trading for Kyrie Irving. I'm pretty much on an island here with my belief that Ant is not a complete enough package to lead this team to a championship. But he is an incredible shooter and scorer, and I think the best version of Ant would emerge if he were playing next to 2 certain Hall of Famers in Rudy and Kyrie. Kyrie would allow Ant to play much more off ball, and would give the Wolves two elite scorers.

Jim Souhan talks about a Kyrie trade in this morning's Strib, and apparently Jonny Athletic posted something recently about Ant privately lobbying to trade for him. What would it take to get it done? What I see most often is Randle, Ayo and either our 2032 pick or this year's...I would do that in a heartbeat. I'd be less excited about including Donte in that trade instead of Ayo, but I would still like it. I think a starting lineup of Rudy/Naz/Jaden/Ant/Kyrie instantly puts us in the chip conversation.

Why does Dallas do it? There is some talk that Kyrie is not interested in finishing his career with a team that is building around a teenager and not likely to be a contender before Kyrie retires. Irving has matured since his early flat earth days, but he still has a mercurial side to him...Dallas doesn't want a malcontent around their budding star. Getting draft capital and two players who potentially move into starting roles (only if they think Ayo is a better option in the backcourt than either Christie or Williams) is a good deal for them...and moody Ju would likely be delighted to be back home, even if he were playing for a lottery team.

I know most here see Ant as a #1 on a championship team and maybe someday he gets there...but right now the deep stats he's putting up in the role the Wolves have carved out for him bear little resemblance to those of the true #1's. And I think he gets to that level in a hurry if he is allowed to play SG next to a future HOFer. I think TC needs to swing for the fences this off season, and the other big swing option (Giannis) would create a really bad fit. And any kind of smaller deal smacks of rearranging the deck chairs on the Titanic. Bringing Kyrie right now will instantly lead to the best version of Ant, and when he retires in 2 or 3 years, TC can use the cap space to go find Ant's next Robin...or Batman.

Git 'er done!

60WinTim wrote: ↑Mon May 25, 2026 9:13 am

Q-is-here wrote: ↑Mon May 25, 2026 8:54 am I think it's truly Ant 2.0 when Rudy is gone. He has such a profound effect on both the defense and offense that the identity of the team cannot shift more completely to Ant & Co. unless he's gone.

That doesn't necessarily mean we're ultimately better as there is a ton of risk that we can't come close to making up for his defense. But given his age, contract, and the hard ceiling we've run into the last two playoffs against OKC and the Spurs, may be it's time to trade him while we can still get quite a lot of value for him. Rip the band-aid off.

Yeah, the complete transition won't occur until Rudy is gone, or no longer starting. But it sure seems his 2.0 replacement is here and will be playing next season. But at 20 years old, I don't mind another year or two of Rudy starting in Joan's place...

FNG wrote: ↑Mon May 25, 2026 9:24 am I hear a lot about Ant 2.0, but I'm not exactly sure what it means. It seems to me Ant 2.0 happened when we traded away a lot of his teammates for Rudy, and then we had Ant 3.0 when we traded his co-star KAT for Randle and Donte...those were both very significant roster changes designed to put exactly the right combination of players around Ant. But while both of those moves were prudent I thought, they haven't proved to be enough. So now we are likely on the cusp of Ant 4.0, and we're all curious to see what TC is going to do.

I've stayed away from the PG thread because it's silent (except for Q's opening summary) with respect to my first choice and one that seems to be gaining a lot of steam...trading for Kyrie Irving. I'm pretty much on an island here with my belief that Ant is not a complete enough package to lead this team to a championship. But he is an incredible shooter and scorer, and I think the best version of Ant would emerge if he were playing next to 2 certain Hall of Famers in Rudy and Kyrie. Kyrie would allow Ant to play much more off ball, and would give the Wolves two elite scorers.

Jim Souhan talks about a Kyrie trade in this morning's Strib, and apparently Jonny Athletic posted something recently about Ant privately lobbying to trade for him. What would it take to get it done? What I see most often is Randle, Ayo and either our 2032 pick or this year's...I would do that in a heartbeat. I'd be less excited about including Donte in that trade instead of Ayo, but I would still like it. I think a starting lineup of Rudy/Naz/Jaden/Ant/Kyrie instantly puts us in the chip conversation.

Why does Dallas do it? There is some talk that Kyrie is not interested in finishing his career with a team that is building around a teenager and not likely to be a contender before Kyrie retires. Irving has matured since his early flat earth days, but he still has a mercurial side to him...Dallas doesn't want a malcontent around their budding star. Getting draft capital and two players who potentially move into starting roles (only if they think Ayo is a better option in the backcourt than either Christie or Williams) is a good deal for them...and moody Ju would likely be delighted to be back home, even if he were playing for a lottery team.

I know most here see Ant as a #1 on a championship team and maybe someday he gets there...but right now the deep stats he's putting up in the role the Wolves have carved out for him bear little resemblance to those of the true #1's. And I think he gets to that level in a hurry if he is allowed to play SG next to a future HOFer. I think TC needs to swing for the fences this off season, and the other big swing option (Giannis) would create a really bad fit. And any kind of smaller deal smacks of rearranging the deck chairs on the Titanic. Bringing Kyrie right now will instantly lead to the best version of Ant, and when he retires in 2 or 3 years, TC can use the cap space to go find Ant's next Robin...or Batman.

Git 'er done!

FNG wrote: ↑Mon May 25, 2026 9:24 am I hear a lot about Ant 2.0, but I'm not exactly sure what it means. It seems to me Ant 2.0 happened when we traded away a lot of his teammates for Rudy, and then we had Ant 3.0 when we traded his co-star KAT for Randle and Donte...those were both very significant roster changes designed to put exactly the right combination of players around Ant. But while both of those moves were prudent I thought, they haven't proved to be enough. So now we are likely on the cusp of Ant 4.0, and we're all curious to see what TC is going to do.

I've stayed away from the PG thread because it's silent (except for Q's opening summary) with respect to my first choice and one that seems to be gaining a lot of steam...trading for Kyrie Irving. I'm pretty much on an island here with my belief that Ant is not a complete enough package to lead this team to a championship. But he is an incredible shooter and scorer, and I think the best version of Ant would emerge if he were playing next to 2 certain Hall of Famers in Rudy and Kyrie. Kyrie would allow Ant to play much more off ball, and would give the Wolves two elite scorers.

Jim Souhan talks about a Kyrie trade in this morning's Strib, and apparently Jonny Athletic posted something recently about Ant privately lobbying to trade for him. What would it take to get it done? What I see most often is Randle, Ayo and either our 2032 pick or this year's...I would do that in a heartbeat. I'd be less excited about including Donte in that trade instead of Ayo, but I would still like it. I think a starting lineup of Rudy/Naz/Jaden/Ant/Kyrie instantly puts us in the chip conversation.

Why does Dallas do it? There is some talk that Kyrie is not interested in finishing his career with a team that is building around a teenager and not likely to be a contender before Kyrie retires. Irving has matured since his early flat earth days, but he still has a mercurial side to him...Dallas doesn't want a malcontent around their budding star. Getting draft capital and two players who potentially move into starting roles (only if they think Ayo is a better option in the backcourt than either Christie or Williams) is a good deal for them...and moody Ju would likely be delighted to be back home, even if he were playing for a lottery team.

I know most here see Ant as a #1 on a championship team and maybe someday he gets there...but right now the deep stats he's putting up in the role the Wolves have carved out for him bear little resemblance to those of the true #1's. And I think he gets to that level in a hurry if he is allowed to play SG next to a future HOFer. I think TC needs to swing for the fences this off season, and the other big swing option (Giannis) would create a really bad fit. And any kind of smaller deal smacks of rearranging the deck chairs on the Titanic. Bringing Kyrie right now will instantly lead to the best version of Ant, and when he retires in 2 or 3 years, TC can use the cap space to go find Ant's next Robin...or Batman.

Git 'er done!