That being the case, here are my thoughts on the current state of Flip's crew:
- As much as I would like to see the Kevin Love distractions come to an end, it is looking like this will get drawn out a bit longer. It now sounds fairly certain that the Cavs will sign top pick Andrew Wiggins to a rookie scale deal, making him ineligible to be traded for 30 days. Chicago's signing of Nikola Mirotic means that he won't be a part of a trade until August 18th. It will also be interesting to monitor when Doug McDermott signs his rookie deal. The Wolves signing of Robbie Hummel makes a trade even more difficult, since we only have one roster spot remaining. In any case, with the Wiggins signing, it appears that K-Love will remain in limbo for at least another month. If I had my preference, I'd rate the trade possibilities in the following order.
- Chicago: Mirotic, McDermott, Taj Gibson for Love + additional player
- Cleveland: Wiggins plus Bennett/Thompson (filler on both sides)
- Golden State: Klay, Barnes, Lee + pick for Love + Martin
- Boston: Olynyk, Sullinger + picks for Love
- I've included the key pieces only in the above scenarios, as most of these options will have to be adjusted so that salaries can be matched, or for roster considerations. The T-Wolves, for example, are unlikely to accept 3 guaranteed contracts for Love w/o sending another one back (Barea, Shved, Martin).
- The Chicago deal provides a decent short term replacement for Love in Taj Gibson, plus two young players who could eventually form a solid core moving forward. I'm not sure how motivated the Bulls will be now that they have signed Gasol, or how they would manage Gasol, Love and Noah in the frontcourt. Long term, the Wolves could have a starting five of Rubio, Levine, McDermott, Mirotic and Gorgi, which could be pretty interesting.
- I still think the Cleveland deal makes too much sense for both sides to not happen eventually. Wiggins could be a star in 2-3 years, but Love is a star now. Lebron will soon be on the wrong side of 30, and Irving is just entering his prime. You don't miss out on an opportunity to put those three together to gamble on the potential of a raw 19 year old kid. Without Wiggins' salary (and more) in the deal, or a 3rd team's involvement, this trade simply can't happen. If the Wolves have to absorb a 3rd contract (in addition to Wiggins/Bennett), we have to send a contract back, or release someone.
- I like the idea of a Rubio/Klay backcourt, but can't justify handing out near-max contracts to two guards who are far from "elite" players in this league. Barnes does little for me, and taking Lee's contract off their hands would be doing the Warriors a favor. It is comical that they want to land Kevin Love in exchange for Lee, and then use the future savings from Lee's contract to lock up Thompson, who is the only trade piece that the Wolves are after.
- It would be fun to see the haul we could get from the Celtics, but this would be a last resort in my mind, and propel us into full rebuilding mode (again).
