The Minnesota Timberwolves are looking to pair another star with franchise cornerstone, and have been targeting Golden State Warriors’ point guard D’Angelo Russell since free agency last summer, and now are trying to orchestrate a multi-team trade to land the guard, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski.
The Wolves, Atlanta Hawks, and Houston Rockets appear to be the teams involved in the discussions, with Wolves’ forward Robert Covington heading to Houston, Rockets’ center Clint Capela heading the Atlanta, and potentially two first-round picks and an expiring contract to Minnesota, per the report.
Minnesota then would use their draft assets to re-approach the Warriors about trading Russell. Golden State has rebuffed the Wolves’ attempts in the past.
The belief is that draft picks aren’t the only price that the Wolves may need to pay. With the Warriors looking to shed salary, they will be looking to acquire contracts that would allow them to do that. Additionally, Minnesota’s Andrew Wiggins would have to be included in any deal.
Although the Wolves seem plenty motivated to land Russel in a deal with the Warriors, the two sides are considered far apart in talks.