With the Kevin Love trade all but finalized, the attention now turns to how the Minnesota Timberwolves will approach their latest rebuild. In a scenario that’s been mentioned previously, it appears the ‘Wolves will re-route former first overall pick Anthony Bennett to the Philadelphia 76ers in exchange for Thaddeus Young.
Via Mark Perner of the Phildelphia Daily News, the 76ers will be involved in the Love deal:
A source informed the Daily News that the Sixers will be sending veteran forward Thaddeus Young to Minnesota for a package that will include Bennett, the No. 1 pick in the 2013 NBA draft.
The deal, which two sources have confirmed to the Associated Press, will not be official until Aug. 23, when Wiggins, this year’s No. 1 draft pick, becomes eligible to be traded.
It has been reported that Minnesota sees Young as the right guy to fill Love’s shoes. The Timberwolves, it has been reported, could use the first-round pick they get from the Cavaliers to help entice the Sixers to part with the 26-year-old Young, but that has not been confirmed.
This trade will give the 76ers another young asset, which has been their primary goal since entering full-blown rebuilding mode last season. For the ‘Wolves, Flip Saunders likely prefers a front court with some experience. The trade would allow him to play Young alongside Nikola Pekovic.
Even though he’s the older player in this trade, Young is still just 26, and averaged 17.9 points, 6.0 rebounds and 2.1 steals per game last season. He’s not going to replace Love, but the ‘Wolves will be getting a very competent player. Young has two more years left on his contract, so the ‘Wolves will get a chance to decide whether he’s part of their future.
After a disastrous rookie season, it was hard to imagine Bennett having any value on the trade market this summer. But he was impressive in Las Vegas Summer League, and showed he can still be a capable contributor in the NBA.
The 76ers are accumulating assets. If this trade goes through, they’ll have Bennett alongside Nerlens Noel, Joel Embiid and Michael Carter-Williams. If everyone can stay healthy, the 76ers could be a very scary team in a couple of years.
As for the ‘Wolves, they might still entertain the idea of trying to win now even without Love. If so, the acquisition of Young will certainly help them in that regard.
What do you think?
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