Not much new to report on the Kevin Love trade front, except for some media created proposals. So… let’s have a look.
Timberwolves acquire: Jared Sullinger, Brandon Bass, Keith Bogans, Boston’s 2014 first-round pick (No. 6) and Brooklyn’s 2016 first-round pick
Celtics acquire: Kevin Love and Alexey Shved
This is essentially a variation of the Suns’ trade, with a few minor differences. As constructed, this deal guarantees a mid-lottery pick in the way that a trade with the Suns would not. There are still no sure stars in that draft range, but talented players like Julius Randle and Marcus Smart should still be available at No. 6. Brooklyn’s 2016 first-round pick could also turn out to be better than the Lakers’ top-five-protected first-rounder in 2015. Kevin Garnett is 38, Paul Pierce could sign elsewhere this summer, Deron Williams has not impressed and Brook Lopez is a mammoth 7-footer with a worrisome injury history. It would not be a shock for the Nets to yield a lottery pick in 2016.
On top of that, Bogans’ $5.3 million salary can be cleared from the cap sheet without penalty, which — after accounting for the difference in incoming and outgoing salary and the rookie-scale deal of the No. 6 pick — would save Minnesota about $7 million. Those savings might seem abstract to fans who aren’t responsible for the Wolves’ finances, but they mean something for a team staring at a likely rebuild.
This seems like a reasonable deal. One caveat – It doesn’t work in ESPN’s Trade Machine unless you remove Shved.
Scenario #2 is from ESPN:
Celtics receive: Kevin Love
Wolves receive: Kelly Olynyk, Jared Sullinger, Brandon Bass, Phil Pressey, Vitor Faverani, Nos. 6 and 17 picks in 2014, Celtics’ first-round pick in 2016Here, the Wolves are basically getting the picks and then a bunch of cap filler and former first-rounders. There’s no reason to pretend Olynyk and Sullinger would be pieces for the Wolves at all. Being a Wolves fan since they’ve come into the NBA, I am pretty good at recognizing overvalued first-round picks who won’t be as good as you hope they are. This is about the picks, and with Nos. 6, 13 and 17 in this draft, they could load up or move up.
The author – Zach Harper – clearly isn’t a fan of Sullinger’s game. If the Wolves feel the same, why wouldn’t they insist on Bogans’ $5 million in lieu of a few of those names?
If I were running the Celtics, I’d pull the trigger on both of these deals with a preference to keep Olynyk.
There are some other intriguing scenarios involving good players (Greg Monroe, Taj Gibson, Jimmy Butler, Klay Thomson, Dion Waiters), but the Celtics can outmatch any team when it comes to picks. Unless Cleveland offers up this year’s #1.
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