The Minnesota Timberwolves traded away veteran point guard Jeff Teague along with Treveon Graham to the Atlanta Hawks in return for Allen Crabbe a few days ago. This trade means a return for Teague back to Atlanta where he spent the first seven years of his career. That also leaves a void in Minnesota as it leaves them with one true point guard on the roster in Shabazz Napier. It also forces other Wolves players to play out of position, most noticeably Andrew Wiggins.
Minnesota would not have made the move if they did not plan to replace him with another point guard.
The Timberwolves now have their eyes on Golden State Warriors guard D’Angelo Russell, according to Shams Charania and Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic. The Warriors have held off on moving Russell, and have no immediate plans of doing so. The lefty is averaging 23.3 points per game, and at just 23 years old, Russell has plenty of value for quite some time. If the Warriors were to send Russell to Minnesota, Robert Covington would almost certainly be in the trade and on his way to Golden State. An elite defensive player, he can easily be compared to Andre Iguodala, a top defender and role player who might not be a weapon on the offensive side of the floor, but good enough to keep him on the floor against anyone.
Jeff Teague's tenure in Minnesota is over. And it may be just the first of the #Timberwolves' moves.@JonKrawczynski and @ShamsCharania on the renewed pursuit of D'Angelo Russell: https://t.co/iiAmDUoNfS
Jon takes stock of Teague's run in MN: https://t.co/Z719bp1hv8
— The Athletic Minnesota (@TheAthleticMIN) January 18, 2020
So where does that leave the Timberwolves? Minnesota has already asked about Indiana Pacers point guard Aaron Holiday, according to The Ringer’s Kevin O’Connor.
Minnesota isn't done making moves after dealing Jeff Teague to Atlanta for Allen Crabbe. The Wolves have been in talks with teams in search for another ball handler, per league sources. They recently went after Pacers PG Aaron Holiday, but those talks went nowhere at the time.
— Kevin O'Connor (@KevinOConnorNBA) January 16, 2020
Speaking of Robert Covington, the Houston Rockets had shown interest in the versatile wing player, but talks have cooled down. The Rockets have been dying to add a strong defender who can knock down an open three ever since they let Trevor Ariza walk away in free agency. But with the amount of money they have invested in their two stars in James Harden and Russell Westbrook, they do not have the necessary pieces to make a compelling case to acquire Covington.
Remember when there was a lot of buzz surrounding Detroit Pistons big man, Andre Drummond? Well, ever since then, he has been in a funk, and his lack of effort lately has been obvious to everyone.
The Pistons are falling fast with injuries to Blake Griffin and Reggie Jackson. Head coach Dwane Casey has made it clear that the focus is now on developing the handful of promising young players on the roster.
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