The last 24 hours in the NBA has been crazy. Just prior to NBA free agency opening up Thursday evening, Kevin Durant requested a trade from the Brooklyn Nets. Players across the league have been signing and re-signing. Then the Boston Celtics shocked the league by trading for Malcolm Brogdon Friday afternoon. Well, it didn't stop there. The Utah Jazz are officially blowing it up. According to ESPN NBA Insider Adrian Wojnarowski, the Jazz are trading All-Star center Rudy Gobert to the Minnesota Timberwolves.

The Timberwolves are sending a massive package back to Utah. The package includes Malik Beasley, Patrick Beverley, 2022 first-round pick Walker Kessler, Jarred Vanderbilt and four first-round draft picks. The picks are from 2023, 2025, 2027 and 2029. The first three of those picks are completely unprotected with the pick from 2029 top-five protected.

This is a massive shake up in the Western Conference. Minnesota had just signed Karl-Anthony Towns to a massive four-year, $224 million contract extension. That contract does not even kick in until the 2024-2025 season. Rudy Gobert and Towns together are going to make one of the best front courts in recent NBA history.

So, let's break the trade down and grade the Rudy Gobert Jazz Timberwolves trade.

Grading the Rudy Gobert Jazz Timberwolves Trade

Minnesota Timberwolves

The Timberwolves are clearly making a statement with this trade that they want to win now. It's rare to see a team include four first-round picks in a single trade, particularly with three of them unprotected. But for the next few years, the TWolves should absolutely be in contention for an NBA Championship.

Rudy Gobert is considered one of the best defensive centers in recent memory and possibly in NBA history. Gobert has won Defensive Player of the Year three times in his illustrious career. Only Dikembe Mutombo and Ben Wallace have won the award more, each winning it four times. He provides elite level shot blocking and rim protection for a team that badly needs it. Last season, the Timberwolves were 24th in the NBA in points allowed per game at 113.3. The playoffs really highlighted this issue.

Towns is under contract through the 2027-2028 season. Gobert is under contract through 2025-2026. But those are not the only stars on this team, making them that much more deadly. Anthony Edwards had a fantastic season for the Timberwolves and is a rising superstar. He, not Towns, was the franchise's best player in the playoffs this past year. They also have D'Angelo Russell who can run point. But it's not all grave for Minnesota.

They traded away two of the team's best defensive players on the perimeter. Beasley and Beverley did an adequate job against opposing guards. Russell is known for his lack of defense. So, one has to wonder how much the defense will really be improved.

Also, the fact that they are spaced out might work against Minnesota. The Timberwolves will very likely not have a high draft pick the next few seasons. So, the first couple picks they traded away might not hold a ton of value. But the 2027 and 2029 draft picks might carry a ton of value. You never know where a franchise is going to be that far out in the future.

Grade: B

Utah Jazz

It's hard to argue that the Jazz did not do a great job with this trade. Anytime you can land four first-round picks (with only one of them protected), you did a good job. But they also added some very good defensive role players for the short term.

Both Beasley and Beverley were two of the best defenders on the Timberwolves. Beverley is also a great team guy. He is a vocal and emotional leader and has always been that way. It's also worth noting that Utah essentially gained five first-round picks for Rudy Gobert because Walker Kessler was included in the deal.

Kessler was drafted 22nd overall in the 2022 NBA Draft last week. He barely played at North Carolina two years ago and transferred to Auburn. In his only year with the Tigers, Kessler averaged an insane 4.6 blocks per game. His 155 total blocks was more than 13 schools' team totals across the NCAA. Yeah, exactly. He is 7'1” tall, with a 7'4” wingspan. He averaged a little over 11 points and eight rebounds per game with Auburn last season.

It's not out of the realm of possibility that he can have a similar impact that Gobert has had the last decade. If he is even close, the Jazz hit an absolute home run with this trade.

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You add in the four first-round picks, which the last couple very well could be top-10 picks, and this is a massive haul.

It's hard to imagine the Jazz doing any better than they did trading Rudy Gobert here.

Grade: A