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The Minnesota Timberwolves won the 2020 NBA Draft Lottery on Thursday, as D'Angelo Russell was the good luck charm the franchise needed. The Wolves' new point guard represented the team virtually and was all smiles after Minnesota got the No. 1 overall pick in the 2020 draft, beating out the Golden State Warriors and Charlotte Hornets, who got the second and third pick, respectively.
Immediately after winning the draft lottery, Timberwolves president of basketball operations Gersson Rosas told reporters the No. 1 pick in the 2020 draft will be in play this offseason in trade talks.
With that said, here are three superstar trades Minnesota can make with the 2020 No. 1 pick to get another star next to Russell and Karl-Anthony Towns.
1. Devin Booker
Booker, Russell and Towns are essentially best friends off the court. D'Lo has already said the three All-Stars are going to be teammates one day in the NBA and what better time than now for Minnesota to make it happen.
Russell told Max Resetar of SLAM Magazine before the start of the 2019-20 season that he, Towns and Booker would play together, although he didn't name the location.
“We gotta do this again, when we're all on the same team,” Russell jokes toward the end of the day. “Nah, don't cut it,” he says to our rolling cameras. “Y'all got it on footage. When we're all on the same team—I ain't gonna tell you which team because I don't know—we're gonna do this again.”
The Timberwolves acquired Russell from the Warriors at the 2020 trade deadline for Andrew Wiggins. Now, all Rosas has to do is trade for Booker and the three amigos will be together in Minnesota.
Rosas should call the Suns and offer the house for Booker, meaning everyone on the roster — except for Russell and Towns — is available, along with the 2020 No. 1 pick of course.
The Suns, though, may not even pick up the phone since Booker led Phoenix to an 8-0 record at Walt Disney World and looks really happy with the group of guys he's playing with.
However, that shouldn't stop the Timberwolves from reaching out to the Suns. Things can always change when picks and players are involved and we can assume that Booker would give Phoenix the green light to pull the trigger on this deal even though he doesn't have a say in any of this. The former Kentucky guard doesn't have a no-trade clause in his contract.
2. Ben Simmons
The Philadelphia 76ers could be headed for a major overhaul this offseason since it appears they are going to get bounced in the first round of the 2020 playoffs by the Boston Celtics. There have been rumors going around that Sixers general manager Elton Brand will fire head coach Brett Brown after the bubble games and split up Simmons and Joel Embiid since the two All-Stars continue to be a bad fit together.
The Timberwolves don't need Embiid since they have Towns, so Rosas should try and acquire Simmons, who has a close relationship with Russell and Towns. Minnesota could have Simmons and Russell share ball-handling duties or play Russell at the 1 and Simmons at the 3.
Since Russell and Towns are good shooters from deep, Simmons would have ample space to get to the rim on the Timberwolves. The former No. 1 overall pick often times doesn't have driving lanes to attack on the Sixers since Philadelphia's floor spacing is paltry and he doesn't have a mid-range game yet.
If the Timberwolves had a Big 3 of Simmons, Russell and Towns, they could finally get out of the bottom of the Western Conference and be a player for the playoffs. Even though Simmons' lack of a jump shot is concerning, he's an elite defender and playmaker and would have more room to operate on the Timberwolves since they have superior shooters than the Sixers.
3. Bradley Beal
The Washington Wizards have been on record saying they have no interest in trading Beal. However, no one has offered the Wizards a No. 1 overall pick for Beal yet.
Rosas and the Timberwolves should give the Wizards whatever they want for Beal, outside of Russell and Towns. He's one of the best players in the NBA and finished the 2019-20 season second in the league in scoring behind only Houston Rockets superstar James Harden.
Beal's shooting skills and one-on-one ability would make the game easier for Towns and Russell. Beal has also never played with a star big man such as Towns, who commands double-teams almost every time he touches the ball in the paint.
One can only imagine the open looks Beal would get in Minnesota by getting free off of back screens while the defense is paying attention to Towns in the post.
