ESPN released the first official report on Giannis Antetokounmpo on January 28, 2026. The headline was pretty straightforward: “Sources: Heat, Wolves, Knicks, Warriors among Giannis Suitors.”
The author’s name was right under the title: Shams Charania.
What followed was an explosion of speculation that tore the Minnesota Timberwolves’ online fan base apart. Some fans saw the trade as a no-brainer. It would pair a former MVP and DPOY with All-NBA guard Anthony Edwards. Trading for Giannis would almost guarantee an NBA championship, barring injury.
Other fans cried out for continuity of the players they have grown to love on a Wolves team that has made it back-to-back Western Conference finals.
Last year, the players Minnesota got from the Karl Anthony Towns trade, Julius Randle, and Donte DiVincenzo, were the most frequently mentioned as crucial outgoing pieces. However, Jaden McDaniels and Naz Reid weren’t immune. They also saw their names linked to trade rumors all the way up to deadline day.
Even the young players on the Wolves heard their names in the noise. Rookie Joan Beringer was reported to be a “must” in the deal.
The trade deadline ultimately came and went without a deal. The Wolves opted for a smaller move, acquiring Ayo Dosunmu from the Chicago Bulls. They also made an accompanying move, trading Mike Conley to Chicago and then to the Charlotte Hornets, to create salary cap space for the deal. Charlotte then waived Conley, and he’s expected to return to Minnesota.
After the deadline had passed, Naz Reid spoke about having his name in the rumor mill every day.
“It goes to you being a good player, I guess, I mean a lot of people want you at that point. … It’s a business obviously, I’m family with,” he said, pausing to collect himself. “I spend every day with these guys and my team, so we become family at that point. Obviously, you don’t want to be separated from your family, but at the end of the day, it’s a business.”
Naz Reid on handling the trade deadline when his name is in rumors
“It goes to you being a good player I guess, I mean a lot of people want you at that point… it’s a business obviously I’m family with(pauses) I spend every day with these guys and my team so we become family at… pic.twitter.com/nRB6dvIkKw
— Andrew Dukowitz (@adukeMN) February 7, 2026
Chris Finch highlighted that for some players, the deadline can affect them more than others when discussing Randle’s 41-point night in the 133-109 win over the Portland Trail Blazers.
“We had a couple good chats in the last week,” said Finch. “I think everything that swirls around this time of year, whether it be All-Star nominations… of course, all the trade chatter affects every one of these guys. He just had to kind of shake it off, and Julius is a guy who plays with his heart on his sleeve, and he was kind of not himself recently, and we just need him, he’s so important for us.”
Chris Finch on what changed in Julius Randle over the past two games
“We had a couple good chats in the last week, I think everything that swirls around this time of year, whether it be all star nominations… of course all the trade chatter affects everyone of these guys. You… pic.twitter.com/yAAOgewzy6
— Andrew Dukowitz (@adukeMN) February 12, 2026
Julius Randle has seen his name in trade rumors pretty much the entire month of January. With the talk of the Wolves needing a point guard and names like Trae Young, Ja Morant, DeAaron Fox, and Darious Garland reportedly available at the deadline, Randle saw his name. More specifically, people added his contract to every mock trade, whether from ESPN or Wolves fans on Twitter.
It’s no wonder teams wanted Randle. Randle was on a tear from the beginning of the season through December. He ranked second on the Timberwolves in plus/minus, averaging a +4.4 per game. He was second on the Wolves in points per game at 22.3, shooting 48.4% from the floor, 33.3% from three, and 81.9% from the free throw line.
Randle added 7.0 rebounds per game, good for second on the team, and a team-leading 5.8 assists. He ranked first on the team in offensive rating (119.5). However, his defense could use some work. He ranks third-worst (114.3) on the roster.
Then, the calendar turned over to January, and the rumors began. From January 1 to February 5, his offensive rating would remain high at 119.7. However, he would fall to the third-highest on the Wolves. His assist-to-turnover ratio dropped to just 1,.66 down from 2.3.
Randle’s defensive rating also rose to 115.5, the worst among rotation players on Minnesota’s roster. The advanced numbers don’t suggest a large drop in production. His traditional stats show a similar story. Randle’s plus/minus fell to 3.3 per game. His points per game dropped by 0.5, his rebounds fell to 6.6, and his assists dropped to 4.6 per game.
His percentages stayed strong, only changing slightly. Still, the decrease in assists and plus/minus, along with a small drop-off, at least suggests he was slumping.
What’s especially interesting, though, is that most of the players, even some of the guys in the trade rumors, have the same sample size as Julius Randle.
McDaniels’ points per game went up, and he shot 51.5% from three. Reid’s scoring also jumped, and he shot over 10.1% better from distance. Anthony Edwards plus/minus per game went from 1.5 to a team-best 6.5, as his scoring and percentages increased.
Rudy Gobert remained consistent, with the same plus/minus in both sample sizes. Although his scoring dipped at the deadline, he remained effective, shooting 70.0% in the first section and 69.9% in the second. DiVincenzo saw his field goal percentage, three-point percentage, points per game, and plus/minus all improve.
That’s why I believe that Randle’s statistical drops are more correlated with the trade deadline. The other top six players on the team, aside from Randle, all saw their metrics improve or remain the same at the trade deadline, while Randle saw his fall, albeit slightly in some cases.
The fact that his advanced stats and plus/minus fell while the players around him saw their metrics increase is almost impossible to pull off, especially given that he plays almost all of his minutes with the other top six players.
We didn’t know @J30_RANDLE had this in his dunk package 😳
He put on a show with 41 points for a new career-high as a member of the @Timberwolves 🤩@FanDuelSN_NOR | #Timberwolves #BringTheNice pic.twitter.com/eHbuDgztbG
— FanDuel Sports Network (@FanDuelSN) February 13, 2026
After the deadline passed, Randle’s production has been inconsistent. In the first two games, he seemed to be disjointed and still out of rhythm. However, over Minnesota’s last two games, he’s averaging 29.5 points per game with a plus/minus of 18. He looked reengaged and back to playing some of the best basketball of his career.
Now the Timberwolves will go on a break as the All-Star Game commences. The players whom people speculated the Wolves would trade for Giannis can breathe and take time off from the team before they focus on a playoff surge in the second half. Hopefully, that allows Julius Randle to get back to the player he was earlier this year.