{"id":579877,"date":"2026-02-03T16:31:13","date_gmt":"2026-02-03T16:31:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/579877\/"},"modified":"2026-02-03T16:31:13","modified_gmt":"2026-02-03T16:31:13","slug":"timberwolves-insider-makes-admission-on-giannis-antetokounmpo-trade","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/579877\/","title":{"rendered":"Timberwolves insider makes admission on Giannis Antetokounmpo trade"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Minnesota Timberwolves<\/a> have surfaced as a sneaky contender in the race for Giannis Antetokounmpo<\/a> as the NBA trade deadline<\/a> nears. According to Brett Siegel, Jaden McDaniels serves as the ultimate X-factor<\/a> for this dark-horse pursuit. If the Timberwolves suddenly made McDaniels available, he could likely be traded for three or four first-round picks, similar to the Mikal Bridges<\/a> trade.<\/p>\n

This move would provide Minnesota with the necessary assets to finalize a deal with the Milwaukee Bucks. McDaniels is currently averaging a career-high 14.9 points while shooting over 44 percent from three-point range, making him one of the most valuable defensive assets in the league.<\/p>\n

According to a report from the NY Times, it would take significantly more than just McDaniels to secure a player like Antetokounmpo. Julius Randle<\/a> is another primary candidate for a move<\/a>, especially since Chris Finch considers him the team\u2019s most important player due to his playmaking and averages of 22.3 points and 5.4 assists.<\/p>\n

Furthermore, Naz Reid is playing the best basketball of his career as a Sixth Man of the Year candidate, while Rudy Gobert<\/a> remains an elite rim protector despite his age.<\/p>\n

There are also significant concerns regarding Antetokounmpo\u2019s health and the team\u2019s financial future. At 31 years old, the Bucks star has faced several injuries and is currently dealing with a calf issue that could keep him out for weeks.<\/p>\n

If the Timberwolves move their core depth, they risk falling in the standings while waiting for him to return. Additionally, pairing Antetokounmpo with Anthony Edwards on two max contracts would create a top-heavy salary structure, presenting a different challenge than the current roster setup.<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, the Cleveland Cavaliers remain an outside possibility in the Giannis<\/a> sweepstakes despite their status as a second-apron team. Brett Siegel notes that while Cleveland lacks draft assets, it could clear a path by trading Lonzo Ball to open up playing time and salary space.<\/p>\n

The outcome of the Giannis trade remains the biggest story in the league, potentially affecting the futures of other stars across the NBA for this year. What should happen next?<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The Minnesota Timberwolves have surfaced as a sneaky contender in the race for Giannis Antetokounmpo as the NBA…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":572700,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[3782],"tags":[7,123,377,376,1260,307,152,3954,6,6050,2828,373,308],"class_list":{"0":"post-579877","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-minnesota-timberwolves","8":"tag-basketball","9":"tag-giannis-antetokounmpo","10":"tag-jaden-mcdaniels","11":"tag-julius-randle","12":"tag-mikal-bridges","13":"tag-minnesota","14":"tag-minnesota-timberwolves","15":"tag-minnesotatimberwolves","16":"tag-nba","17":"tag-nba-rumors","18":"tag-nba-trade-deadline","19":"tag-rudy-gobert","20":"tag-timberwolves"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@nba\/116007658250378724","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/579877","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=579877"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/579877\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/572700"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=579877"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=579877"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=579877"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}