Trade Scenario #5 – Minnesota Timberwolves
OUT – Tyson Chandler and a 2nd round pick
IN – Cole Aldrich and Tyus Jones
Why for the Wolves? 27th in the league in defensive rebounds? That needs to change. Aldrich has been on the trade block for a long time. Minnesota, will you pay $11.4M total more over this season and next to upgrade Aldrich to Chandler, have another vet for Thibodeau and turn your front court into a scary quartet of Karl Anthony Towns, Taj Gibson, Gorgui Dieng and Tyson Chandler? Bring it into the paint against that front court. I dare you. They’ have a metaphorical cage around the paint. Enter and never leave. Tyus Jones is behind Jeff Teague at least for three seasons. Aaron Brooks is a capable backup with his departure and they get a 2nd round pick.
Why for the Suns? An Aldrich-Chandler swap would save the Suns $5.7M per season this and next. The team would probably buy him out. The reason Phoenix does this is Tyus Jones. It’s a tiny price for another point guard. He fits the timeline, is only 21, and is a decent -point shooter (33.6% career), is a play maker, and a good defender (2.7 assists and .8 steals in 14 minutes for career). Those are the three things needed for a good floor leader in this league. He’s very raw but he could excel here. Take his last 10 games where he took at least 5 shot attempts and his last 10 games where he played at least 20 minutes. This will show a 45-34-70 shooting line with 7.6 points, 4.6 assists, and 1.5 steals per game. He could very well develop into a good player.