MIN and DEN

[Denver Nuggets]

Minnesota trades: 

K Love 10.5, 10.5 (10.5) 

Alex Len .5 (.5)

Denver trades: 

Horford 9

I accept

[Minnesota Timberwolves]

I have for reals been managing my team with an eye toward re-signing Dame and KAT this offseason, and then Dame's seventeenth career season and (more actually) acquiring Lebron went and endangered that. I like Al more than I like Love anyhow. Welcome back. Figure it out. I accept.

[Phoenix Suns]

I really don't like the Kevin Love contract for his Age 32, 33, and 34 seasons, 10.5m a year is yuck for a guy who is constantly injured and a huge shutdown risk and whose advanced stats keep declining.

Horford is 9m this year only, and something I'd be much more comfortable holding. Horford has a long history of fading down the stretch and his move to the bench isn't exactly a plus, so neither of these guys are particularly thrilling.

I get Denver's desire to squeeze value out of Horford and get an extra year of production. Love's contract will be an expiring next season, meaning he will basically be Horford's contract this year, and have some value/interest from contender's next season.

There's a sucker born every minute, and Nuggets is convinced he can get trade value from Love next season. Given how well he's done this year, that seems like a good bet.

Wolves wants cap flexibility this summer and doesn't want the encumbrance of Love's deal, which is very understandable. I wouldn't want to hold Love's contract, either.

This deal is basically trading the value of Love's deal next season as an expiring to trade for two 2nd rounders or w/e, versus the cap hold of owning Love for an extended period and being hamstrung by his 10.5m.

Both have valid merits, and I wouldn't presume to know which is objectively better. If someone is dumb enough to trade for Love this summer before FA, then Nuggets wins this (assuming both Horford and Love are healthy for this post-season run) easily.

If not, it becomes a lot more murky. My preference is Wolves side, but it is just that, a preference. Impossible to know who wins this right now, but I see the move positively from each side.

Good trade by both teams.

I approve.

[Dallas Mavericks]

I like the Wolves' side of the deal for many of the reasons Suns has laid out above. I much prefer Horford over Love (the cap flexibility Wolves will have as a result is a huge plus) because I don't buy Love as a legitimate all star or someone who has waved off all the injury concerns.

Not going to put it past Denver to finagle a way to trade Love, so this seems like a fair trade.

I approve.