Ben Simmons Trade Rumors: Timberwolves 'Badly' Want to Deal for 76ers Star

One of the storylines of the NBA offseason this summer will be the future of Ben Simmons in Philadelphia and whether the Sixers will trade him.

If they do put him on the market, one team to keep an eye on is the Minnesota Timberwolves, according to Darren Wolfson of 5 Eyewitness News in Minneapolis:

“I texted with someone that knows Ben Simmons incredibly well that has working knowledge of all things NBA. My text the other day said ... ‘how badly do the Wolves want to trade for Ben Simmons?’ This individual sent me a text back. It was one word: ‘Badly.' Make no mistake: The Wolves have trade interest in Ben Simmons."

It's easy to see why Minnesota would be interested. It has a stretch-5 in Karl-Anthony Towns who would pair more seamlessly with Simmons than Joel Embiid—KAT took 6.3 threes per game this past season, shooting 38.7 percent from deep—and a young, promising wing in Anthony Edwards. 

The Wolves could put four shooters around Simmons, let him attack the basket and pass to an open player, or let KAT and Edwards create their own shot in crunch time. The fit is there. 

The bigger question is what the return might be. A straight-up Simmons-for-D'Angelo Russell trade would work financially, but it wouldn't make much sense for Philly. Yes, Russell is a better and more willing scorer than Simmons and who could run the pick-and-roll effectively with Embiid. After Simmons' unwillingness to shoot the ball in the fourth quarter of these playoffs, a half-court upgrade would be a breath of fresh air. 

But Russell isn't an upgrade as a passer, and he's probably not the sort of elite perimeter player capable of consistently creating his own shot deep in the playoffs that the Sixers desperately need. Plus, he's a dramatic drop-off defensively from Simmons.