New NBA Trade Rumors Reveal T-Wolves' Pursuit of Jaylen Brown, Giannis, Josh Giddey
The Minnesota Timberwolves were intent on making big moves this offseason, to the point where they discussed trading for Jaylen Brown with the Boston Celtics and Giannis Antetokounmpo with the Milwaukee Bucks.
Minnesota even was in pursuit of Chicago Bulls point guard Josh Giddey, per Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic, who provided more information on Wednesday.
"The Wolves had talks with the Celtics about Jaylen Brown, the Milwaukee Bucks about Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Chicago Bulls about Josh Giddey, according to team sources who granted anonymity so they could talk about sensitive negotiations. Brown was intriguing, but the Celtics were asking for a king's ransom that included Gobert and heavy draft capital.
"There were also debates about how Edwards and Brown would fit together as two ISO-heavy scorers on offense. Connelly had given chase to Antetokounmpo before last season and at the trade deadline, but the Wolves never got close on a deal there either, sources said. Giddey was another big guard to potentially pair with Edwards, but there was little traction on talks there."
Jaylen Brown ended up going to the Philadelphia 76ers, while Antetokounmpo was sent to the Miami Heat. Giddey remains a Bull.
The Wolves, of course, eventually added LaMelo Ball from the Charlotte Hornets. Krawczynski noted that Ball being available was a game-changer.
"When it became clear Ball was available, every other option was set aside," Krawczynski wrote in part.
Ball has played six NBA seasons, all with the Hornets. In 72 games (69 starts) last season, Ball averaged 20.1 points, 7.1 assists and 4.8 rebounds per game.
He's a game-changing addition to the Wolves' offense as he and Edwards now form one of the league's most explosive and dynamic backcourts.
Minnesota did lose power forward Julius Randle to the Brooklyn Nets, though, in that same trade, so that's a tough loss the 'Wolves will have to navigate.
Still, the Timberwolves understandably needed to figure out a new course after hitting multiple road blocks in the postseason. They reached the Western Conference Finals in 2024 and 2025 but fell to the Dallas Mavericks and Oklahoma City Thunder, respectively. Minnesota then fell in the second round to the San Antonio Spurs this past season.
The Timberwolves hope Ball can be the answer to finally getting to the NBA Finals. His addition is certainly one of the league's more notably storylines entering the season.
