The Minnesota Timberwolves read the reports like everyone else that the New York Knicks want to make a hard run at Kevin Love in the future, which is one reason why players like Derrick Williams and Alexey Shved are on the trading block for veterans, as the team hopes they can sway Love to stay.
The report from Yahoo Sports wrote that the Knicks will make a hard push in 2015 for Love when he has the chance to be a free agent, but the Timberwolves are hoping that they can turn things around to keep him from doing that. The team, according to Pro Basketball Talk, is willing to trade Williams or Shved for veteran players to help make a playoff push and that would be the first step in trying to keep Love. The team missed out on the playoffs while he was injured last season, but they have a core as talented as anyone and that could get the team into the west playoffs and a trade could help make that happen.
Love is the best player on the team and there is plenty of talent with Kevin Martin, Ricky Rubio and Nikola Pekovic and that could be exactly what the teams needs to make it into the postseason as one of the lower seeds. If Rubio and Love can remain on the court, they are one of the best duos in the NBA and they currently lead the team in a number of categories. Love is tops with 26 points and 15 rebounds per game, while Rubio is averaging three steals and nearly nine assists this season as the team is third in the division behind Portland and Oklahoma City with a 5-3 record.
Williams has been mentioned in trade rumors since the summer and last season after being a top draft pick for the Timberwolves and with Love looking like he will opt out in 2015, the Wolves realize they must try and make things happen sooner rather than later. Having Flip Saunders in as the top exec will help things with Love, but if the team doesn't improve, there is a good chance he will bounce. The Timberwolves like Williams, but they realize his trade value will only decrease as he gets older and if they do not see him as someone to keep for the long haul, they may just decide to deal him instead.
The Knicks obviously would love to snag Love, but that will take some luck and some big improvements on their end as well and likely also means being able to keep Carmelo Anthony. Minnesota is ranked sixth in the league in rebounds per game and they have been playing fairly well this season with rookie Shabazz Muhammad in the fold, as they are ranked in the top 10 in assists and scoring, coming in at fourth in the NBA with over 106 points per game. The team lost by two to the LA Clippers on Monday and Love had an impressive 19 rebounds and this is exactly why the Wolves don't want to give him up - the man is a double-double machine. Williams, your time may be limited.
