Thaddeus Young could be the next marquee trade this season. The 2014 offseason has already seen plenty of drama ranging from Carmelo Anthony's free agency choice to a trade of Kevin Love to the injury to Paul George. Is Young the next headline? As the forward approaches free agency, the Minnesota Timberwolves have their eyes on him and a long-term contract with his name on it.
With Kevin Love leaving the Minnesota Timberwolves, the team needs to replace him and they would like to do so sooner rather than later. Young has a player option in his contract with the Philadelphia 76ers, guaranteeing his departure next summer. Interest regarding the forward will be very high and Minnesota wants to get him before he is gone.
According to multiple NBA sources, Young is involved in the Love trade. The 76ers will be sending the forward to Minnesota in exchange for former No. 1 overall draft pick, Anthony Bennett. There have been some conflicting reports regarding this. The 76ers remain adamant that Young will be starting for Philadelphia next season. 76ers team reporter Tom Moore reports that the deal regarding Bennett might not be able to happen due to the designs of the salary cap. The details of the trade package for Love will not be known until Andrew Wiggins can officially be dealt at the end of August which means Young's future remains up in the air.
Minnesota is interested in the forward regardless of whether or not he is involved in the Love deal. According to ESPN.com, the Timberwolves are targeting a trade for Young with the intentions of re-signing him to a long-term deal next offseason. Chuck Myron of Hoops Rumors writes that the Timberwolves are not giving up on the season despite the loss of Love and believe that Young is the player that can help. Head coach Flip Saunders likes the pairing with Andrew Wiggins and believes Minnesota is still an option for the seventh or eighth seed in the Western Conference. Young would still be able to depart in the summer, but if things work out then Minnesota will extend his deal for the long-term.
Young is very capable of filling the shoes of Love and the Timberwolves have every intention of making sure he is involved in the deal for the forward. Everything will become clear once Wiggins' 30 days are up after he signed his contract and 76ers' fans should be prepared to not see Young in uniform next season.
