Minnesota Timberwolves: Grading the Rubio-Prince trade
It was another hot day in the state of Minnesota, the sun was out and it was only hours away from the 2021 NBA Draft. Usually, this is a busy day for the Minnesota Timberwolves. It’s the time of year where they’re attempting to draft their future cornerstone player.
This year’s a little different because they’re without a draft pick for the first time in franchise history. Naturally, it was supposed to be a relaxing day for Wolves fans. Well, if you thought that, you guessed wrong because Gersson Rosas isn’t shy making trades.
ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski reported the Timberwolves and the Cleveland Cavaliers are finalizing a trade to send Ricky Rubio to Cleveland, for Taurean Prince and more.
Here’s how each team graded out:
Timberwolves:
The second Rubio era was short-lived, lasting just one season. There were question marks before trading for him and beyond his mentorship with Anthony Edwards, the acquisition wasn’t a good one.
Minnesota needed a power forward and Prince fits the bill. Standing at 6-foot-7 and 218 lbs., the former Baylor Bear can play both the small and power forward. He’s played five seasons since being drafted 12th overall in the 2016 NBA Draft. In that span, he’s played for the Atlanta Hawks, Brooklyn Nets and Cavaliers.
Prince played for the Nets and the Cavaliers last season, averaging 9.5 points, 3.5 rebounds and 1.9 assists between the two teams. He also shot 40.1 percent from the field and 40.0 from 3 on 3.8 attempts.
Minnesota needs toughness and Prince isn’t afraid to get dirty. Malik Beasley and Edwards (soon) might be the only players on the roster that would fight back. Every playoff team has toughness and the Wolves added that with Prince.
Both Rubio ($17.8 million) and Prince ($13 million) are on the final year of their contracts. According to Jon Krawczynksi of The Athletic, this move saves the Wolves $5 million. It’ll be interesting to see how they use the money moving forward.
The future second-round pick is from the Washington Wizards and with the team’s future in the air, it looks like it’ll be a valuable pick.
Other than how this might affect Edwards, this move by Minnesota was great. Prince fits a positional need, brings toughness and saves the Wolves $5 million.
Grade: B+
Cavaliers:
This move for Cleveland doesn’t make a lot of sense on paper – unless they’re planning on trading Collin Sexton. They have a pretty crowded backcourt with Sexton and Darius Garland.
Rubio and D’Angelo Russell didn’t pair well together, but maybe that’s more on Russell’s style of play. But Sexton and Garland both need the ball in their hands because their score-first point guards. However, Rubio may play decent minutes off the bench with both Garland and Sexton starting.
Rubio started to get his legs under him towards the end of the season. If you remember, Rubio dealt with COVID-19 before the season and coming off the bench messed with his rhythm.
The Cavaliers appear to be in the same position as Minnesota was last season, so it’ll be interesting to see how this plays out. On top of giving up Prince, the Cavaliers are moving a second-round pick and cash. Cleveland may have given up too much for a player who’s 30 years old and on the final year of his contract.
This last season, Rubio averaged 8.6 points, 6.4 assists and 3.3 rebounds. With Rubio and Kevin Love reunited again, it looks like Minnesota fans will be rooting for them to have success.
