Grade the Trade: Golden State Warriors trade Wiggins back to Wolves in blockbuster pitch

Laying out an Andrew Wiggins trade

Andrew Wiggins will make $24.3 million this season, the first year in a new four-year extension that he signed a year ago. Even if Wiggins shoots below his career norms for the rest of the season, that's a number many teams would pay to secure a two-way wing with postseason experience.

One team in particular could see Wiggins as a way to build out their roster and simultaneously save a significant amount of money, and that's the Minnesota Timberwolves. They are off to a strong start this season, but hanging over them is the financial cloud of darkness coming next season; they will be paying their three centers a combined $108 million next year.

That level of financial cost, on top of Anthony Edwards and Jaden McDaniels both on new deals next season and whatever it would take to bring back Mike Conley and Kyle Anderson, is likely prohibitve. New ownership will almost certainly want to decrease that luxury tax bill, especially with the team-building restrictions added in.

If they need to trade a player, perhaps Karl-Anthony Towns is the answer. He and Rudy Gobert are an awkward fit, and his offensive chops and shooting from the center position make him a valuable player around the league, even if he still needs to prove it in the playoffs.

Let's bring these two lines of thought together. What would it take for the Warriors to trade for Karl-Anthony Towns to juice their offense and give Curry a hand? It could involve sending Andrew Wiggins back home to the Timberwolves.

Towns makes $23 million more next season than Wiggins, giving the Timberwolves some much-needed tax relief. If the Warriors are willing to pay the cost, they get a 28 year old stretch-5 to reinvigorate their offense, one who is under contract for a very long time.

Moses Moody and Gary Payton II are required to make the money work, and both will be helpful additions to the Wolves. Minnesota is already fairly deep, but this trade would make them positionally versatile, able to play Naz Reid in a role more befitting his size and skill. A 4-out lineup around Rudy Gobert works if you have enough two-way pieces.

What about the Warriors? Would this trade make them better?