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

Would this make the Warriors better?

On the surface, this seems like a fairly straightforward trade. The Warriors trade Andrew Wiggins, Moses Moody and Gary Payton II, losing defensive players in exchange for an offensive one. The Warriors will be more expensive, but they'll have more scoring pop.

That's not incorrect, but looking a little deeper, the presence of Karl-Anthony Towns on the roster would truly take the offense to another level. He and Stephen Curry would be lethal in the two-man game, and playing Draymond Green becomes significantly more viable when he's with a stretch-big. Chris Paul is carving up defenses playing with Dario Saric as his pick-and-pop partner; imagine how much better those actions will be with Towns?

The defense is obviously the biggest question mark here. Towns appears to have made incremental improvements on that end, but at the end of the day he's still a below-average defensive center. The Warriors would have to outscore opponents, easier said than done, but also well within the wheelhouse of this aging juggernaut.

There is a sort of logic to this deal. Sell low on Wiggins in order to buy low on Towns. Get Curry a true No. 2. Give the frontcourt more lineup versatility. The gutting this trade would do to their perimeter rotation, however, is absolutely jarring. Towns is also the exact kind of player to put up great numbers in the regular season and then wilt in the playoffs; would he turn into a 16-game player by being around them?

There would be some tremendous moments during games if the Warriors made this deal. There would also be major question marks. In the end, the Warriors are better off keeping their rotation intact and hoping that together, Wiggins and Thompson can step up to the plate.

Grade: B-