When LeBron James chose to take his talents to South Beach, he created the modern, free-agency version of the NBA superteam.
When James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh won two championships with the Miami Heat, the threesome created a template that other teams would try to emulate. Put three superstars together, and you had a chance to be great.
This led to a great number of NBA general managers chasing sparkle over substance, combining stars without correctly analyzing how they would play together, or what effect a top-heavy roster would have on long-term competitiveness.
Timberwolves boss Tim Connelly has proved, with his three major trades since joining the team, that he doesn’t care about name recognition or fan reaction. He is attempting to build a cohesive team with complementary personalities and skills.
That’s what makes the Wolves’ pursuit of Kevin Durant fascinating. Connelly isn’t trying to add a big name. He cares nothing for big names. He’s not trying to add star power for the sake of star power, or to impress the fan base, or to sell tickets.
If Connelly is plotting to alter a very good team to add Durant, that’s because he’s convinced that Durant could be the key to winning an NBA title.
Let’s look at Connelly’s three big Timberwolves trades through that prism.
Connelly traded for Rudy Gobert not because the move would be popular but because Gobert immediately fixed the Wolves’ biggest problems at that time — rim protection and rebounding.