Why the Golden State Warriors won the Andrew Wiggins and D’Angelo Russell trade

The verdict

Neither team lost, but the Warriors won.

The reason? Context is huge in this deal and in every move they’ve made since the end of last season.

When Kevin Durant left during the summer, most teams would have just tried to bring in other free agents to fill the roster and rebuild the system around Steph and Klay. But the Warriors aren’t most teams.

They knew Durant was going to the Nets and they knew the Nets couldn’t keep D’Angelo Russell. So they did the smart thing – a sign-and-trade that brings Russell to Golden State despite the fact that he almost certainly wasn’t going to fit in their system.

Now, of course, they flipped Russell for Wiggins and a first-round pick. I personally don’t think Russell changes the Timberwolves expected win total that significantly, so I expect the pick to be a pretty good one.

So as a recap – they took a top 2 player leaving in free agency and turned it into an ill-fitting All-Star point guard. And then flipped the ill-fitting guard for a former first overall pick who, at least on paper, provides a better positional fit, as well as a hardly protected first-round pick from a perennial lottery team.

The NBA is all about assets, and the Warriors turned what should have been the loss of one the league’s most significant assets into the receipt of three valuable new ones (Russell, Wiggins, first-round pick) – and they probably aren’t done yet.

The Warriors win this deal because it’s the latest in a series of moves that have allowed them to keep their championship window open a little longer. They might not win one without Durant, but they’re giving themselves the best chance possible. That’s really all you can do.

The Timberwolves won the PR contest, though. They made their superstar a little happier and got rid of a player the fan base was tired of watching. But despite the locker room and fan base getting a temporary morale boost, the team isn’t significantly better than it was a week ago.

I like the move for the Timberwolves, but I love the move for the Warriors.