As the NBA postseason officially begins this Saturday, it marks the start of the journey toward the championship.
But for the eliminated teams, it means developing trade proposals and eyeing big names in free agency. The New Orleans Pelicans are among these teams, whose organization will be flooded with trade rumors around star forward Zion Williamson. ClutchPoints' Julian Ojeda proposed the Minnesota Timberwolves swap the Pelicans star with Julius Randle to pair with Anthony Edwards.
"Pairing Zion Williamson with Anthony Edwards (23) — who led the league in made three-pointers with 320 and became the youngest player in NBA history to do so — would form a high-powered offensive duo, especially with Edwards averaging 27.6 points per game this season," Ojeda wrote.
Randle, while still decent as a No. 2 option, has had a dramatic drop in production in Minnesota. He is averaging just 18.7 points and a career-low 7.1 rebounds. There's also the stigma of him underperforming in the playoffs, illustrated by his struggles in New York over the past few years.
Even for his lengthy injury history, Williamson is still a star on the court when he does play. He averages 24.7 points in his career, still one of the highest-scoring forwards in the league. It's a high-risk, high-reward proposal that could pair two of the best at their position together as the next star duo in Minnesota.
We'll have to see about the Timberwolves' postseason first. They face the Los Angeles Lakers in the first round of the Western playoffs on Saturday night. Los Angeles is favored to win the series, but Edwards is already embracing the underdog role.
“I love the fact that everyone wants the Lakers to win,” Edwards said at his Wednesday afternoon presser. “That’s how it’s supposed to be. They don’t want the Timberwolves to win. I get it.”
Follow The Sporting News on WhatsApp
MORE MINNESOTA TIMBERWOLVES NEWS
Anthony Edwards doesn’t hold back after hearing Lakers-Timberwolves series predictions
Timberwolves star Julius Randle takes subtle shot at Lakers ahead of playoff series