The first reaction to Adrian Wojnarowski’s latest press release, that the Timberwolves are swapping five players and four No. 1 draft picks in Utah for center Rudy Gobert, is that this franchise should be reluctant to do business with Danny Ainge. .
In 2007, Ainge led the Boston Celtics and tried to get this team out of a huge hole – a 24-58 record in 2006-07 that was the second worst in franchise history.
The Timberwolves had entered their second long descent with a 32-50 record. Ainge spoke with his friend and former teammate, Wolves basketball head Kevin McHale, about the possibility of acquiring Kevin Garnett.
McHale gave Ainge permission to contact Garnett and find out if he would accept a deal with Boston. “I had to convince Kevin that we could win,” Ainge said. “That led us to get Ray Allen, and then Kevin was all on board.”
On July 31, 2007, Ainge made the trade that lives in infamy for both the Celtics and the Wolves:
Garnett in Boston for Al Jefferson, Gerald Green, Sebastian Telfair, Theo Ratliff and Ryan Gomes. There were also two first-round players in 2009, whom McHale’s replacement, David Kahn, turned into Jonny Flynn (an effective player in Australia later) and Wayne Ellington.
The Timberwolves were 22-60 on 2007-08 and didn’t make it to the playoffs for another decade. The Celtics, with Garnett’s “Big Three,” Allen and Paul Pierce, went 66-16 and won the NBA title.
Somewhere in the Target Center office, there should be a wooden plaque with a burned slogan: “Watch out for the Angel.”
The deal revealed Friday comes from the opposite direction: Ainge, who has led the Utah Jazz since December, is getting the numbers and sending the featured player to the Wolves.
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