I love this team. I really do. I like KAT. I started a thread the other day that celebrated his defensive effort – before he turned on his offensive game over the weekend. I hope/wish this roster can stay together and we can win multiple championships together.

But, unfortunately, that’s not the reality of the situation. The new bylaws make it almost impossible.

On one hand, it’s bullshit that our franchise finally turned a corner, is able to put together a Big 4 that wants to be in Minneapolis, only to have the league rules change and essentially prevent team building that empowered big markets like Boston, Miami, and SF to win trophies.

On the other hand, I am not entirely convinced that our ownership group would be willing to pay/could even afford the luxury tax under the old rules.

I get that it’s offensive that big markets like NYC think they can take one of our stars for pennies on the dollar. But it’s not like the basis of this came out of thin air. There are external factors that might force our hand here. Now, that doesn’t necessarily mean we got to give KAT or Rudy away for nothing. It does mean, however, that we may need to make a move before the season end.

Your response can be “Fuck that, we can keep everyone and win multiple titles over the next 5 years.” Or, more reasonably, you might think “Let’s roll the dice, try to win it all this year, and then figure out a trade in the offseason.”

I worry the risk would be too big to take. Here’s why: If we don’t win it all, we could be put in a situation where we have to trade KAT in the offseason under terms that would not be favorable to us. I don’t think I am breaking any news here, as the Hoop Collective podcast and others have pointed this out already, but with KAT’s salary jumping roughly $15M next year, that’s an extra $15M we have to take back on top of the roughly $35M he is making this year, which really hampers our ability to build out a roster around Ant, McDaniels, and Rudy (and Naz).

Is there a miracle solution out there, where we win the title this year and then Connelly is able to find multiple trade partners to move KAT and have another team receive all the bad contracts that we’d otherwise have to take back. Sure. I guess it is plausible, especially if KAT plays at an All NBA level and proves he can be the cornerstone of a franchise outside of Minnesota.

I guess I am writing all of this (apologies for the length) because we shouldn’t be surprised if there are a lot of fan-made and media-proposed trade ideas the next couple of months. While these mock trades might be bullshit, the basis for them is not.

Fortunately, our roster may be able to withstand a KAT move. Naz is clearly ready for a bigger role. We have guys like Leonard Miller and Minott waiting in the wing. It seems like our FO has been anticipating this moment for a couple of years now. While the ride has been fun this year, there may be no way of avoiding its end.