Blockbuster Three-Team Trade Idea Sends Karl-Anthony Towns + Marcus Smart to Atlanta, Dejounte Murray To Minnesota

Will the Hawks Make Big Moves This Offseason To Improve It's Roster

Apr 25, 2023; Boston, Massachusetts, USA; Atlanta Hawks guard Trae Young (11) points to his head after Boston Celtics guard Marcus Smart (36) was called for fouling him during the fourth quarter of game five of the 2023 NBA playoffs at TD Garden. Mandatory Credit: Winslow Townson-USA TODAY Sports / Winslow Townson-USA TODAY Sports

The NBA Finals resume tonight, but the way it is looking, the Boston Celtics are going to be the new NBA champions. Looking ahead to next year, the Celtics are going to be the favorite again and will be returning this team in tact next year.

There are plenty of teams that are not going to look the same though and they will be changing in hopes of catching the Celtics at some point. One of those teams might be the Minnesota Timberwolves, who were close to facing the Celtics in the Finals this year. The Hawks and Grizzlies did not have as good of a season as Minnesota did, but they have ammunition to look much different, or in Memphis's case they just need to stay healthy. Atlanta has a chance to land an impact player after winning the draft lottery, they will likely trade one of Trae Young or Dejounte Murray, and other players like Clint Capela, Bogdan Bogdanovic, and De'Andre Hunter could be moved as well. Atlanta has a lot of retooling to do with its roster, but they could be a much better team next season.

What about a three-team trade proposal that involves all three of these teams?

It should be noted that this is just speculative and a fun exercise to see what kind of moves can be made, not what I think a team should definitely do. That is all.

With that being said, I think there is a three-team trade that makes some sense for Minnesota, Atlanta, and Memphis.

Hawks Receive: Karl-Anthony Towns and Marcus Smart

Timberwolves receive- Dejounte Murray and Bogdan Bogdanovic

Grizzlies receive- Clint Capela and 2025 1st round pick via Sacramento (Protected 1-12)

Let's break down each side of this trade and see how viable it could be.

The Minnesota Timberwolves may have just made the Western Conference Finals, but they may have a very important decision to make this offseason. The Timberwolves are going to be over the second apron next season if the team stays like it is and it has diminished trade assets due to trading for Rudy Gobert, who just won another Defensive Player Of The Year Award. That has led to some speculation that the Timberwolves could try to trade star forward/center Karl-Anthony Towns as a way to avoid the second apron and get some draft picks back potentially.

Though it is still unknown whether the Timberwolves might actually do this, it might be a smart idea for a team that already has Anthony Edwards. Sixth Man Of The Year Naz Reid is ready to step into Towns role as well, making a move even easier. If Minnesota does decide to move Towns, there will be plenty of suitors around the league due to Towns being one of the best offensive big men in the league.

If Minnesota does decide they want to move Town's, they could look to add a guard to take some pressure off of Anthony Edwards and Murray feels like he would fit in. He is a good defender and would help run the offense, while Bogdanovic and Mike Conley could come off the bench. The Timberwolves would need to find a backup big man if they made this trade though.

While Towns might be one of the most talented big men in the league, I am unsure about his fit on the Hawks due to his defensive concerns. Pairing a shaky defender like Towns with a shaky defender like Trae Young seems like it might not be the best idea, but there are other ways for Atlanta to try and cover that up. Young and Towns would be an elite offensive duo with Towns ability to stretch the floor being a huge addition to the team. A way Atlanta could try and cover up those defeciencies on defense would be to add a point of attack guard defender and draft either Alex Sarr or Donovan Clingan. One point of attack guard defender that might be available at the right price is Marcus Smart, the former defensive player of the year.

I don't know if Smart would actually be available, but there are things that the Grizzlies need as a team and he could become expendable if the right fit came along. The one area that Memphis needs more than anything is a rim-protector and a rebounder, which Clint Capela is. Capela is going into the last year of his contract and Memphis might not love a straight swap of Smart and Capela. If Atlanta really wanted to get the deal done, they could throw in the lottery protected pick Sacramento owes them to entice the Grizzles.

Smart would be a great fit alongside Young and he has been mentioned as a potential trade candidate for the Hawks in the past. If this trade was made, the Hawks could have a starting lineup of:

PG- Trae Young

SG- Marcus Smart

SF- Jalen Johnson

PF- Karl-Anthony Towns

C- Onyeka Okongwu

The Hawks would then have Kobe Bufkin, De'Andre Hunter, the No.1 pick, and Mouhamed Gueye to come off the bench, plus they could make other moves to strengthen the bench.

If I had to guess, the team that might not want to do this would be Memphis. There are other rim protectors out there that are better than Capela, but they would cost more. It would be expensive to get Jarrett Allen or trade up to get Donovan Clingan. Capela would be the cheaper of the group that will be available this offseason.

Bleacher Report's Andy Bailey recently listed the Hawks as the "best fit" for Towns:

Best Spot: Atlanta Hawks

"The Minnesota Timberwolves just made the conference finals with a 22-year-old leading scorer. In the past, that would've felt like a surefire "run it back" situation.

But with Minnesota on track to be over the dreaded new second apron, it has to at least consider cost-cutting moves. The most obvious one would be a Karl-Anthony Towns trade, which is why he figures to show up in trade rumors for the next several weeks.

A Hawks team led by Towns and Trae Young would be lucky to be even average defensively. But Atlanta would likely near the top of the league on offense.

The Hawks could play a five-out, three-point-heavy scheme with Towns starting at the 5, and they wouldn't necessarily be sacrificing the lob threat that's such a huge part of Young's game. Jalen Johnson is a high-flyer, and he could become the more common receiver for alley-oops, sort of like Aaron Gordon with the Denver Nuggets."

It would not be a perfect fit, but in terms of talent, Towns might be the best Atlanta could do this offseason. If you added in the necessary surrounding pieces on defense, it could work.

This offseason is going to be interesting for all three teams and they could all look different in just a few weeks.