Report: Wolves interested in trading for Philly's Guerschon Yabusele

Yabusele was teammates with Rudy Gobert during the Paris Olympics.

Jan 15, 2025; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Philadelphia 76ers forward Guerschon Yabusele (28) reacts after missing a shot against the New York Knicks during the first quarter at Wells Fargo Center. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-Imagn Images / Bill Streicher-Imagn Images

Remember last summer at the Paris Olympics when one of the stars of the French national team wasn't Rudy Gobert, but instead Guerschon Yabusele?

He's a name to monitor between now and the trade deadline as NBA insiders Marc Stein and Jake Fischer are saying the Minnesota Timberwolves are interested in acquiring him from the Philadelphia 76ers.

"Sources say that Yabusele continues to generate interest from playoff teams, with Philadelphia weighing offers that feature multiple second-round picks," they reported Friday. "Minnesota is the latest team to join that case, sources say."

A report Thursday from HoopsHype's Michael Scotto identified Boston, New York and Denver as teams also interested in Yabusele.

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The 29-year-old has started 22 of 44 games with Philadelphia this season and averaged 10.4 points and 5.5 rebounds while shooting 50.2% overall and 39.3% from three. He's making just over $2 million this season and is set to become a free agent this summer, so trading for him could wind up being a rental.

The 6-foot-8 power forward played with a ferocity that helped spark France to the gold-medal game where they lost to the United States in a thriller last August. Yabusele had 22 points in a quarterfinal win over Canada; 17 points in the semifinals against Germany; and 20 points against the U.S. in the championship game.

On January 27, Stein reported that the 76ers wanted "to gauge results over the next week-plus before firming up their trade deadline approach." Nearing one week later and the 76ers have won four games in a row and are clearly in contention for the play-in tournament.

As a second apron team in the NBA's luxury tax model, the Timberwolves cannot take back more salary than they send out, so Minnesota would need to add a player contract in addition to second-round picks the 76ers might be seeking.

The Timberwolves have one of the most valuable second-round picks in the 2025 draft as it's from the Utah Jazz, who enter play Friday with the second worst record in the NBA.

The NBA trade deadline hits Feb. 6 at 2 p.m. CT.