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10 NBA Teams That Should Trade For Eric Bledsoe

By Gerald Bourguet

Jan 5, 2017; Dallas, TX, USA; Phoenix Suns guard Eric Bledsoe (2) brings the ball up court against the Dallas Mavericks during the first quarter at the American Airlines Center. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports
Jan 5, 2017; Dallas, TX, USA; Phoenix Suns guard Eric Bledsoe (2) brings the ball up court against the Dallas Mavericks during the first quarter at the American Airlines Center. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports /
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Eric Bledsoe
Jan 24, 2017; Phoenix, AZ, USA; Phoenix Suns guard Devin Booker (1) and Eric Bledsoe (2) react against the Minnesota Timberwolves at Talking Stick Resort Arena. The Timberwolves defeated the Suns 112-111. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports /

4. Minnesota Timberwolves

The Minnesota Timberwolves have had Ricky Rubio on and off the trade block for years now, and though they view Kris Dunn as his eventual replacement, the simple truth is that he’s nowhere near being ready.

Even with the Wolves fully committing to their youth movement, a more stable option at the point and a veteran leader could really help the team’s Big Three — Andrew Wiggins, Karl-Anthony Towns and Zach LaVine — grow up a little quicker.

Going from Bledsoe to Minnesota’s current point guard is clearly a downgrade, and we can’t ignore that Rubio is also on the books through the 2018-19 season. But he’s on a perfectly manageable contract, and if the Timberwolves threw in a future first round pick, it’d be hard to turn that kind of offer down — especially if it were in the near future before that core is ready to contend.

Though he’s only averaging 8.7 points and 8.1 assists per game on ugly .384/.289/.871 shooting splits, Rubio is the defense-first, pass-first kind of point guard the Suns need with so many young players. If the front office wanted to give more time to Ulis and a top point guard in this year’s draft, they could always flip Rubio to another team that needed his services.

Unfortunately, the Timberwolves might prefer to hold onto Rubio if it means keeping all of their future first-rounders.

After all, they’re heading for another appearance in the NBA Draft Lottery this year, and the inevitable switch to Dunn won’t make their path back to the postseason any easier. With LaVine’s season-ending injury dooming their fading playoff hopes, the Wolves will also be less likely to make a trade for a difference-maker at this year’s deadline.

The Suns also might not want to take on Rubio when he’d be on the books for the same amount of time as Bledsoe. Unless getting another first-rounder was a high priority for McDonough, it’d make more sense to just keep the superior player between the two.