What's a fair price for Wolves to get for Robert Covington, give for D'Angelo Russell?

The NBA trade deadline is a marathon leading to a sprint, with the finish line beckoning Thursday afternoon.

The two most persistent Timberwolves-based rumblings – that Robert Covington is available and very well could be dealt, and that the Wolves continue to pursue D'Angelo Russell – gained plenty of steam already this week.

ESPN's Zach Lowe, citing sources, called Covington "as good a bet as any high-wattage player to move this week," while his colleague Adrian Wojnarowski opened a podcast with a very similar declaration.

Regarding Russell, Lowe writes: "The Wolves are still in hot pursuit … two months ago, it looked as if any Russell discussion — if the Warriors had interest in one — would wait until the offseason, but Minnesota has not given up hope of acquiring him now." Lowe also connects the dots between Covington and Russell: "Minnesota could in theory acquire draft picks and salary in a Covington deal, and sweeten the pot with those."

But what would either deal look like? At the heart of that question are two questions:

What's a fair return for the Wolves in a Covington trade? And how much should they be willing to give up to get Russell? Let's take a look at both.

*Covington's appeal is clear as a versatile forward who's an elite defender and a capable three-point shooter – all while being under contract for two more years after this at what qualifies in the NBA as a bargain contract ($25 million total the next two seasons).

He'd be a great fit for a team with a championship window, so it's no surprise that teams like the Rockets, Clippers and 76ers have been among those mentioned in trade chatter.

The problem is the Wolves reportedly covet draft picks in a Covington deal, as they should – two first-round picks, according to a Marc Stein report. Even if the Wolves soften that stance as the deadline nears, contending teams have less appealing picks to deal because they figure to be in the 20s instead of the lottery (unless they own a pick from another non-contender).

Covington is too good to just flip for a low first-round pick and an expiring contract/salary match. At a minimum, the Wolves would also need at least an enticing second-round pick (maybe one of the billion the 76ers have stockpiled in various deals) or an additional young player with upside.

That would either give the Wolves more draft capital of their own to use … or more chips to include in a potential Russell deal, probably keeping them from having to use more than one of their own first-round picks.

*But what's a fair price for Russell? I guess that depends on what you think of Russell.

Then again, what you think of him might not matter all that much. All that matters is what the Wolves think of him.

The Wolves have made it abundantly clear in their relentless pursuit of Russell – first in free agency, and now via a possible trade just a few months into his Warriors tenure – that they think he is a foundational piece of what they want to build.

It helps that his offensive game would complement franchise center Karl-Anthony Towns, and that D'Lo and KAT are friends. Keeping KAT happy might be important in a season that has quickly devolved into frustration. The Wolves have lost 12 in a row. KAT has a personal 16-game losing streak.

Russell is on a max deal, with three years left after this one, which could wreak havoc on the Wolves' future salary cap. Towns and Andrew Wiggins are also on max deals, leaving precious little space to build around them unless Wiggins can be moved (as my colleague Chris Hine can attest, I have some wild theories about how to accomplish that).

OK, but back to the question. What should the Wolves be willing to give up?

The Ringer reports the Wolves were willing to include a Brooklyn first-round pick from a Covington trade plus their own first-rounder, but that Golden State shot down that offer.

A sticking point might be whether the Wolves are willing to deal their pick "unprotected" – meaning Golden State gets it no matter where it lands – or if they want some assurance that they would keep the pick and instead give up a future pick if it lands in, say, the top four.

As Kevin O'Connor mentions in that Ringer piece: "There's a deal to be made for Russell if the Wolves can come up with enough assets and don't protect their own first-round pick."

Here's the thing: The draft is perhaps the best way for a bad, cap-strapped team to remake itself. But the 2020 draft is shaping up to be one of the weakest in recent history.

If I'm the Wolves, I think I would send the 2020 pick unprotected as part of a deal for Russell – an All-Star last year in Brooklyn who has been even better and more efficient for a downtrodden Warriors team this year. Bet on Russell making you immediately better and making your pick less attractive. Then cross your fingers on lottery night. Brooklyn's pick will be in the mid-to-upper teens if they hold onto a playoff spot in the bad East. The Wolves pick is dicier, but with a better final 33 games the most likely outcome could be in the 6-8 range.

As much of a salve as the draft can be, consider this: Of the 70 lottery picks chosen from 2012-16, only 12 of those players have made even one All-Star team. Two of them are Towns and Russell, the first two picks in the 2015 draft. Would you trade the No. 6 and No. 16 pick in a draft for a No. 2 pick who pans out as an All-Star?

Adding a layer to all this, of course: Russell is Towns' friend, but so is Covington. In fact, Towns said Monday that Covington is his best friend on the team and that seeing him traded would be hard.

But Wolves President Gersson Rosas is fond of saying "the reality is …" and this is bottom-line reality in this case: If you have a chance to get the player you think can help run your system and start the path back to the playoffs, you go and get him. I'm not sure Russell — another offensively gifted and defensively challenged player — is the answer, but the Wolves clearly do.

So what's a fair price in both deals? In the end, the answer might be: The Wolves need to get as much as possible for Covington, with a deal specifically tailored to allow them to then go get Russell.