The trade that sent Karl-Anthony Towns to New York and brought Julius Randle, Donte DiVincenzo and Keita Bates-Diop to Minnesota was finally made official Wednesday after the Knicks jumped through the necessary logistical hoops to make the deal work financially. And while the three newcomers won’t speak publicly until a press conference slated for Thursday morning, Timberwolves coach Chris Finch was finally able to comment on the deal Wednesday afternoon. He opened by praising Towns, noting how the four-time all-star welcomed Finch when he came abroad via unusual circumstances in the middle of the 2020-21 campaign and set the tone for a strong environment on top of being a highly skilled basketball player. But as much as he’ll miss Towns, Finch is excited about adding Randle and DiVincenzo. With Randle, it’s a reunion. Finch previously coached the forward as an assistant in New Orleans and noted he “loved” that experience. He called Randle a “joy to coach” and a “great pro.” Those traits are part of the reason Finch isn’t concerned with the deal being struck on the eve of training camp. The newcomers will have exactly one practice with the team before Friday’s preseason opener in Los Angeles. Finch noted that gives people less time to wring their hands over potential fits. “You don’t really get to pick your timing a lot of times in our business,” Finch said. “We’re going to see our new players in action right away. That’s exciting. We don’t have to wait too long to see what that looks like. … I think having coached Julius before, a lot of the things that we did in New Orleans still hold true in our offense here. I think he’s looking forward to that. We feel that Donte is plug-and-play with the way he plays and the way he can shoot the ball. His basketball IQ, and his ability to cut and move and play off the ball is something that we really need. That’ll benefit us right away.” Finch said Randle is an “incredible” playmaker who is a strong passer and has run some of the pick-and-roll actions Minnesota previously employed with Towns and Rudy Gobert. Randle’s fit on the roster has been questioned by pundits, but Finch noted Randle played next to traditional centers in New York without much issue. “Obviously learning each other, that’s always a growing curve,” Finch said. “But the general fit, I don’t see as an issue.” Randle can mimic Towns’ general production. DiVincenzo gives Minnesota a movement shooter the Wolves haven’t possessed since trading Malik Beasley two years ago. Both players are comfortable and accustomed to playing with pace, which can inject some life into Minnesota’s often feeble transition attack. The Wolves can still go big — Finch said Naz Reid may still see small forward minutes alongside both Randle and Gobert — but they can also go small by putting a slew of wings on the floor together. Finch suggested Randle will get the starting nod over Reid, but there are now countless combinations the Wolves can use to zig or zag throughout the game. A year ago, Minnesota had a solidified top eight of starter-quality players. The departure of Kyle Anderson put a similar dynamic in jeopardy heading into this season. It looked like the Wolves were going to have to throw a young player or two into the fire, which is a scary prospect for a supposed championship contender. Now, an essentially worry-free top eight is restored, with the young talent deeper on the bench serving as a reserve for when the Wolves need to inject some life or utilize depth. “We definitely come into the season knowing we have a commitment to our younger guys, the guys that we drafted. Josh Minott, Leonard (Miller), the guys that have been here in the last couple draft classes, whether it be Rob (Dillingham), TJ (Shannon), etc,” Finch said. “This doesn’t mitigate that importance for us, but it does protect them a little bit. Our exposure is a little bit reduced. Their exposure’s a little bit reduced. We can probably bring them on at a little bit more of a natural learning curve. “We’re going to have opportunities through attrition with some older players on the roster. Hopefully they stay healthy. We’ve got to manage their minutes and all that. We feel we could end up being one of the deeper teams in the league.” It’s clear Finch believes Minnesota got better with this deal. It’s why he felt the need Wednesday to emphasize that in no way was this trade a cost-cutting measure. “Glen (Taylor) and our ownership was and is committed to paying large amounts of tax for this team to be highly competitive. That hasn’t changed,” Finch said. “This deal in totality checks a lot of boxes. We think it’s a great basketball trade. We think it makes us deeper in a lot of ways and in ways that we needed. It does give us flexibility and mechanisms to keep remaking the team going forward. More than anything, that whole package there was the reasons for the deal. “But it doesn’t change either our expectations coming into the season. We still have a very, very talented roster, the same core as last year and we’ve got two great weapons to add to that. We got some things to figure out as a result. Certainly going to be some rough edges that we got to smooth over, but it doesn’t change our expectations or our ambitions.”Related Articles Minnesota Timberwolves | Vikings’ Brian O’Neill was once teammates with Timberwolves’ Donte DiVincenzo Minnesota Timberwolves | Josh Minott impressing Timberwolves with recent play in camp Minnesota Timberwolves | As Timberwolves’ new season begins, now former teammates say they’ll miss Karl-Anthony Towns, and wish him the best Minnesota Timberwolves | A look at Timberwolves’ potential roster and rotation after KAT trade Minnesota Timberwolves | Timberwolves trade Karl-Anthony Towns to Knicks for Julius Randle, Donte DiVincenzo and a first-round pick