coolhandgopher
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I feel like a Bleacher Report "journalist" putting together one of those lists where you have to click through page by page to complete the article with intermittent ads popping up throughout. I promise, this isn't that. And perhaps Canis Hoopus or other T-Wolves devoted writers have already written this article and I've missed it. But a recent conversation in another post regarding the futility of the Timberwolves and the NBA draft inspired me to dig in and do a little research. Over the course of 31 years, the franchise has made egregious mistakes, one after another, in the NBA draft, starting with their very first pick, way back in 1989. I'm here to relive them all and drag you through the misery with me, although I'm giving 2019 a pass for now (please keep yourself off this list Jarrett Culver).
I established a couple rules for myself-#1, just because the player might be lousy, that didn't guarantee a spot on the list-there had to be a standout player chosen after the T-Wolves selection. Felton Spencer may have been a bum, but the players chosen after him didn't accomplish much either in the NBA, so that pick isn't on this list. Which leads to rule #2-if I cite a pick where the TWolves blew it, it has to be in regards to a player chosen shortly thereafter in the draft. Should the TWolves have chosen Manu Ginobili in 1999 rather than Louis Bullock? Sure, but so should have the 14 teams between those two picks.
Alright, without further ado-here's the ignominious list:
1989-Pooh Richardson (#10) over Nick Anderson (#11), Mookie Blaylock (#12) and Tim Hardaway (#14)
There's many players on this list who were much worse than Pooh-in fact, he ranks pretty high among the misses on this list-but despite a relatively decent three years with the Wolves, it can't be denied that three of the four players taken immediately after him all had superior careers, Hardaway in particular, becoming part of Run TMC in Golden State, winning a championship with Miami, and five times being recognized on an All-NBA team (1st team in 1996-97).
1989-Gary Leonard (#34) over Cliff Robinson (#36)
I said there were much worse players than Pooh on this list and Leonard might be the worst. Three years in a row the TWolves drafted a 7' stiff in the draft and amazingly, the biggest miss occurred in the second round of '89 rather than the lotteries of '90 and '91. Robinson immediately stepped into the rotation with Portland, contributing to those strong Blazers teams in the early '90s, winning the 6th Man of the Year Award in '93, named an All-Star in '94, and twice being named to the All-Defensive 2nd team, while also being a marksman from behind the three point line. Robinson played 18 seasons in the NBA and is in the Top 20 all-time for minutes played in the NBA. Leonard played 22 games for the Wolves and averaged 3 points and 3 rebounds in the CBA.
(Picture for a moment, the inaugural draft class of the T-Wolves featuring Timmy Hardaway and Cliff Robinson, along with Doug West, who was chosen a few picks after Robinson. Not a bad core for a franchise to work with, is it?)
1992-Marlon Maxey (#28) over PJ Brown (#29)
Another second round miss, although the TWolves got two seasons from Maxey, buried at the end of the bench. Brown, after a year playing overseas, established himself as a 15 year NBA veteran who was selected to the All NBA defensive second team on three occasions. Imagine Brown playing next to KG on that frontline, serving as a much needed enforcer on those TWolves teams through the '90s and early '00s.
1994-Donyell Marshall (#4) over Juwon Howard (#5)
This ended up alright for the Wolves, since Marshall was shuttled over to Golden State for Tom Gugliotta, who along with KG and Marbury, were the trio I associate with the golden years for the franchise. That being said, while Marshall ended up having a long and decent career in the NBA, it was a shadow of Howard's career, beginning immediately. Perhaps management thought they had the same player in Christian Laettner, but he got moved midway through the following season. Probably worked out for the best, as if Howard was on the team, they probably would not have selected KG. Nonetheless, they got bailed out on a bad draft choice.
1999-Wally Szczerbiak (#6) over Richard Hamilton (#7), Andre Miller (#8), Shawn Marion (#9), and Jason Terry (#10)
From the years of 1995 to 1999, the TWolves had a period of inspired personnel moves-the ballsy drafting of Garnett out of high school, bringing Stephon Marbury in the following season (which I maintain was the right move and if Marbury hadn't been a jealous headcase), the trade for Googs, drafting Rasho Nesterovic, making solid trades/signings for valuable role players like Dean Garrett, Anthony Peeler, Bobby Jackson, and Malik Sealy. Sure, Paul Grant was an all-time dud, but they atoned for that mistake by trading for Jackson a year later. And when they had to salvage something for Marbury, grabbing a former All-Star point guard and this particular draft pick. That all seemingly started to unravel with the Joe Smith debacle and the '99 draft.
Wally S. is easily the best player on this list of TWolves where I judge a mistake to have been made, but if you look at each of the four players drafted immediately after him, I'd take each of their careers without blinking with Marion at #9 particularly enticing.
1999-William Avery (#16) over Ron Artest (#18)
While you could argue I was too hard on Wally S., there's no disputing here-Avery was an unmitigated bust, averaging less than 3 points per game in three seasons with the Wolves. Artest, well, he was most definitely lightning in a gasoline soaked bottle, but he was a talent on the court, particularly on the defensive end, highlighted by winning DPOY award in 2004.
So, imagine that instead of Wally and William, the TWolves had drafted Rip Hamilton and Ron Artest in '04 to join KG and Terrell Brandon. And imagine that in '02, the TWolves had chosen to roll with Chauncey Billups rather than Brandon. You'd basically have the '03-04 Detroit Pistons championship team in its prime, except KG instead of Rasheed Wallace and Artest instead of Tayshaun Prince. Picture that squad battling the Duncan-led Spurs and Kobe/Shaq Lakers. And all those draft picks lost to the Smith snafu? It wouldn't matter so much drafting at the very end of the first round.
2003-Ndubi Ebi (26) over Kendrick Perkins (27), Leonardo Barbosa (28), and Josh Howard (29)
So, the TWolves had their picks stripped in 2001, '02, '03, '04, and '05, but the league restored the '03 pick. How did the braintrust capitalize? They chose Ebi, an immature and raw high school product who played in 19 games over two seasons before being released.
Setting my fever dream aside from the above Artest/Rip Hamilton scenario, 2003-04 was the most successful season in TWolves history, the year where Sam Cassell and Latrell Sprewell teamed with KG to win 58 games and get to the Western Conference Finals. It was a veteran team, so perhaps none of the picks who followed would have contributed that season, although Howard worked himself into the rotation in Dallas for a team that won over 50 games. But perhaps Barbosa's fresh legs would have helped once Cassell was injured in the playoffs. And certainly, moving forward from '03-04, any of those three players would have been more useful than Ebi.
2005-Rashad McCants (#14) over Danny Granger (#17)
On a personal level, I hated this pick more than any other on this list when it was made. I saw plenty of McCants in college and despised his body language and me-first attitude and I regret to say I nailed it on the head. This choice came at a pretty critical time in the TWolves history; after the heights of '03-04, Sprewell needed to feed his family and Cassell would be traded after this draft. The TWolves were headed for their first losing season in 9 years and KG's days with the franchise were numbered. I'm not saying Danny Granger would have stopped this tide, but he would have been a damn sight better than McCants. By Granger's third season, he was on a run of five straight seasons scoring more than 18.5 points per game, highlighted by 26 ppg in '08-09. He could have made some pretty lean years following the Garnett trade quite a bit more palatable.
2006-trading Brandon Roy (#6) for Randy Foye (#7)
This is underrated in its ineptitude, probably because Roy's star shone so bright for such a limited time due to his balky knees, but this was/is a jaw dropper, both at the time of the draft and in retrospect. As the accompanying article states, the TWolves had a trade lined up with Houston, picking at #8, which would net them Luther Head in addition to Foye. The Blazers blew that up by choosing Foye with the seventh pick and then, incredibly, basically getting Roy for Foye and $1 million dollars. Perhaps they were skittish regarding Roy's medicals, but for four years Roy was stellar, winning Rookie of the Year and twice placing on All-NBA teams. Foye lasted three years with the Wolves.
If I venture down the hypothetical lane once again, imagine the Wolves drafted Granger in '05 and just held onto Roy in '06. Would that have been enough to show KG that there was a plan and young talent in place to stick with the club? Even if that trade would have been forced, the trio of Granger, Roy, and Al Jefferson would have kept the Wolves relevant rather than sinking to the depths where they've never really recovered.
2007-Corey Brewer (#7) over Joakim Noah (#9)
And the hits just keep coming. Garnett was on his way to Boston at this point, and with his exit, the last TWolf I can think of who has been noted for his defensive acumen. Brewer had that reputation coming out of college, but his teammate Noah was also known for defense, intensity, and ability to get under the skin of opponents. Noah never became a polished offensive player, but he was an All-Defensive NBA three times, winning the DPOY in '04 when he was also voted All-NBA first team. Brewer was a good guy who carved out a Randy Foye-esque career.
2008-Mario Chalmers (#34) over DeAndre Jordan (#35)
In the first round of this draft, the Wolves experienced a draft oasis, the only year in a seven stretch where they made the right move, when they drafted OJ Mayo and flipped him for Kevin Love and Mike Miller. And with the first pick of the second round, they grabbed Nikola Pekovic, a savvy move that would have looked better over time if Pekovic could have ever stayed healthy. But with their second pick, not only did they immediately flip Chalmers to Miami for cash, but they passed on the athletic Jordan who had been projected to go in the first round, but slid down the board. Jordan has had a long career as a defensive and rebounding stalwart, earning All Defensive honors thrice, rebounding titles twice, and first team NBA in 2016.
2009-Ricky Rubio (#5) and Jonny Flynn (#6) over Steph Curry (#7) and Demar DeRozan (#9)
The piece de la resistance of the deluxe shit pizza that has been the TWolves draft history. I didn't mind the Rubio pick at the time and still don't think it was worthy of severe criticism; he was very highly regarded and I think his floor game would have matched very well with Curry. In the irony of ironies, Curry was passed over because of concerns about a damaged ankle, yet it was Flynn whose career was curtailed by injury. I don't need to tell anyone here what Curry has accomplished with the Warriors. And as Dr. Jimmy James has pointed out before, why not pair a promising prospect like DeRozan at shooting guard rather than take two point guards?
2010-Wesley Johnson (#4) over DeMarcus Cousins (#5), Gordon Hayward (#9), Paul George (#10)
This one had the feeling of inevitability to it-despite concerns about age (Johnson was 23 when the season began) and an obviously more talented player available in Cousins, the maturity concerns regarding Boogie prevailed. But even looking past Cousins, I recall George being brought in for workouts and I imagine that Hayward was also; all three were immediately better on the court than Johnson. While this trio, for a variety of reasons, has fallen shy of superstar status, any of them would have been a better choice than Johnson, who flamed out in two seasons and was peddled for two second round draft picks.
2011-Derrick Williams (#2) over Kemba Walker (#9), Klay Thompson (#11), and Kawhi Leonard (#15)
This is probably a bit unfair on my end-I thought Williams was destined to be a star after seeing him shine for Arizona (does anyone else remember him decimating Duke in the NCAA tourney that season?) and he was really the no-brainer at #2 for that draft. And a lot of teams missed on the players I listed with similarly uninspired choices. But. . .there are two likely Hall of Famers in that were available deep in that draft. Maybe Thompson and Leonard's careers would have been very different if chosen by different teams, but one can dream, can't they?
2013-Shabazz Muhammad (#14) over Giannis Antetounkompo (#15)
At the time, this seemed like a clever little trade for the TWolves. They had traded their pick at #9, Trey Burke, for Muhammad and Gorgui Dieng (#21). At times, it seemed like Muhammad might develop and you had a serviceable backup forward in Dieng. Of course, Muhammad did not develop, but the Greek Freak has made himself into a nice little player.
2013-Andre Roberson (#26) over Rudy Gobert (#27)
You know, the avoidance of any player who has a whit of defensive ability almost becomes farcical at this point. Not only was the "Stifle Tower" sitting there for the TWolves, but the player they chose instead has been regarded as one of the top perimeter defenders since he entered the league up to the time that he badly injured his knee. Of course, that reputation wasn't solidified with the TWolves, because he was immediately traded for Glen Taylor's favorite draft night compensation (cash).
But back to Gobert-this was a miserable draft, with Anthony Bennett as the #1 overall pick and Michael Carter-Williams as the Rookie of the Year. There were three players from the draft who've made an All-Star game-Victor Oladipo, Giannis, and Gobert. The TWolves didn't have a chance with Oladipo, but they were well positioned for the other two. Maybe the TWolves don't trade Kevin Love for Andrew Wiggins the next season, maybe they're not in position to draft KAT two years later, but where would this franchise be right now with Giannis and Gobert from that draft?
2014-Glenn Robinson III (#40) over Nikola Jokic (#41)
In the 32 years of the TWolves existence, they have had 39 draft picks in the second round. The three best players for the TWolves from those picks are Doug West, Nikola Pekovic, and Craig Smith.
In those same number of years, the TWolves have drafted several European players in both rounds. The best players to emerge have been Rubio, Nesterovic, and Pekovic.
I have long been annoyed by the TWolves inability to find diamonds in the rough while seemingly every other franchise over the last thirty years can point to draft picks in the latter half of the first round/second round, many from Europe/overseas, who have enhanced their franchises. The second round is a crapshoot for every team and there are far more misses than hits, I recognize-but shouldn't there be more hits than this?
Robinson stuck with the TWolves for one season. Jokic is a 24 year old, triple double machine already voted to two All-NBA teams. I'm not sure how he would mesh with KAT, but I can see what he's doing with Jamal Murray and the rest of the Nuggets. Speaking of Murray. . .
2016-Kris Dunn (#5) over Jamal Murray (#7)
Last entry-remember those heady days, when the future looked so promising, with KAT, Wiggins, and Zach Lavine demonstrating so much promise (at least offensively) and the #5 draft pick sitting in management's pocket? The choice came down to a point guard, the 22 year old defensive minded, questionable shooting Dunn or the 19 year old sharp shooting Murray. Of course, the wrong choice was made. Dunn did little during his one season with the TWolves, was packaged with Lavine and a #1 draft pick for Jimmy Butler to the Bulls which lead to one season of promise, one of the more embarrassing situations in the franchise's sordid history the following year (Butler's holdout and practice annihilation) and a franchise that now is hitching its wagon to KAT, DeAngelo Russell (on his fourth team), and the #1 overall draft pick (or whatever he can garner).
Meanwhile, while Butler was making TWolves fans question why two overall #1 picks couldn't mesh with him to do more than he was doing with Bam Adebayo and Tyler Herro, in the other conference Jamal Murray was lighting everyone up in playoffs. He might not be a point guard, but he doesn't need to be with the offense running through Jokic.
Could you do this exercise with just about any franchise-of course, I'm sure fans of the Wizards or Magic or Clippers have similar tales of woe. But as I mentioned in the previous post, I count three unquestioned successes in the TWolves draft history-KG, Kevin Love, and KAT. That's a pretty sorry accounting of a franchise that has had numerous opportunities for better results.
I established a couple rules for myself-#1, just because the player might be lousy, that didn't guarantee a spot on the list-there had to be a standout player chosen after the T-Wolves selection. Felton Spencer may have been a bum, but the players chosen after him didn't accomplish much either in the NBA, so that pick isn't on this list. Which leads to rule #2-if I cite a pick where the TWolves blew it, it has to be in regards to a player chosen shortly thereafter in the draft. Should the TWolves have chosen Manu Ginobili in 1999 rather than Louis Bullock? Sure, but so should have the 14 teams between those two picks.
Alright, without further ado-here's the ignominious list:
1989-Pooh Richardson (#10) over Nick Anderson (#11), Mookie Blaylock (#12) and Tim Hardaway (#14)
There's many players on this list who were much worse than Pooh-in fact, he ranks pretty high among the misses on this list-but despite a relatively decent three years with the Wolves, it can't be denied that three of the four players taken immediately after him all had superior careers, Hardaway in particular, becoming part of Run TMC in Golden State, winning a championship with Miami, and five times being recognized on an All-NBA team (1st team in 1996-97).
1989-Gary Leonard (#34) over Cliff Robinson (#36)
I said there were much worse players than Pooh on this list and Leonard might be the worst. Three years in a row the TWolves drafted a 7' stiff in the draft and amazingly, the biggest miss occurred in the second round of '89 rather than the lotteries of '90 and '91. Robinson immediately stepped into the rotation with Portland, contributing to those strong Blazers teams in the early '90s, winning the 6th Man of the Year Award in '93, named an All-Star in '94, and twice being named to the All-Defensive 2nd team, while also being a marksman from behind the three point line. Robinson played 18 seasons in the NBA and is in the Top 20 all-time for minutes played in the NBA. Leonard played 22 games for the Wolves and averaged 3 points and 3 rebounds in the CBA.
(Picture for a moment, the inaugural draft class of the T-Wolves featuring Timmy Hardaway and Cliff Robinson, along with Doug West, who was chosen a few picks after Robinson. Not a bad core for a franchise to work with, is it?)
1992-Marlon Maxey (#28) over PJ Brown (#29)
Another second round miss, although the TWolves got two seasons from Maxey, buried at the end of the bench. Brown, after a year playing overseas, established himself as a 15 year NBA veteran who was selected to the All NBA defensive second team on three occasions. Imagine Brown playing next to KG on that frontline, serving as a much needed enforcer on those TWolves teams through the '90s and early '00s.
1994-Donyell Marshall (#4) over Juwon Howard (#5)
This ended up alright for the Wolves, since Marshall was shuttled over to Golden State for Tom Gugliotta, who along with KG and Marbury, were the trio I associate with the golden years for the franchise. That being said, while Marshall ended up having a long and decent career in the NBA, it was a shadow of Howard's career, beginning immediately. Perhaps management thought they had the same player in Christian Laettner, but he got moved midway through the following season. Probably worked out for the best, as if Howard was on the team, they probably would not have selected KG. Nonetheless, they got bailed out on a bad draft choice.
1999-Wally Szczerbiak (#6) over Richard Hamilton (#7), Andre Miller (#8), Shawn Marion (#9), and Jason Terry (#10)
From the years of 1995 to 1999, the TWolves had a period of inspired personnel moves-the ballsy drafting of Garnett out of high school, bringing Stephon Marbury in the following season (which I maintain was the right move and if Marbury hadn't been a jealous headcase), the trade for Googs, drafting Rasho Nesterovic, making solid trades/signings for valuable role players like Dean Garrett, Anthony Peeler, Bobby Jackson, and Malik Sealy. Sure, Paul Grant was an all-time dud, but they atoned for that mistake by trading for Jackson a year later. And when they had to salvage something for Marbury, grabbing a former All-Star point guard and this particular draft pick. That all seemingly started to unravel with the Joe Smith debacle and the '99 draft.
Wally S. is easily the best player on this list of TWolves where I judge a mistake to have been made, but if you look at each of the four players drafted immediately after him, I'd take each of their careers without blinking with Marion at #9 particularly enticing.
1999-William Avery (#16) over Ron Artest (#18)
While you could argue I was too hard on Wally S., there's no disputing here-Avery was an unmitigated bust, averaging less than 3 points per game in three seasons with the Wolves. Artest, well, he was most definitely lightning in a gasoline soaked bottle, but he was a talent on the court, particularly on the defensive end, highlighted by winning DPOY award in 2004.
So, imagine that instead of Wally and William, the TWolves had drafted Rip Hamilton and Ron Artest in '04 to join KG and Terrell Brandon. And imagine that in '02, the TWolves had chosen to roll with Chauncey Billups rather than Brandon. You'd basically have the '03-04 Detroit Pistons championship team in its prime, except KG instead of Rasheed Wallace and Artest instead of Tayshaun Prince. Picture that squad battling the Duncan-led Spurs and Kobe/Shaq Lakers. And all those draft picks lost to the Smith snafu? It wouldn't matter so much drafting at the very end of the first round.
2003-Ndubi Ebi (26) over Kendrick Perkins (27), Leonardo Barbosa (28), and Josh Howard (29)
So, the TWolves had their picks stripped in 2001, '02, '03, '04, and '05, but the league restored the '03 pick. How did the braintrust capitalize? They chose Ebi, an immature and raw high school product who played in 19 games over two seasons before being released.
Setting my fever dream aside from the above Artest/Rip Hamilton scenario, 2003-04 was the most successful season in TWolves history, the year where Sam Cassell and Latrell Sprewell teamed with KG to win 58 games and get to the Western Conference Finals. It was a veteran team, so perhaps none of the picks who followed would have contributed that season, although Howard worked himself into the rotation in Dallas for a team that won over 50 games. But perhaps Barbosa's fresh legs would have helped once Cassell was injured in the playoffs. And certainly, moving forward from '03-04, any of those three players would have been more useful than Ebi.
2005-Rashad McCants (#14) over Danny Granger (#17)
On a personal level, I hated this pick more than any other on this list when it was made. I saw plenty of McCants in college and despised his body language and me-first attitude and I regret to say I nailed it on the head. This choice came at a pretty critical time in the TWolves history; after the heights of '03-04, Sprewell needed to feed his family and Cassell would be traded after this draft. The TWolves were headed for their first losing season in 9 years and KG's days with the franchise were numbered. I'm not saying Danny Granger would have stopped this tide, but he would have been a damn sight better than McCants. By Granger's third season, he was on a run of five straight seasons scoring more than 18.5 points per game, highlighted by 26 ppg in '08-09. He could have made some pretty lean years following the Garnett trade quite a bit more palatable.
2006-trading Brandon Roy (#6) for Randy Foye (#7)
This is underrated in its ineptitude, probably because Roy's star shone so bright for such a limited time due to his balky knees, but this was/is a jaw dropper, both at the time of the draft and in retrospect. As the accompanying article states, the TWolves had a trade lined up with Houston, picking at #8, which would net them Luther Head in addition to Foye. The Blazers blew that up by choosing Foye with the seventh pick and then, incredibly, basically getting Roy for Foye and $1 million dollars. Perhaps they were skittish regarding Roy's medicals, but for four years Roy was stellar, winning Rookie of the Year and twice placing on All-NBA teams. Foye lasted three years with the Wolves.
If I venture down the hypothetical lane once again, imagine the Wolves drafted Granger in '05 and just held onto Roy in '06. Would that have been enough to show KG that there was a plan and young talent in place to stick with the club? Even if that trade would have been forced, the trio of Granger, Roy, and Al Jefferson would have kept the Wolves relevant rather than sinking to the depths where they've never really recovered.
2007-Corey Brewer (#7) over Joakim Noah (#9)
And the hits just keep coming. Garnett was on his way to Boston at this point, and with his exit, the last TWolf I can think of who has been noted for his defensive acumen. Brewer had that reputation coming out of college, but his teammate Noah was also known for defense, intensity, and ability to get under the skin of opponents. Noah never became a polished offensive player, but he was an All-Defensive NBA three times, winning the DPOY in '04 when he was also voted All-NBA first team. Brewer was a good guy who carved out a Randy Foye-esque career.
2008-Mario Chalmers (#34) over DeAndre Jordan (#35)
In the first round of this draft, the Wolves experienced a draft oasis, the only year in a seven stretch where they made the right move, when they drafted OJ Mayo and flipped him for Kevin Love and Mike Miller. And with the first pick of the second round, they grabbed Nikola Pekovic, a savvy move that would have looked better over time if Pekovic could have ever stayed healthy. But with their second pick, not only did they immediately flip Chalmers to Miami for cash, but they passed on the athletic Jordan who had been projected to go in the first round, but slid down the board. Jordan has had a long career as a defensive and rebounding stalwart, earning All Defensive honors thrice, rebounding titles twice, and first team NBA in 2016.
2009-Ricky Rubio (#5) and Jonny Flynn (#6) over Steph Curry (#7) and Demar DeRozan (#9)
The piece de la resistance of the deluxe shit pizza that has been the TWolves draft history. I didn't mind the Rubio pick at the time and still don't think it was worthy of severe criticism; he was very highly regarded and I think his floor game would have matched very well with Curry. In the irony of ironies, Curry was passed over because of concerns about a damaged ankle, yet it was Flynn whose career was curtailed by injury. I don't need to tell anyone here what Curry has accomplished with the Warriors. And as Dr. Jimmy James has pointed out before, why not pair a promising prospect like DeRozan at shooting guard rather than take two point guards?
2010-Wesley Johnson (#4) over DeMarcus Cousins (#5), Gordon Hayward (#9), Paul George (#10)
This one had the feeling of inevitability to it-despite concerns about age (Johnson was 23 when the season began) and an obviously more talented player available in Cousins, the maturity concerns regarding Boogie prevailed. But even looking past Cousins, I recall George being brought in for workouts and I imagine that Hayward was also; all three were immediately better on the court than Johnson. While this trio, for a variety of reasons, has fallen shy of superstar status, any of them would have been a better choice than Johnson, who flamed out in two seasons and was peddled for two second round draft picks.
2011-Derrick Williams (#2) over Kemba Walker (#9), Klay Thompson (#11), and Kawhi Leonard (#15)
This is probably a bit unfair on my end-I thought Williams was destined to be a star after seeing him shine for Arizona (does anyone else remember him decimating Duke in the NCAA tourney that season?) and he was really the no-brainer at #2 for that draft. And a lot of teams missed on the players I listed with similarly uninspired choices. But. . .there are two likely Hall of Famers in that were available deep in that draft. Maybe Thompson and Leonard's careers would have been very different if chosen by different teams, but one can dream, can't they?
2013-Shabazz Muhammad (#14) over Giannis Antetounkompo (#15)
At the time, this seemed like a clever little trade for the TWolves. They had traded their pick at #9, Trey Burke, for Muhammad and Gorgui Dieng (#21). At times, it seemed like Muhammad might develop and you had a serviceable backup forward in Dieng. Of course, Muhammad did not develop, but the Greek Freak has made himself into a nice little player.
2013-Andre Roberson (#26) over Rudy Gobert (#27)
You know, the avoidance of any player who has a whit of defensive ability almost becomes farcical at this point. Not only was the "Stifle Tower" sitting there for the TWolves, but the player they chose instead has been regarded as one of the top perimeter defenders since he entered the league up to the time that he badly injured his knee. Of course, that reputation wasn't solidified with the TWolves, because he was immediately traded for Glen Taylor's favorite draft night compensation (cash).
But back to Gobert-this was a miserable draft, with Anthony Bennett as the #1 overall pick and Michael Carter-Williams as the Rookie of the Year. There were three players from the draft who've made an All-Star game-Victor Oladipo, Giannis, and Gobert. The TWolves didn't have a chance with Oladipo, but they were well positioned for the other two. Maybe the TWolves don't trade Kevin Love for Andrew Wiggins the next season, maybe they're not in position to draft KAT two years later, but where would this franchise be right now with Giannis and Gobert from that draft?
2014-Glenn Robinson III (#40) over Nikola Jokic (#41)
In the 32 years of the TWolves existence, they have had 39 draft picks in the second round. The three best players for the TWolves from those picks are Doug West, Nikola Pekovic, and Craig Smith.
In those same number of years, the TWolves have drafted several European players in both rounds. The best players to emerge have been Rubio, Nesterovic, and Pekovic.
I have long been annoyed by the TWolves inability to find diamonds in the rough while seemingly every other franchise over the last thirty years can point to draft picks in the latter half of the first round/second round, many from Europe/overseas, who have enhanced their franchises. The second round is a crapshoot for every team and there are far more misses than hits, I recognize-but shouldn't there be more hits than this?
Robinson stuck with the TWolves for one season. Jokic is a 24 year old, triple double machine already voted to two All-NBA teams. I'm not sure how he would mesh with KAT, but I can see what he's doing with Jamal Murray and the rest of the Nuggets. Speaking of Murray. . .
2016-Kris Dunn (#5) over Jamal Murray (#7)
Last entry-remember those heady days, when the future looked so promising, with KAT, Wiggins, and Zach Lavine demonstrating so much promise (at least offensively) and the #5 draft pick sitting in management's pocket? The choice came down to a point guard, the 22 year old defensive minded, questionable shooting Dunn or the 19 year old sharp shooting Murray. Of course, the wrong choice was made. Dunn did little during his one season with the TWolves, was packaged with Lavine and a #1 draft pick for Jimmy Butler to the Bulls which lead to one season of promise, one of the more embarrassing situations in the franchise's sordid history the following year (Butler's holdout and practice annihilation) and a franchise that now is hitching its wagon to KAT, DeAngelo Russell (on his fourth team), and the #1 overall draft pick (or whatever he can garner).
Meanwhile, while Butler was making TWolves fans question why two overall #1 picks couldn't mesh with him to do more than he was doing with Bam Adebayo and Tyler Herro, in the other conference Jamal Murray was lighting everyone up in playoffs. He might not be a point guard, but he doesn't need to be with the offense running through Jokic.
Could you do this exercise with just about any franchise-of course, I'm sure fans of the Wizards or Magic or Clippers have similar tales of woe. But as I mentioned in the previous post, I count three unquestioned successes in the TWolves draft history-KG, Kevin Love, and KAT. That's a pretty sorry accounting of a franchise that has had numerous opportunities for better results.
