Minnesota Timberwolves: Hard luck kids of the NBA lottery
By Jaime Tyler
Several franchises have experienced bad luck in the NBA lottery. The Minnesota Timberwolves, however, have been the unluckiest squad in NBA history.
The NBA draft Lottery is one of the most highly anticipated events on the NBA calendar.
On Tuesday, May 16th, the fate of fourteen hopeful NBA franchises rests upon the outcome of a few bouncing ping-pong balls.
During a stressful 30 minutes, eager fans around the league will wait with bated breath to see if their team’s logo ends up behind one of the top three envelopes.
However, that’s not the case for most Timberwolves’ supporters. For them, the dreaded words
For them, the dreaded words NBA Draft Lottery are as likely to invoke a traumatic basketball memory as they are to inspire visions of a top prospect in a Timberwolves uniform.
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Namely, in twenty all-time lottery appearances, the Minnesota Timberwolves they have yet to improve their draft position, a whopping 0-for-20.
Most Wolves fans would agree, the poor luck started way back in 1992.
That season, the Wolves finished the year with a league-worst 15-67 record, and Shaquille O’Neal — The Big Prize — awaited the fortuitous lottery winner.
O’Neal, a once-in-a-generation basketball specimen, was the clear number one choice, and Alonzo Mourning, a center with Georgetown Hoya pedigree, would’ve been a satisfying consolation prize for the runner-up.
The Wolves, unfortunately, missed out on both and found themselves stuck with Christian Laettner at the 3rd pick.
Meanwhile, the Orlando Magic and Charlotte Hornets — two expansion cohorts of the Timberwolves — leapfrogged Minnesota to earn the rights to draft Shaq and Zo.
The next season, Orlando and Charlotte quickly rose up the standings into playoff contention.
Back in Minneapolis, Laettner and the Wolves found themselves renting space in the Western Conference cellar for the next few campaigns.
From that point forward, the Minnesota Timberwolves have experienced only one kind of luck when it comes to the NBA Lottery: lousy.