Jan 17, 2014; Toronto, Ontario, CAN; Minnesota Timberwolves forward Chase Budinger (10) shoots against the Toronto Raptors at Air Canada Centre. The Raptors beat the Timberwolves 94-89. Mandatory Credit: Tom Szczerbowski-USA TODAY Sports
ESPN and the TrueHoop Network are nearing the midway point of their fourth annual #NBARank countdown, where every player in the NBA is ranked from #500 down to #1.
The list is gradually whittled down in differing intervals, leading up to opening night of the regular season, when we all find out that LeBron James is number one yet again.
Of course, I’d be shocked if the top three of LBJ, Kevin Durant, and Chris Paul changed from last year, and would be profoundly dumbfounded if the top two did not yet again list King James and KD.
The ESPN Forecast panel are asked to “predict the overall level of play for each player for the upcoming NBA season.” This includes “both the quality and the quantity of his expected contributions combined in one overall rating.”
So far, only a small group of Timberwolves players (which is good news), have “earned” a spot in the bottom 200 or so – none of them being projected starters.
I thought it would be a good idea to give our ranking of the current Wolves roster, and for the purposes of this exercise we will do the top-15. Each player will have a brief explanation for their ranking, with more detailed breakdowns as the list goes on. The countdown will be broken into three groups of five.
*For this list, I have excluded Jose Barea.
ESPN has Robinson III ranked number 361 overall, which is 71 spots better than the next Wolves player on this list. The recently signed second round pick will likely be relegated to the NBA D-League for much of the year, but injuries, poor play from others, and/or stellar play from Robinson III could see him in Minnesota for parts of the season.
14. Robbie Hummel
The Purdue product was ranked #432 by ESPN, but I put him ahead of Robinson III.
The 25-year-old, who was selected 58th overall by the Wolves in 2012, will also be lucky to see much playing time in the NBA this season. Stuck behind a host of other forwards, in particular a certain first overall pick Canadian, will again probably limit Hummel’s opportunities to show if he’s still got what he showed in college.
Nov 25, 2013; Indianapolis, IN, USA; Minnesota Timberwolves small forward Robbie Hummel (6) sits on the bench during the third quarter of the game against the Indiana Pacers at Bankers Life Fieldhouse. The Pacers won 98-84. Mandatory Credit: Pat Lovell-USA TODAY Sports
13. Ronny Turiaf
For a while, it appeared that Turiaf may be getting significant minutes as the backup center for the Wolves. That was before Gorgui Dieng established himself as one of the best young rebounders and backup big men in the game.
Turiaf is entering the last year of his contract with the Wolves, but I would not be shocked to see him get another deal (depending on health, of course), especially if Pekovic is eventually traded. You could certainly do worse than the nine-year veteran who contributes good rebounding, solid effort, and seems to be a plus for team chemistry.
Feb 12, 2014; Minneapolis, MN, USA; Minnesota Timberwolves center Ronny Turiaf (32) reacts after blocking a shot in the first half against the Denver Nuggets at Target Center. Mandatory Credit: Jesse Johnson-USA TODAY Sports
12. Chase Budinger
I may take some heat for ranking Budinger this low, but I have seen little if anything from the forward to indicate that he’ll stay healthy enough to play significant minutes this season.
This list is based on what I expect the player to contribute to the team in the 2014-2015 season, and while Budinger may begin the season as one of the first few players off of the bench, his health and durability scare me. Over his first two NBA seasons with the Rockets, Budinger missed just 12 games. The last two seasons have been a different story – playing in only 23 and 41 games, respectively.
11. Shabazz Muhammad
As discussed a few weeks ago by DWW’s Cody Gerrells, Muhammad’s lone season of collegiate ball in 2012-2013 was very comparable statistics-wise to Andrew Wiggins at Kansas. Attitude issues, possible laziness, and other shenanigans plummeted Muhammad’s draft stock, leaving the Wolves to pick him up.
His rookie season was underwhelming at best, but the forward impressed in a brief D-League stint last season and showed a flickering hope of being a 2013 draft steal in a couple of games last season. Oh, and he apparently had a pretty intense offseason training regime or something.
Count me as one who is jumping on the Shabazz train for 2014 – albeit with extreme caution.
Stay tuned to DWW as the revealing of the top-10 Wolves players will be coming soon!