Timberwolves Draft Review: Good the Wolves passed on Curry?

The butterfly effect is a crazy phenomenon. It basically states that any change in the past could have large consequences in the future. You’ve no doubt seen it in any time travel movie; the hero kills something in the past and the future is very different.

While we are not killing anything in this article, we are still moving things around in the past. Imagine a world in which Jonny Flynn never donned a Wolves jersey and Steph Curry did, instead. How about Paul George instead of Wes Johnson? Sounds exciting. Maybe too exciting to be true.

While those scenarios would be fun, we would not have our current look Timberwolves. Jamal Crawford, Jimmy Butler, and Jeff Teague would be sporting different colors. Karl-Anthony Towns might be lighting it up for Golden State had Curry been picked immediately after Rubio back in 2009.

With that being said, lets take a look at the blunders that brought the current Wolves squad together. Yes, this will be painful. We are going to see all the amazing players we have missed out on. Just know that the Timberwolves are set to win now and try to hold back your tears.

2009 Draft

“With the 5th pick in the 2009 NBA Draft, the Minnesota TImberwolves select Ricky Rubio” was music to many Minnesota Timberwolves fans’ ears. One of the most exciting prospects in the draft was coming to the Land of 10,000 Lakes. He was going to be the one to bring excitement back to the Target Center and pull this team into the playoffs.

Wolves fans only had a minute to celebrate, however, as Minnesota was on the clock again. The college scoring machine, Steph Curry, was still on the board and it had Timberwolves fans drooling. Pairing a dynamic scorer like Curry with their new Spanish point guard would bring fans in the door in droves.

“With the 6th pick in the 2009 NBA Draft,” Commissioner David Stern announced as the hometown fans excitement grew. “The Minnesota Timberwolves select,” Stern took a slight pause that felt like an eternity. “…Jonny Flynn”.

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Jonny Flynn? Everyone seemed confused. A good player at Syracuse, but you are passing on Curry to pick another point guard? While the two-time MVP was a point guard coming out of college, it seemed much more likely that he could make the transition to shooting guard.

Obviously, the son of former NBA player Dell Curry was the glaring miss, but there were plenty of other talented players that former front office boss David Kahn missed on. Players like Demar Derozan (ninth overall) and Jrue Holiday (17th). Even current Timberwolves Jeff Teague (19th) and Taj Gibson (26th) were still on the board.

Teague and Gibson would have still been available when the Wolves made their third pick of the first round at #18 and took Ty Lawson, another point guard. Hours later, they flipped him to Denver for a future first-rounder and cash.

Kahn was so sure this pairing was going to work, he reportedly told then-Timberwolves assistant coach Dave Wohl of Rubio and Flynn “they remind me of Frazier and Monroe”. He is, of course, speaking of Knicks duo Earl “The Pearl” Monroe and Walt “Clyde” Frazier.

Missing out on Curry was a huge black-eye on Kahn and his staff, but he had the ability to bounce back in next year’s draft. He did not.

2010 Draft

With head coach Kurt Rambis in tow, the Timberwolves looked to reverse their fortunes after 2009’s draft misstep. They had the fourth-overall pick in this draft, even higher than last season. The jewel and obvious number-one overall pick that year was, without a doubt, John Wall.

At number four, however, the Wolves were still in the range to grab a player who would help change their franchise from a laughing-stock.

When their pick came up, only Derrick Favors, Evan Turner, and the aforementioned Wall were off the board.

With all the talent still left on the board, Kahn (somehow still employed after the previous year’s debacle) selected Wes Johnson, another Syracuse product. With this being the second year in a row the team seemingly reached for a member of the Orangemen, fans were obviously skeptical. Looking back on how things went with Johnson, the most memorable thing about him was his draft day suit.

The pain only grows when you see who the Wolves passed on in order to take Johnson. While there is not as bad a miss as there was in 2009 when they passed on Steph Curry, there were still elite players to be had later in 2010.

DeMarcus Cousins (fifth overall), Gordon Hayward (ninth), or Paul George (10th) would have looked great paired with Kevin Love and Ricky Rubio. Even a quality player like Eric Bledsoe (18th) or one of the best two-way guards in the NBA in Avery Bradley (19th) would have fit in nicely.

Minnesota also had the 23rd pick in the draft, which they used to select Trevor Booker. Later that night, Kahn and company traded his draft rights to Washington along with the 56th pick. In return, the Wolves received the 30th and 35th picks. They selected Lazar Hayward and current rotation player Nemanja Bjelica.

So, while this draft wasn’t a 2009 level blunder, they definitely had an opportunity to add very high level talent and whiffed…again.

2011 Draft

I feel like I am starting to sound like a broken record here, but going into the 2011 draft, the Wolves were in a position to grab some elite level talent as they held the #2 pick in the draft. At the time, that was the highest selection in Timberwolves history.

In what is normally the case, the Wolves came up just short in the draft order. Kyrie Irving out of Duke was the gem of the draft. Minnesota was the second team in a one player draft.

Derrick Williams was a very exciting pick, however, he was immediately labeled a “tweener”. It seemed like his draft position was solidified after an amazing game against Duke in the NCAA tournament. He put up 32 points, going 5 for 6 from downtown, as well as 12 rebounds. The moments that everyone remembers, however, are the thunderous jams.

Just like in 2009 and 2010,David Kahn whiffed again. Williams never came close to living up to the number-two overall pick status. He only averaged 10 points and five rebounds a game on less than 25 minutes per night.

Also, as in the previous two years, current great players were left on the board. Kemba Walker (ninth overall), Klay Thompson (11th), Kawhi Leonard (15th), and even current Wolf Jimmy Butler (30th) would have looked great in a Wolves jersey.

This was the David Kahn tenure in a nutshell. Reaching on a player who looks good in his eyes instead of taking time to look at everything as a whole and make an informed decision. This would end up being the last meaningful draft decision he made in the front office of the Timberwolves.

2013 Draft

After trading their first round selection in 2012 for Chase Budinger, the 2013 draft marked the first draft that former bench boss Flip Saunders was the one making the decisions. The coach that brought the 2004 Wolves to the Western Conference Finals was definitely a fan favorite. Those same fans were just excited to move on from David Kahn and his, let’s just say spotty, track record.

With his first pick, Saunders chose a player who had Minnesota fans scratching their heads: Michigan guard Trey Burke. With multiple point guards on the roster already, it felt like a stretch.

With many fans still scratching their heads, the former Gopher worked his magic and swapped Burke for two players that could help immediately in Gorgui Dieng and Shabazz Muhammad.  

This was a draft day move that paid dividends for the Wolves. Muhammad was one of the best bench players on the team during his tenure with Minnesota until he became a free agent this off-season.  

Dieng looks to be an integral part of this season with the Wolves looking to snap their 13-year playoff drought.  He is in the discussion for starting this season over Thibs favorite Taj Gibson. His shot has been improving every year he has been in the league. He has had a steady improvement every year and looks to be a very important part to a very good team during the 2017-2018 season.

This draft marked the first real sign of progress for the Minnesota Timberwolves. Actually winning a draft day trade and making their team better both short and long-term.

While 2013 seemed like a win for the Wolves, 2014 would be a slam dunk…

2014 Draft

This is the draft where Minnesota, both directly and indirectly, gained two of the three members of their current ‘Big 3’.

With the 13th pick in the draft, they selected high-flying athlete Zach LaVine out of UCLA. While Zach was an incredible athlete, it did seem like a bit of a reach. The most memorable moment of the draft for most Timberwolves fans was LaVine’s reaction to being selected.

In retrospect, the two-time slam dunk champion was a great pick. While he might not be a great defender, his ability to score in bunches makes him scary whenever he steps on the court. He was the best three-point shooter on the Wolves last season and his potential is sky-high.

LaVine was also a fan favorite, which made seeing him go to Chicago with Kris Dunn that much harder. The return, top-15 player Jimmy Butler, was a very good return however.

While LaVine would have been enough to make Minnesota fans excited, the number-one overall pick was on his way to the Twin Cities too.

The year-long drama that was Kevin Love taking subtle shots at the Minnesota Timberwolves finally came to an end as he was sent to Cleveland to appease LeBron James. This brought the Wolves from team fighting for the playoffs to the exciting Timberpups.

With the young, exciting duo of LaVine and Wiggins (aka the Bounce Brothers), Minnesota looked to be a team with the potential to do some damage down the road. With the 2015 draft on the horizon, the Timberwolves looked to create a legitimate Big 3.

2015 Draft

Karl. Anthony. Towns.

The 2015 draft was all about the Big KAT. It seemed like, to the public, that Saunders was debating between Karl-Anthony Towns and Duke big man Jahlil Okafor. However, watching the versatility and variety of ways he can score, Towns seemed like the easy choice.

The unanimous Rookie of the Year has gone on to dominate the NBA in his first two seasons. He is a top-five big man and has lived up to his draft position. He was, seemingly, snubbed for the All-NBA third team this season and has yet to make an All-Star team. The only reason I bring those up is because it is probably stuck to Towns’ bulletin board.

There was no sneaky trade or sneaky pick for the Timberwolves in 2015. They just made the smart choice. There is nothing wrong with that.

And that brings us to today. The Timberpups have grown some fangs and are ready to do some damage in the Western Conference.

With hindsight always being 20/20, we would have loved to see Minnesota draft Steph Curry. But, if Curry dons a Wolves jersey, there is no guarantee that the front office puts enough pieces around him to keep him around. After that, the Wolves have a different roster and don’t get Andrew Wiggins. Plus, with Rubio feeding the splash brothers easy threes, there is a much smaller chance that the Wolves land KAT.

Next: Karl-Anthony Towns Plays Volleyball With The Pros

In conclusion: be happy for what we have. This season is gonna be something special. Embrace it.