Minnesota Timberwolves: Top 30 greatest players of all-time

• Four seasons with Timberwolves (1993-96)
• Averaged 17.2 points and 8.1 rebounds per game

Christian Laettner always seems to have gotten a bad rap. (See: I Hate Christian Laettner) But bad rap or not, Laettner still managed to just barely miss cracking the top-10 in our list of best Wolves of all-time.

After being selected third by the Timberwolves in 1993, Laettner started 81 games and put up 18.2 points and 8.7 rebounds per game as a rookie. The next year, his shooting percentage dropped from 47.4 percent to just 44.8 percent, but Laettner still scored 16.8 points per contest.

His numbers dropped again in his third season, and he was traded midway through the 1995-96 season to the Atlanta Hawks, where he notched his only career All-Star appearance.

But all that said, Laettner’s three-plus years in Minnesota were solid, and the perfect mix of longevity, production, and status that gets him to No. 11 on the countdown. A career line of 17.2 points and 8.1 rebounds with the Timberwolves while shooting 47.4 percent from the field is really good, and shouldn’t be overlooked.

When the Wolves traded him to Atlanta, however, the return for Laettner wasn’t much to write home about. Along with Sean Rooks, the former No. 3 pick netted only rentals Andrew Lang and Spud Webb. And all that for a team that wasn’t going anywhere; the 1995-96 Wolves won just 26 games and wouldn’t make the playoffs until the following year — Flip Saunders’ first year at the helm.

So, hate Laettner if you must. Just know that if you’re a Wolves fan, he was the 11th-best player that your favorite squad has ever trotted out on to the court.