The NBA Draft is Thursday night, and things are starting to look a bit more clear for the Minnesota Timberwolves at No. 11.
The Minnesota Timberwolves hold the No. 11 pick in the upcoming draft, and while anything can certainly happen in the next few days, the various mock drafts out there seem to be reaching something of a consensus.
There’s not a consensus on any one player at No. 11, of course, but there seems to be a group of three or four players who are realistic targets that should be on the board in the No. 9 to 12 range.
The Wolves could certainly trade down, and there are a few prospects that stick out as attractive candidates later in the first round (Chuma Okeke, anyone?). That’s a topic for a different day, however, as this time around we’re going to focus on those players who we can expect to be on the board in the middle of the lottery.
Obviously it’s an inexact science, as there are myriad possibilities from pick No. 4 on. The top three appear to be locked in, with New Orleans set to take Duke’s Zion Williamson first overall, Memphis eyeing Murray State’s Ja Morant at No. 2, and New York focusing on Duke’s RJ Barrett third.
But there are a series of guys who are consistently projected to be early lottery picks. That includes Virginia’s De’Andre Hunter, Texas Tech’s Jarrett Culver, North Carolina’s Coby White, and Vanderbilt’s Darius Garland.
Beyond that, the Wolves will have their pick among a number of forwards. Unfortunately, there isn’t much guard help that’s expected to fall to No. 11, but if they’re looking for more depth on the wings and potentially in the frontcourt, it’ll be there.
Here’s the criteria for this piece. We’re not going to consider players that are consensus top five or six picks. We’re also not going to discuss players who would likely be available in the second round. And we’re focusing on the four players who are frequently mocked at and around No. 11, and in most cases have been directly linked to the Wolves by someone in the media.
That means that each of these players certainly could be picked shortly before the Wolves, but there’s at least a realistic shot of any of these guys still being on the board at Minnesota’s pick.
Let’s jump into it.