5 guards the Minnesota Timberwolves should target in the 2020 NBA Draft

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ULM, GERMANY – JANUARY 17: (BILD ZEITUNG OUT) Killian Hayes of Ratiopharm Ulm controls the ball during the EasyCredit Basketball Bundesliga (BBL) match between Ratiopharm Ulm and Medi Bayreuth at ratiopharm Arena on January 15, 2020 in Ulm, Germany. (Photo by TF-Images/Getty Images) /

With the Minnesota Timberwolves in the midst of their second 11-game losing skid this season, let’s take a look ahead at 2020 NBA Draft guard prospects who can make an immediate impact next season.

While many project this year’s NBA Draft class to be one of the weakest in over a decade, there are still NBA-ready prospects that can make a difference in a Minnesota Timberwolves uniform right away next season.

At this point, I am (maybe incorrectly, considering how this season is going) assuming that the Timberwolves will have a first-round selection in the No. 5 to No. 10 range, depending on how the Ping-Pong balls bounce. This means I am ruling out the potential of drafting surefire top-five picks Anthony Edwards, LaMelo Ball, and Cole Anthony.

Beyond those three, there is a strongly perceived drop-off in talent and NBA readiness among experts and talking heads when it comes to other projected first-round guard talents. However, I disagree with them. Edwards, Ball, and Anthony have all shown to be outstanding players at the high school level, against players their age, but need to be in the right situations in order to succeed as rookies.

In contrast, recently drafted players like Zion Williamson, Ja Morant, Luka Doncic, and Trae Young were all destined to be stars who would succeed no matter the environment in which they played as rookies.

As a result of the lack of certainty even at the top of the draft board, it allows for smart front offices – such as the one that Minnesota has assembled – to find excellent value that can step in and produce right away, without having to climb up into the top five to get it.

The best front offices never immediately punt on a draft just because talking heads say it stinks, or there are no clear-cut franchise cornerstones, or whatever the excuse is. There are diamonds in the rough of just about every NBA Draft, regardless of whether the talent at the very top of the board finds success, or becomes the answer to a trivia question 10 years down the line.