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Minnesota Timberwolves: 5 draft prospects to upgrade Wolves’ shooting

By Tyler Metcalf

AMES, IA - DECEMBER 8: Tyrese Haliburton #22 of the Iowa State Cyclones reacts after scoring a three point shot in the second half of play at Hilton Coliseum on December 8, 2019 in Ames, Iowa. The Iowa State Cyclones won 76-66 over the Seton Hall Pirates. (Photo by David K Purdy/Getty Images)
AMES, IA - DECEMBER 8: Tyrese Haliburton #22 of the Iowa State Cyclones reacts after scoring a three point shot in the second half of play at Hilton Coliseum on December 8, 2019 in Ames, Iowa. The Iowa State Cyclones won 76-66 over the Seton Hall Pirates. (Photo by David K Purdy/Getty Images) /
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The Minnesota Timberwolves will likely have three of the first 33 picks in the 2020 NBA Draft, giving them ample opportunity to fill a significant hole on their roster: shooting.

Minnesota Timberwolves, Tyrese Haliburton
Tyrese Haliburton #22 of the Iowa State Cyclones. (Photo by David K Purdy/Getty Images) /

In the first season of the Minnesota Timberwolves‘ new front office and coaching staff’s regime, outside shooting was a major focal point on the team’s style of play.

After ranking No. 26 in the league just two seasons ago with 28.7 3-point attempts per game, the Timberwolves skyrocketed to third in the NBA with 39.7 attempts per game in 2019-20.

As the NBA continues to modernize and move farther away from the basket, this change in mentality is not just encouraging, but also rare for this organization.

The problem with this change in philosophy is that the Timberwolves did not have the roster to support it. The Timberwolves made just 33.6 percent of their threes this season, which ranked No. 28 in the league.

At the trade deadline, however, the front office made some drastic changes that helped turnaround this detestable percentage. With the new roster, the team proceeded to shoot 37.5 percent from three in their final 14 games. This trend is promising — not to mention way more fun to watch — but unsustainable performances and outliers inflated those numbers by players who may not be with the team next year.

When it comes to the draft, two ideologies seem to clash: draft the best player available vs. draft to fill a need.

Generally, the best player available approach seems to be preferred, as long as it isn’t overly redundant with the already established roster. But in a draft like this with no clear elite franchise level player available, drafting for need makes a lot of sense.

With the No. 3 (pre-lottery selection), No. 14 (pending the end of the Brooklyn Nets’ season), and No. 33 picks, the Timberwolves have some great opportunities to add shooting to a roster deprived of it.