Minnesota Timberwolves: 5 draft prospects to upgrade perimeter defense

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Prentiss Hubb #3 of the University of Notre Dame drives past Tre Jones #3 of Duke University. (Photo by Andy Mead/ISI Photos/Getty Images) /

Tre Jones

Tre Jones is arguably the best-defending point guard in the entire draft class.

Like his older brother, Jones has a predisposition to executing the little things at an elite level. Jones’s point of attack defense is devastating for opponents and can completely take players out of the game.

Facing him is like facing a mirror. He moves as his opponent moves, and his awareness is off the charts. Additionally, his footwork is precise, and he got stronger from his freshman year. Jones won’t switch much in the NBA, but his awareness and positioning won’t make him a target for switches.

In the below clip from Jones’s freshman season, we see his great on-ball defense. He initially does an excellent job of helping to cut off the drive after the pick-and-roll. He then promptly recovers to his man to cut off any potential driving or shooting lanes while staying in a low defensive stance and sliding his feet perfectly.

Jones then easily avoids the screen and then closes the distance between his man, allowing him to smother the pass attempt and force the turnover.

Jones’s high defensive awareness and positioning are also on display here. As Miami gets the ball in the post and secures the offensive rebound, Jones does an excellent job of rotating to cutoff the open corner shooter. Miami then pulls the ball out to reset and instead of staying in the corner, Jones quickly rotates back to the top of the arc where he intercepts the pass.

Growing up in the Minneapolis area and having Jones’s older brother previously on the team, the Timberwolves are familiar with his style of play. By drafting Tre Jones, the Timberwolves would add an elite point of attack defender who is a master of executing the little things that lead to winning basketball.

Next. A trade for the Wolves with each team in the bottom 8. dark

There are plenty of different avenues the Wolves could use to improve their perimeter defense, and what will likely be three of the top 33 picks in the draft is one big step towards solving the problem.