Minnesota Timberwolves interested in Facundo Campazzo

The Minnesota Timberwolves are reportedly interested in Argentinan point guard Facundo Campazzo.

Gersson Rosas’ Minnesota Timberwolves will leave no stone unturned as they look to improve their roster talent.

In the latest evidence of this, the Wolves are continuing to be hot on the trail of Argentinian point guard Facundo Campazzo, who will almost surely enter the NBA via international free agency this offseason.

Minnesota Timberwolves interested in Facundo Campazzo

Campazzo has been on the NBA radar for a while, going undrafted in 2013 but being rumored to have interest among teams in the United States nearly every year since.

He was a teammate of Luka Doncic on Real Madrid, and Doncic recently gave Campazzo a vote of confidence when it comes to the possibility of joining him stateside.

The Mavericks, of course, are one of the teams rumored to have interest. Most recently, the New York Knicks, along with the Timberwolves and possibly the San Antonio Spurs, have all showed some desire to engage Campazzo with the possibility of coming to the NBA.

Campazzo is a creative point guard (his nickname is Magician) with an uncanny passing ability and elite court vision. Pull up any highlight video of Facu, as they call him, and you’ll see between-the-legs dishes, no-look dimes, and pinpoint head-manning passes.

He also has scoring touch in the paint, scoring over and around defenders despite his diminutive, 5-foot-10 frame. Campazzo’s floater game is the real deal, and his first step appears to be solid as well.

Campazzo is also a decent 3-point shooter. Despite a poor mark of 31 percent on four 3-point attempts per game in this year’s Euroleague, he had been over 38 percent dating back to 2018 while increasing his number of attempts.

Playing for Argentina in the 2016 Olympics, Campazzo averaged 15.8 points and 5.8 assists per game across six contests while hitting on 37.8 percent from deep. He also played well in the 2018 FIBA World Cup, putting up 13.3 points and 7.8 assists per game while knocking down 39.1 percent on 3-point attempts.

Campazzo’s shot release is a bit unorthodox and he can look as though he’s heaving the ball, but if it can go in at something resembling a league-average clip, he can fit in today’s NBA with his high level of creativity with the ball in his hands. Plus, he’s a solid rebounder for his size.

Campazzo won’t be a fit with the Wolves if they select LaMelo Ball at No. 1 in the upcoming draft, of course. They’re also unlikely to re-sign Jordan McLaughlin and add Campazzo.

That means that Campazzo joining the Wolves really only seems possible if the Wolves trade down in the draft, and/or don’t retain McLaughlin. Campazzo may be a better fit offensively than McLaughlin, although their skill sets are fairly closely duplicated, but McLaughlin could also be A) cheaper, and B) better defensively.

One of the main reasons for the Campazzo-to-Minnesota rumors, of course, is the presence of Minnesota Timberwolves assistant coach and fellow Argentinian Pablo Prigioni. There’s also the Manu Ginobili connection in San Antonio, and the Doncic connection in Dallas.

The Knicks … well, they’re the Knicks, so of course they’re rumored to be interested.

While there are hurdles to clear for Campazzo to be a Timberwolf in the near future, he’s certainly a name to keep on your radar as we inch closer to the offseason.