Minnesota Timberwolves have traded for the 23rd overall pick in the 2020 NBA Draft, and used it on an interesting foreign prospect.
The Minnseota Timberwolves have selected Leandro Balmaro with the 23rd pick in the 2020 NBA Draft, after moving the 25th and 33rd overall selections to land him.
Balmaro joins a draft class that has already brought in Anthony Edwards, and was the result of the Timberwolves moving the 17th pick in favor of Ricky Rubio and two later first-round picks.
Balmaro most recently played for Barcelona, but is largely an unknown, high risk-high reward type player. It will be interesting to see whether the Timberwolves sign him as a first-year player or stash him overseas for a few seasons.
Balmaro is under contract with Barcelona until 2023, so the Timberwolves may be forced to wait a few seasons before he heads to the United States. As a 6-foot-7 skillful player, he brings a new aspect to the group of wings in Minnesota.
The Timberwolves still have another selection with the 28th overall pick, as they moved their second-round pick in order to acquire Balmaro.
Graham Chapple of Peachtree Hoops, an Atlanta Hawks blog, writes the following about Balmaro:
"“There are two things that are keeping Bolmaro from being a lottery prospect: a few inches on his wingspan and a few percentage points on his three-point shooting. Everything else points to a lottery pick, and you don’t usually stash lottery picks.”"
The Timberwolves walking away with two high-quality, NBA-ready wings. It’s just a matter of how (and when) they will perform for the team.