Minnesota Timberwolves draft: Latest mock PF E.J. Liddell at 19

Point Guard II

Why would the Minnesota Timberwolves select two guards at a time when they are rather deep on the roster already? Well, the rule of thumb is to get the players when they are available. The 2022 NBA Draft class is loaded with talented guards, and JD Davison is a very young guard who is versatile enough to run the offense as a point guard or create shots off-ball.

He is as exciting as he is frustrating. When you watch him play, you can see tremendous upside in his pure athleticism, his ability to move up the floor quickly, pivot, and pass the ball to an open teammate. He is a shooting guard mindset at a point guard height, and that can prove to be both a positive and a negative.

He is solid at rebounding, shooting from the floor, and distributing the basketball. Because he has only one season of college basketball under his belt, he’s very raw in terms of shots in his arsenal. He needs to work intensively on developing a perimeter shot. In his only season of college basketball, he made just over 30 percent of his threes, 33 percent of his mid-range jumpers, and only 72 percent of his free throws. His most dependable shot is driving to the basket, which will be a difficult shot to make in the NBA without other offensive options.

Davison’s size is somewhat of a limit, as almost all draft projections have him strictly as a point guard. But if he is going to run the floor, he will need to drop his turnovers significantly. His rate of 2.9 turnovers per game is much too high to see much playing time in the NBA.

He is a lightning-fast pace setter, and when he has all systems running correctly can be a catalyst for a huge offensive output. But things go run aground just as quickly. Davison will need to develop a bit before he sees much playing time for the Timberwolves.