Timberwolves Draft Night

So after the 2014 NBA Draft, Kevin Love is still with the Minnesota Timberwolves. They added 2 new players from the Draft and we’re a few weeks away from the Las Vegas Summer league. Here are a few thoughts on the team and its current state:

-It wasn’t surprising to me that Flip Saunders did not trade Kevin Love. Since Cleveland has selected probably the guy they want anyways, a deal CAN be made for after Lebron signs, wherever he does. This is the right move by Flip. You’re probably not going to deal him to the Celtics or Nuggets either way so not biting at one of the “proposed trades” on draft night is a successful one. The way I see it, Lebron dictates the market for Kevin Love. Should LeBron sign with the Cavs, I expect them to immediately make a phone call to the Wolves about Love. A package that should include at the very minimum Andrew Wiggins and the Anderson Varejao’s contract.  However, it wouldn’t be too farfetched if the wolves decide they do not want Kevin in Cleveland then the only real option is the Golden State Warriors who will give up Klay Thompson for Love. Either way, I expect a deal in the hours that follow LeBron’s next destination, whether it’s the Cavs, Lakers, Rockets, or wherever he ends up.

-Flip Saunders said in a press conference regarding his NO.1 pick from the draft being the most athletic player available to them. It’s surprising to me then, that in the most hyped draft class since the Lebron draft, that the Timberwolves decide to take a player based on his potential rather than production. Zach Lavine, at 6’5 is going to play shooting guard and some point guard for the Timberwolves. I don’t know how to project him in the first few years of his nba career but I do hope that he develops into a dangerous 3 point shooter.  Why? Because if he can hit that 3pt shot, he will open up a whole new game for himself. Lanes will open up for him, with the passing ability of Ricky Rubio and the inside presence of Pekovic, Lavine seems to just fit perfectly with the Wolves.

With the 2nd Round pick, the Timberwolves take Glen Robinson III. Flip said in his presser that they had Robinson rated as high as 26 or 27, a 1st round grade on him. Instead of opting to pick an international player to stash away, they grabbed Robinson with the hopes that he continue developing his game. The thing I like about the Wolves draft so much is that both prospect they took can develop into elite defenders. Both are tremendously athletic and hopefully can develop into elite perimeter defenders. Robinson was a nice pick, Levine is going to be a project early. If he can earn minutes early , he might never relinquish them.

Also another thought:

I honestly do not mind the Timberwolves making a heads up trade for another young PF in the league right now.  Well, an athletic one that can run the floor , that is. Why? Because I feel like the timerwolves roster can be so good next year that I don’t really care if Love gets traded. In fact, we’ll be a better team without him.  One of the problems with the Timberwolves last year I felt was the unwillingness of Rick Adelman to play some of his young players, or go long stretches where he would sit a guy just because he can. We didn’t see Shabazz Muhammad play early, some of you probably didn’t even know Gorgi Dieng existed. Adelman kept going with the veterans of Dante Cunningham (who was decent), and Luc Ricard Mbah A Moute (who was terrible). Dieng and Shabazz  are much more athletic than the two I mentioned and when they palyed, they showed up for the most part, however, THEY NEVER PLAYED early in the season. That was a huge hit to their development. It wasn’t like we had guys to step in and play a good role. Ronny Turiaf, the expected backup center, was hurt most of the early part of the season. Chase Budinger, one of the wing players we were expecting to depend on for 3pt shots, was also injured. So why not give these guy a chance? Adelman got burned when he did play them and figured out that Dieng was a nightly double doubles machine (even a 20-20 game).  And Shabazz was aggressive going to the hoop and making some timely buckets. Next year, because Shabazz and Dieng were handpicked by Flip in last year’s draft, I am expecting to see both of them a lot and early.  If the Wolves don’t get another starting caliber PF back for Kevin Love, expect to see Pek and Dieng to play in the starting frontcourt and they will be better than the Love Pek combo. Why? Because Dieng can actually defend the hoop. Sure we’ll miss the 3 pt shooting and floor spacing with Love, but Dieng is no slouch from 15 ft either. If we can trust the Ricky Rubio passing, we don’t need a stretch 4. We just need big bodies underneath the basket that can draw attention, and we have that with Pek. With a healthy Chase, with the potential of Klay Thompson, or even Andrew Wiggins, along with the players we already have, I believe we can be even better than last year’s team.

Also to note: By just adding Levine and Robinson, we are now 10x more athletic than we were last season. We lost all of our athleticism by trading away Derrick Williams for a guy who had no knees. Love and Pek, let’s be honest, that was probably the most unathletic starting frontcourt in the entire league.  Kevin Martin isn’t your ideal athletic guy either. Who could Rubio make passes to who could slash to the basket? Not anyone from last year, you can count on that.  This year, we will have a bunch of players who can, and when I say that I mean Shabazz as well.

Although I do not expect the wolves to contend for a playoff spot without love, I do expect them to be fun to watch and have a bright future. If we do get klay, that'd make it perfect.