Fresh off a trip to the NBA Western Conference Finals, the Timberwolves don’t feature many weaknesses. But they also aren’t a perfect product, as that playoff series loss to the Dallas Mavericks proved.
And, given the team’s salary cap crunch, unless it makes a roster-rattling trade, the NBA Draft — a two-day event this season that features the first round on Wednesday and the second round on Thursday —serves as one of very few chances for Minnesota to improve its rotation.
Here’s a look at a few options for the Timberwolves, which currently hold the No. 27 and No. 37 selections, to seek out in the draft, based on needs, fit and ability.
Trade up
Tyler Kolek, point guard, Marquette
A clear sign of the point guard renaissance the NBA may potentially be entering is Kolek’s rising draft stock.
He’s a pure point guard in every sense, averaging nearly seven assists per game. He also is an excellent shooter, hitting 39 percent of his 3-point attempts on high volume as a senior at Marquette.
Wolves forward Kyle Anderson has said certain players naturally see the floor in the way a point guard must. Anderson and Mike Conley both possess that ability for Minnesota.
But Conley will be 37 years old at the start of next season, and his calf injury during the playoffs — and the ways the team struggled when he was unavailable or limited — was a reminder of how overly-dependent the Wolves were on the savvy veteran.
Can Kolek be Conley’s heir apparent? There are legitimate questions about his combination of size; he’s 6-foot-1.25 with a 6.275-foot wing span. Combine that with average athleticism, and even with Kolek’s craft and basketball IQ, it’s tough to envision the floor general not being picked on defensively in the playoffs.
But, offensively, the 23-year-old’s ability to dissect a defense off the bounce, play make and dictate an up-tempo pace would immediately fit well into Wolves coach Chris Finch’s preferred brand of basketball.
Kolek would add an instant creator to the second unit for the time being, and likely could handle a bigger regular-season workload to reduce the mileage put on Conley’s legs pre-playoffs.
Kolek is consistently projected to be off the board in the early 20s — with point-guard-less Phoenix lurking at No. 22 — so it’s entirely possible the Wolves would need to put together a package — potential No. 27 and No. 37 would be enough — to move up to snag him.
If the Wolves were to make such a move, they would have to deem Kolek to be a significant upgrade over someone like Jordan McLaughlin, and likely at least a viable candidate to be the team’s starting point guard of the future.
Draft at No. 27
Baylor Scheierman, wing, Creighton
The Timberwolves need more reliable shooting to achieve proper floor spacing and, thus, generate consistent offensive success in the playoffs. It was too easy for an opponent like Dallas and even Denver to clog the lane and dare the likes of Kyle Anderson, Jaden McDaniels and Nickeil Alexander-Walker to hit outside shots on a consistent basis.
The Wolves don’t possess many offensive levers for coach Chris Finch to currently pull in a playoff series or specific matchup throughout the regular season if their primary wings outside of Anthony Edwards aren’t hitting from the perimeter.
Scheierman was an elite college shooter who knocked down 39 percent of his 3-point attempts over his five-year collegiate career. He’s a lethal spot-up shooter who also is excellent shooting off movement and showed the capability to hit jumpers off the bounce.
Knocks on Scheierman are his age (he’ll be 24 years old at the start of next season) and his lack of vertical athleticism. But at 6-foot-6 and with a 6-foot-8 wingspan, he has enough size to mix with decent quickness to be usable on the defensive end. He also showed a want-to on defense, often having to guard the opponent’s best scorer at Creighton, and demonstrating a high level of competitiveness while doing so.
Scheierman looks like the type of player who could contribute in a playoff rotation right now if needed.
Draft at No. 37 (two options)
Ajay Mitchell, guard, UC Santa Barbara
Mitchell fits a point guard mold. He was a lead guard in college, and has good size at 6-foot-3.25 and a 6.625-foot wing span to fit that athletic mold.
He’s not an electric athlete, but he can be a good passer who can generate shots from anywhere on the floor.
Mitchell was an excellent free-throw shooter in college and had easily his best 3-point shooting performance this past season, hitting 39 percent of his 3-point shots. Still, the shot is a question mark. But if the Belgian guard can consistently hit attempts from the outside, Mitchell could be the type of off-the-bench scorer that consistently intrigues Finch and basketball boss Tim Connelly, with the potential to develop into more of an NBA floor general the Wolves could lean on in time.
Pelle Larsson, guard, Arizona
Larson is another older player; he turned 23 years old in February.
But the Wolves’ need right now seems apparent, adding someone who’s ready to contribute now at least as a situational option and can add shooting to any lineup combination.
Larson can do that. He made 43 percent of his 3-point attempts as a senior, albeit not on high volume.
That was somewhat the story of Larson’s time at Arizona. He played next to ball-dominant players who didn’t really play into his off-ball strengths, both as a shooter and cutter.
A motion-based offense like Minnesota’s, where there are more chances to play off the catch, both as a shooter and creator — in straight-line drives and random actions — figures to best suit Larson’s strengths.
He also is 6-foot-5 with a solid wingspan and athleticism that should aid his efforts on the defensive end.
