Good morning from the beautiful city of…
Minneapolis because my flight got delayed. I don’t understand how a flight gets delayed three hours before takeoff when the flight is less than two hours. But I also ate Cheetos for dinner last night, so what do I know?
Before we get started with our Combine Mailbag, let’s clear up a few things.
I don’t know any top-secret information. These are all my observations from the research I’ve done so far and what I’ve seen and heard at the combine. And some are just flat out my opinions. I am not Facebook messaging Tom Thibodeau or Scott Layden (although that’d be dope) on the prospects they like and what they are going to do with the pick. With that being said (or written), we hope to catch up with Thibodeau or Layden sometime in the next three days.
Our video dude Carlos will be with me at the combine and we will be posting videos to the site and YouTube throughout the trip of prospect interviews, similar to what we did last year.
We will also be profiling a prospect each day. We’ll start today with Ben Simmons, the forward from LSU. Simmons will not be participating at the combine.
It’s also worth noting that the Wolves don’t know where they will pick yet. Right now, they are slotted at the fifth spot, but can move up as high as one or fall back to eight, so there are a lot of moving parts here. Do you know what’s not moving? My flight because it just got delayed another 30 minutes. I might soon position myself at the bar.
Now, let’s get to your Twitter questions, you filthy animals.
From Uncle Drew: Chance that the Wolves consider trading their pick?
That’s the big question. Does Thibodeau want to develop another young player on this roster or acquire a player who can help the team win now? With a young player, there’s more upside, but the player also might not work out. By acquiring an older player, you’re getting someone who can help now but also someone who is probably more expensive and someone who has an expiration date.
I think the team will “consider” trading the pick just given the way the roster is put together. But “consider” is a very loose term. This is kind of a cop out of an answer, but I think Thibodeau and Layden will consider all options.
From P. Teufer: Are you opening cards in Chicago?
My goodness. I love you. We are going to make this happen.
(Opens up Google Maps and searches for sports card shop in Chicago…)
From Scott Arhart: Other than Ingram & Simmons, I don’t know much about the other players. Who, in your opinion, best fits our needs?
This obviously depends on where the team is picking, but let’s say the Wolves stay at the No. 5 spot.
A few names I’d keep an eye on:
Jamal Murray, G, Kentucky: He can play both guard positions, which is a plus. He’d be a great guy coming off the bench for any team. A lot of people say you need to draft a starter if you’re drafting this high, but the Wolves are a unique team with so many guys on the rise.
Buddy Heild, G, Oklahoma: He’s 22, so you’re not putting another teenager on the roster, which some would see as a plus. Heild has gotten better each year at Oklahoma and in case you went missing in March, he took over the NCAA Tournament. The dude can score in a hurry and is a great 3-point shooter.
Henry Ellenson, PF, Marquette: This would fill a positional need for the Wolves. After Karl-Anthony Towns and Gorgui Dieng, the Wolves are thin on the froncourt. Ellenson can shoot a bit, too, which would help space the floor with Towns.
Kris Dunn, PG, Providence: Like Heild, Dunn is older and is a bit more seasoned than some of these young guns. Dunn will primarily play point guard in the NBA. If the Wolves don’t think Tyus Jones is ready to be the primary backup to Ricky Rubio, Dunn could be an option.
Jakob Poeltl, PF, Utah: Poeltl’s stock dropped after Domantas Sabonis had his way against him in the tournament, but it was one game. We probably shouldn’t overeact but we will because that’s what we do when it comes to drafts. Poeltl is a true seven-footer and would give the team more frontcourt size.
These five are all projected to be picked right around the No. 5 spot. All of them are very intriguing and each one would fit a distinct need for the Wolves.
From Ryan Macdonald: What do you see as being the biggest need for the Wolves in the draft?
To piggyback on the last question, the biggest need is probably getting another big guy, but this can also happen in free agency.
To rank the team’s needs going into the draft:
Depth at PF/C (Nemanja Bjlieca came on strong late last season, but he’s not the most physically-imposing guy)
Bench scoring (Shabazz Muhammad was good off the bench last season, but after that, who can you depend on?)
3-Point shooter (Muhummad, Zach LaVine and Andrew Wiggins are improving from deep, but the team still shot just 33.8 percent from deep, ranking 25th in the league)
Backup/third point guard (this depends on how Thibodeau and Layden feel about Jones’s development last season)
New web writer (Just kidding. I hope? Oh god. Now I’m nervous. Let’s move along)
From Tony S.: Do you see the Wolves drafting a 3-point shooter this NBA Draft?
I don’t think the team is all like, “WE NEED TO DO WHATEVER WE CAN TO DRAFT A GUY WHO CAN SHOOT FROM THE 3-POINT LINE!”
That kind of puts you in a tough spot and could cause you to reach. I’ll say that I’d be surprised if the team didn’t address the 3-point shooting this offseason. The nice thing is in this draft, a good chunk of the top guys can shoot from the 3-point line. It’s probably not the main thing leadership is looking for, but it would obviously be a huge bonus.
From SlowBreak: Did anyone look better or worse than you expected?
I’ll get back to you on this, SlowBreak. We don’t get a whole lot of time to watch the prospects. A lot of the media availability is during this time, but I’ll do my best to give you some on-court observations.
Well, friends, that’s all I have for now. I’ll check back in when I get to Chicago, the city that never sleeps.
