The Minnesota Timberwolves have the first pick in this year’s NBA Draft, and according to multiple sources, The T-Wolves already know who they will pick when they are on the clock this Thursday night.
Karl-Anthony Towns, the 6’11” 248-pound big man out of Kentucky. He flew into Minneapolis on Friday to visit the Timberwolves ownership. He toured the new practice facility and sat down for dinner with owner Glen Taylor before hitting the gym on Saturday to show off his skills for the T-Wolves brass. His workout reportedly went very well and he was informed the next day by the team that he would be selected with the first overall pick.
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Many people dubbed Towns as the first pick since the offseason began, but until this weekend it looked as though T-Wolves President and Coach Flip Saunders preferred 7-foot Duke star Jahlil Okafor over Towns, but Towns’ workout was reportedly very convincing and swayed Saunders to change his mind. Okafor has a great paint presence and has an excellent touch around the rim, but Towns is the better overall Center, dominating the paint whether he’s on offense or defense, and has a fluid jump shot when he needs it. He shot an impressive 57% from the floor and averaged 10.3 points, 6.7 rebounds, and 2.3 blocks while playing 21.1 minutes per game last season with the Wildcats.
19-year-old Towns will be another great young talent for a Timberwolves team who already have the likes of 2014-15 ROY Andrew Wiggins and 20-year-old explosive 2014-15 Slam Dunk Contest winner Zach LaVine.
PF Anthony Bennett has reportedly been put on the trade block today, as he would likely be unused on a roster that contains Karl-Anthony Towns and other young big men such as Gorgui Dieng and Adreian Payne. Bennett also has a $5.5 million cap hit this coming season and a $5.8 million cap hit in 2016-17.
UPDATE: Karl-Anthony Towns has denied reports that he was told he would be picked first overall. “There is absolutely no promise at all.” Towns said Monday. However, it is still very unlikely that the Timberwolves pass him up at #1 considering the fact that he didn’t even bother to schedule workouts with any other teams. Towns’ remark was likely tongue-in-cheek, and although there may not have been a promise, Towns will almost certainly be the first pick on Thursday.