The Minnesota Timberwolves have the No. 7 overall pick in the 2017 NBA Draft. Here are five players they should consider with that pick.
The Minnesota Timberwolves went into the lottery with the sixth-best odds for the No. 1 pick of the 2017 NBA Draft. That was after they won a coin flip as a tiebreaker against the New York Knicks for that position. They did not pull off the miracle for a top-three pick, but still sit in a good position with the seventh overall pick in a draft loaded with talent.
Several point guards are projected to go in the first five picks of the draft. That is good news for the Timberwolves because that is currently not an immediate need. The Wolves are set with Ricky Rubio, who is coming off his best NBA season. In addition to Rubio, the Wolves drafted point guards Kris Dunn during the 2016 NBA Draft and Tyus Jones during the 2015 NBA Draft.
The three point guards that will likely be off the board early are Markelle Fultz, Lonzo Ball and De’Aaron Fox. With three point guards being likely taken ahead of the Wolves’ pick there are only three other teams that could take a player the Wolves need.
The biggest area the Minnesota Timberwolves must address during the draft is the power forward position. They currently have Gorgui Dieng starting there. Dieng is a great rotational NBA player, but is not an ideal starter in the NBA. If the Wolves can find a way to upgrade this position, they will effectively improve their starting lineup and bench by making Dieng the sixth man.
If drafting a power forward does not work out, the Wolves should look to bring in a small forward or a shooting guard. They may need to replace small forward Shabazz Muhammad, who is officially a restricted free agent this offseason. Muhammad was their most effective player off the bench and this will be a very important role to fill. They must also find a backup shooting guard to replace Brandon Rush, who becomes an unrestricted free agent.
Here is a list of five players that can help the Timberwolves get to the playoffs.