Minnesota Timberwolves: Why Jarrett Culver was the right pick

The Minnesota Timberwolves caused some controversy with their sixth overall pick in the 2019 NBA Draft, but in the end, Jarrett Culver was almost certainly the best choice.

A few hours before the 2019 NBA Draft began, the Minnesota Timberwolves traded their 11th overall pick and Dario Saric to the Phoenix Suns for their sixth overall pick, most likely in an attempt to draft a point guard in Darius Garland.

Unfortunately, Garland was picked up right before the Timberwolves pick, as he went fifth overall to the Cleveland Cavaliers.

Understandably, this probably sent the Wolves into a bit of a spiral. They needed a guard, and the guy that they wanted had just been picked. The presumptive pick for Minnesota at that point was UNC guard Coby White, but then, this happened:

The Timberwolves used the Suns pick to select Texas Tech guard Jarrett Culver, and it seemed to send the internet into a mad spiral. They now had an overabundance of shooting guards — Andrew Wiggins, Robert Covington, Josh Okogie and Jarrett Culver could all ideally play the 2 or 3-spot — and were still lacking at the point guard position.

With the Culver pick, the Minnesota fanbase was divided. Some thought that it was an exciting selection, and could go a long way toward helping the Timberwolves, whether it be on the court or on the trade market.

Others had nightmares of the 2009 NBA Draft, when the Wolves selected Johnny Flynn and Ricky Rubio over Stephen Curry. However, this pick will probably shape out to be the right one for Minnesota, given enough time.

Culver was considered by many to be a top-three talent in the draft. A standout prospect for the Red Raiders, nobody saw him as a horrible pick, just not necessarily the right one. However, president of basketball operations Gersson Rosas made it clear that the team’s goal was to draft who they thought was the top prospect in the available pool, not to draft positional. During a pre-draft conference, he said:

"“You don’t know what your roster’s going to look like in three or four years…You don’t know what your needs are going to be. For us, our ability to acquire the best talent is our focus and that’s what we’re looking to execute on.”"

Culver also outranks White in a few different areas. He averaged 18.5 points, 1.5 steals, and 0.6 blocks per game, while Coby White averaged 16.1 points, 1.1 steals and 0.3 blocks a night. True, White averaged more assists than Culver, and the two were nearly tied for everything else, but Culver has a few intangibles that are going to go a long ways towards helping the Timberwolves.

First, Culver has a great combination of spectacular floor-running and outstanding court vision. He is lethal on a fast break, which could help the Wolves, who fell around the middle of the league in pace of play last season. Upping the speed at which they play could go a long ways towards moving the Timberwolves up in a fast-paced, high-energy league.

Culver’s ability to move the ball, and to spread it around the floor, will also give Minnesota a good assist boost, helping the team move out of the 15th spot it occupied after last season. Not only will his floor vision help the Wolves on the break, but he also has awesome defensive vision.

Culver also is an insane finisher, and he’s drawn comparisons to Caris LeVert and a young Derrick Rose. At nearly 6’7″, Culver is a strong player in the post, and could cause problems for other guards and wings.

Culver does have some big weaknesses though. For starters, he seems to have problems creating his shot against more athletic guards, so players at the top of the league like Stephen Curry or Russell Westbrook could cause him problems. He’s also not the best ball-handler, and he seems to be limited to two or three dribble moves, which could make getting past stellar two-way guys like Kawhi Leonard hard.

Culver’s shooting is also brought up as an area that needs improvement, but with players like Wiggins and Karl-Anthony Towns around him, that could see improvement very quick. Finally, Culver has problems moving without the ball, and he really needs the ball in his hands to do much.

Despite all that, he’s going to be a great fit for the system in Minnesota, which wants to increase its pace and defensive tenacity in the upcoming seasons. Most analysts agree that Culver could have a lucrative 10-year span in an NBA starting lineup.

His youth, defense and intangibles all were strong points heading into the draft, and those were the main reasons the Wolves wanted him at No. 6. The skills he has, as well as the ones that he has the potential to develop, make him a mouth-watering prospect and a great pick for the Minnesota Timberwolves.