Timberwolves GM confirms what many think about the 2020 NBA Draft originally appeared on NBC Sports Washington
Most NBA Drafts have a consensus No. 1 pick and in many years we know who is going second overall as well. This year, not so much.
There are essentially three players who seem to stand out from the rest: Anthony Edwards (Georgia), James Wiseman (Memphis) and LaMelo Ball (USA). But none of them have separated themselves like Zion Williamson did a year ago or DeAndre Ayton the year before that.
The Minnesota Timberwolves have the No. 1 pick in the 2020 draft and their GM, Gersson Rosas, sees this class just like everyone else.
This puts the Timberwolves in an interesting spot. They would prefer to have the No. 1 pick than pick anywhere else, of course, but there is much more pressure on them than most teams that win the lottery.
RELATED: 2020 NBA Mock Draft 11.0: Combine Edition
There may be more uncertainty with this year's No. 1 pick than in any draft since 2013. And that year we saw the drawbacks of having the top pick in an undefined draft class. The Cavaliers chose Anthony Bennett, who ended up as one of the biggest busts in draft history.
Any team that lands the No. 1 pick is going to have a major decision to make, it's just some years there is less thinking involved. In years when a player like Williamson is available, or Anthony Davis or John Wall, the team that lands the No. 1 selection often knows who they are going to pick as soon as their envelope is drawn on lottery night.
For the Timberwolves, they have to weigh taking the best player available against what they already have in D'Angelo Russell and Karl-Anthony Towns. Russell is a high-usage guard who could overlap with Ball, while Towns plays the same position as Wiseman. That could point to Edwards being the pick, though the Timberwolves wouldn't want to pass on someone who will end up better just because of positional fit. That has gotten teams into trouble in the past.
The lack of a defined top tier will also affect other teams like the Warriors, who seem inclined to trade the second overall pick. That selection doesn't have the same value it would have last year when Ja Morant was the obvious choice.
The Timberwolves will still be able to find a star at No. 1. History shows there are multiple All-Stars in every draft and more often than not future Hall of Famers are available.
Minnesota just has to make the right choice. Easy enough, right?
