Minnesota Sports Forum

The 2020 NBA draft was obviously a great one for the Wolves. I was also one of the more interesting drafts. So far, it's turned out to be a surprisingly bottom-heavy draft. Here's how I'd rank the top 14 at this point with their actual draft position in parenthesis:

1. Edwards (1)
2. LaMello Ball (3)
3. Halliburton (11)
4. Maxey (21)
5. Desmond Bane (30)
6. Jaden McDaniels (28)
7. Saddiq Bey (19)
8. Devin Vassell (11)
9. Precious Achiuwa (20)
10. Isaiah Stewart (16)
11. Kenyon Martin Jr. (52)
12. Partrick Williams (4)
13. Cole Anthony (15)
14. Jalen Smith (10)

I'll add that James Wiseman could stay healthy and eventually vault into the top 5 at some point. Same for Patrick Williams. And it gets a little difficult to rank these guys after my top 10 or 11. I'll bet most of you and most pundits woudl agree with my top 10 based on what all the 2020 draftees have shown so far in their respective careers.

What I find telling is that only two of the top 10 performers were actually top 10 picks. Another thing that stands out for me is how many really good players were selected in the bottom half of the first round. This further affirms my view that NBA organizations should consider all first-round picks, not just lottery picks, precious gems.

In no particular order, here are some other prominent examples of great players or at least really good NBA players who were picked outside the top 10 and in many cases outside the lottery:

1. Karl Malone (13)
2. John Stockton (16)
3. Steve Nash (15)
4. Kobe Bryant (13)
5. Rudy Gobert (27)
6. Donovan Mitchell (13)
7. Bojan Bogdanovic (31)
8. Jokic (41)
9. Giannis (15)
10. Draymond Green (35)
11. Brogdon (36)
12. Gilbert Arenas (31)
13. Latrell Sprewell (24)
14. Richard Jefferson (13)
15. Peña Stojakovic (14)
16. Jemaine O'Neal (17)
17. Michael Finley (21)
18. Kris Middleton (39)
19. Jae Crowder (34)
20. Will Barton (40)
21. Kawhi Leonard (15)
22. Klay Thompson (11)
23. Tobias Harris (19)
24. Jimmy Butler (30)
25. Jrue Holiday (17)
26. Jeff Teague (19)
27. Taj Gibson (26)
28. DeMarre Carroll (27)
29. Danny Green (46)
30. Horan Dragic (45)
31. Zach LaVine (13)
32. Nurkic (16)
33. Gary Harris (19)
34. Clint Capela (25)
35. Jerami Grant (39)
36. Spencer Dinwiddie (38)
37. Devin Booker (13)

I'll stop there. There are lots of others.

I'm wondering if Ball should be #1 vs. Edwards. At least so far, it seems to me that Ball affects winning more than Ant because of how much he controls the ball on offense. I hope Ant keeps improving defensively and becomes more versatile offensively with movement, passing, mid-range, etc., but for right now I'd give the slight nod to Ball.

Q-was-here wrote:I'm wondering if Ball should be #1 vs. Edwards. At least so far, it seems to me that Ball affects winning more than Ant because of how much he controls the ball on offense. I hope Ant keeps improving defensively and becomes more versatile offensively with movement, passing, mid-range, etc., but for right now I'd give the slight nod to Ball.

I hate to agree, Q, because I had Ant miles ahead of Ball pre-draft, but I give the nod to Ball right now also...and actually it's more than a slight nod based on what they have achieved so far. I have to admit Ball has been much better than I would have anticipated. Put their stats (both raw and advanced) next to each other through their first two years, and it would be a stretch to say Ant has been better. But I would still take Ant first if the draft were redone. They are both very good and exciting players, but somehow I still see a higher ceiling for Ant. Maybe there's some homerism in that assessment, but there's just something unique about Ant that makes me think he passes Ball up in a couple years.

I went back and forth between Edwards and Ball for #1 before posting. I suppose homerism prevailed in the end. I'm just happy the Wolves have one of the two.

I would have Patrick Williams no lower than 8, I feel like he is being held back offensively with all of their weapons. Man I thought Vassell was going to be one of the top 4 players in the draft, especially after Popovich drafted him. Ball is probably number 1 but it's so close that I'm cool with Ant at 1.

rapsuperstar31 wrote:I would have Patrick Williams no lower than 8, I feel like he is being held back offensively with all of their weapons. Man I thought Vassell was going to be one of the top 4 players in the draft, especially after Popovich drafted him. Ball is probably number 1 but it's so close that I'm cool with Ant at 1.

Seems like the Spurs have lost a bit of their magic in hitting doubles, triples, and home runs with their picks. They still manage to turn most of their draft picks into solid players (and I think Vassell will eventually be pretty good), but they haven't been able to draft and develop any all-star or borderline all-star caliber players since they drafted Murray in 2016.

FNG wrote:

Q-was-here wrote:I'm wondering if Ball should be #1 vs. Edwards. At least so far, it seems to me that Ball affects winning more than Ant because of how much he controls the ball on offense. I hope Ant keeps improving defensively and becomes more versatile offensively with movement, passing, mid-range, etc., but for right now I'd give the slight nod to Ball.

I hate to agree, Q, because I had Ant miles ahead of Ball pre-draft, but I give the nod to Ball right now also...and actually it's more than a slight nod based on what they have achieved so far. I have to admit Ball has been much better than I would have anticipated. Put their stats (both raw and advanced) next to each other through their first two years, and it would be a stretch to say Ant has been better. But I would still take Ant first if the draft were redone. They are both very good and exciting players, but somehow I still see a higher ceiling for Ant. Maybe there's some homerism in that assessment, but there's just something unique about Ant that makes me think he passes Ball up in a couple years.

No question that Ant has a higher ceiling based on his ability to potentially be a lockdown defender and offensive force. I just don't see Ball ever being able to defend at Ant's level and I also think Ant has additional upside on offense that hasn't been realized yet. But through the first two years, I have to give the nod to Ball.

Its a close call between Ant and melo but I go with ant @#1.

I ask myself 2 questions to arrive at this conclusion

1. Will you win a championship if Ant is your best player?
2. Will you win a championship if Lamelo is your best player?

worldK wrote:Its a close call between Ant and melo but I go with ant @#1.

I ask myself 2 questions to arrive at this conclusion

1. Will you win a championship if Ant is your best player?
2. Will you win a championship if Lamelo is your best player?

Lamelo has a little, dare I say, Magic Johnson to his game. He can rebound, push the pace, pass, score, shoot....If he keeps improving then I see no reason why he can't establish himself as a top 5 or 6 player during his peak years. And that would definitely be good enough to be the best player on a contending team.

I love Ant and glad we got him, but Melo is neck and neck if not slightly ahead of Ant in terms of his impact on winning.

Q-was-here wrote:

worldK wrote:Its a close call between Ant and melo but I go with ant @#1.

I ask myself 2 questions to arrive at this conclusion

1. Will you win a championship if Ant is your best player?
2. Will you win a championship if Lamelo is your best player?

Lamelo has a little, dare I say, Magic Johnson to his game. He can rebound, push the pace, pass, score, shoot....If he keeps improving then I see no reason why he can't establish himself as a top 5 or 6 player during his peak years. And that would definitely be good enough to be the best player on a contending team.

I love Ant and glad we got him, but Melo is neck and neck if not slightly ahead of Ant in terms of his impact on winning.

I agree, Q.