Say Love gets traded for Waiters and the number 1...

[ace [enjin:6598567]]

Embiid has to be the pick, right? I know Pek is a beast and Dieng looks like the future, but he looks like a sure star(if his back checks out). Pek could be traded for a young wing, or Embiid could be run at PF with his athleticism. Watching workouts, he can hit midrange shots and handle the ball somewhat. That's more than Ibaka can do on the offensive end, and he's an outstanding 4. Can you imagine Dieng and Embiid on D? If it happens, we would need shooters at the 2 and 3. If not, the spacing wouldn't be great.

[Camden [enjin:6601484]]

Jabari Parker.

[bleedspeed]

I trade down with 76ers (3 and 10) or Magic (4 and 12). Then offer 10 or 12 + 13 for another top 8 pick.

[longstrangetrip [enjin:6600564]]

Gotta agree with cam on this one, although I have to reiterate that I handicap it as less than 10% that Cleveland offers up the first pick.

I just don't see a lot of difference between Embiid, Wiggins and Parker. I think they all have superstar potential, and also, all have red flags...Embiid, lack of polish and back injury; Wiggins, inconsistent motor; Parker, tweener size and defensive indifference. Maybe the Wolves rank one of them clearly ahead of the other two, and if so, they need to draft that clearly BPA in this unlikely hypothetical. But most experts have a difficult time differentiating among the three. So, in that case, I look to the player that can fill a need, and is most likely to contribute earliest. And that guy to me is Parker.

[thedoper]

I take Wiggins #1 every day. I think he offers the greatest shot at a cultural change in our style of play (defense first), is an equally great match to Rubio along with Embid, and isn't afraid of the cold being Canadian. Would be fine with any of those three in this draft and would be also excited with Smart from this draft. The rest of the players are a complete mystery to me how they will pan out.

[Camden [enjin:6601484]]

I'll take the guy that has the best probability of being a star (and the best player in the draft) and that's Parker. Only question marks about him are his lateral quickness on defense (or strength for those that think he's a PF) and "tweener" label, but he's a SF to me. He's a guy you build around and fits nicely with current pieces.

If we turn Love and 13 into: Parker, Waiters, Stauskas... I'd call it a success even with losing our All-Star PF.

[Coolbreeze44]

Wiggins would be the guy and I'd start negotiating with him as soon as the trade is done. He is the type of player that brings a 2 way mentality and would be sick with Rubio.

[Coolbreeze44]

I'll take the guy that has the best probability of being a star (and the best player in the draft) and that's Parker. Only question marks about him are his lateral quickness on defense (or strength for those that think he's a PF) and "tweener" label, but he's a SF to me. He's a guy you build around and fits nicely with current pieces.

If we turn Love and 13 into: Parker, Waiters, Stauskas... I'd call it a success even with losing our All-Star PF.

Parker's ceiling is too low for me. Not that it's low, just that it's too low to pass up on Wiggins.

[ace [enjin:6598567]]

Super-athletic, tall wing with an inconsistent motor. Potential to become a defensive stopper. Shot needs work. Am I talking about Wiggins or Wes Johnson? Anyone that has that label scares the hell out of me. Sure he might have the most potential out of anyone in the draft, but people made that argument about Darko and D-Will.

Jabari is very polished, but I'm scared about how he will transition to the NBA. Will he be able to get to the hole against quicker wings? Can he stay in front of those same guys? If not Embiid, I would agree on Parker being the pick. I just think Embiid is an Anthony Davis-like prospect that you can't pass on. Trying to trade for 3 and 10 would be interesting. The 10th and 13th could be used to trade up, or Flip could stand pat and stockpile talent. At some point you can have too many young players though.

[Lipoli390]

Any or all of those top three could become NBA stars. But as we've learned over the years, no matter now talented the player, the difference between all-star status and mediocrity lies between the ears. That's why I have a hard time getting excited about either Wiggins or Parker. Every player coming out of college has a weakness or a red flag or two. But when the red flag relates to the player's motor or motivation, I get very scared. Reports on Wiggins refer to an inconsistent motor and the fact that he is often passive and disappears from games. No one questions Parker's ability or effort on the offensive end, but part of the rap on his defense is a indifference. Those things concern me.

There were reports questioning the intensity and motor of Wes Johnson and Derrick Williams coming out of college. In fact, when I asked David Kahn about Wes Johnson after a draft workout, he said the consensus in the Wolves front office was that Wes could be very good if he is willing to put forth the effort. So Wes was drafted with full awareness by the Wolves brass of question marks surrounding Johnson's intensity and drive. Same with Derrick Williams. I recall Ranzone telling me that there was no question surrounding Derrick's ability but that the key for him would be whether he, in Ranzone's words, "how he'd respond when pushed." My take away was that Derrick didn't necessarily have the internal drive and would need to be pushed by others.

Of course all this makes me even more disgusted with the prior regime. But it's a reminder that internal drive, motor or intensity (call it what you will) is the critical distinguishing factor in predicting a draft pick's NBA success. The reports regarding the drive or motor of Wiggins and Parker should give the Wolves some pause if they contemplate trading Love for a package that includes a top 3 pick. What I like about Embid is that there are no question marks surrounding his motor or drive. But unfortunately there is the issue with his back.

My view is that, if Embid's back checks out completely after a thorough medical exam, he'd be my pick with the #1 pick if we land that pick in a deal for Love. If not Embid, I'd probably take Parker because he does have a great motor on the offensive end to go with elite scoring talent. He also seems ready to have an immediate impact. Perhaps, a better defensive mentality can be instilled in him. At the very least, I see him as another Melo and that ain't bad. I think he'd thrive playing with Rubio. We'd have to improve our defense at the PF and SG positions to go with the defense of Ricky and Dieng.

On the other hand, Wiggins would appear to have the highest upside next the Embid and, unlike Parker, has the potential to be a star on both ends of the court.