The 2020 NBA Draft is typically a highlight of everyone’s summer, but will be a Thanksgiving tradition this year. Due to COVID-19, the NBA Finals were completed in October. Typically, the draft follows one month after its finale, so here in the fall season predicting what college talent will fall to which team.
The Minnesota Timberwolves hold the No. 1 overall pick in this year’s draft. In what is considered a weaker draft compared to recent years, it will be imperative that the team hits on the best overall talent. With that in mind, these three players could be hearing their name called right off the bat.
LaMelo Ball-International
Ball decided to skip out on playing in college when he was 17 and selected to play international basketball. Among the NBA picks, Ball is considered a universal top-3 pick in this draft. The 6-foot-5 shooting guard just finished up playing professional basketball in Australia. This comes after a successful career at Chino Hills High School in California.
In high school, Ball was considered a top-3 recruit and a five-star player. He averaged 16.4 points per game and 3.8 assists as a freshman. As a sophomore, that jumped to 26.7 points per game, including a 92-point performance in a 146-123 win. In what would have been his junior year, Ball played overseas with Prienu Skycop, based in Lithuania alongside his brother LiAngele. He played in eight games. This past season, he played for the Illawarra Hawks in the NPL.
Killian Hayes-International
With D’Angelo Russell more suited as a shooting guard, the Timberwolves need a true point guard to set him and Karl Anthony Towns up for all the action. Hayes grew up playing in Cholet, France while his father was playing professional basketball. At 16-years old, Hayes made his debut with the Cholet senior team. One year later, he played in the Basketball Without Borders camp during All-Star weekend and was the second-youngest participant. Before the 2018-2019 season, he signed a three-year contract with Cholet.
Hayes finished his first season with averages of 7.1 points and 3.1 assist per game at the age of 18. This past season, he played for Ulm of the Basketball Bundesliga, which is the top league in Germany and the EuroCup. Last November, Hayes became the youngest layer to ever record a double-double in the EuroCup, the youngest since Ricky Rubio.
The pandemic forced the BBL to suspend the season, which led Hayes to return to his family in Florida. He finished the season with averages of 11.6 points, 5.4 assists, 2.8 rebounds, and 1.5 steals per game in 33 combined games played.
Anthony Edwards-Georgia
Edwards seems like the likely choice for Minnesota. He is the best overall prospect and could combine with Russell as a powerful 1-2 punch at the guard position. Edwards is a pure shooting guard, so if the team continues to use Russell as the primary guard, it would free up plenty of opportunities.
In high school, Edwards was regarded the No. 1 overall prospect in the country. He was named All-American by USA Today and Maxpreps. At Georgia, the 6-foot-5, 225-pound guard averaged 19.1 points, 5.2 rebounds, and 2.8 assists per game. He was the top scorer among freshmen nationally. Edwards was also a finalist for the Jerry West Award, which is given to the top collegiate shooting guard in the country.
