NBA Draft
Minnesota Timberwolves Select Zach LaVine at No. 13
Jeff Hawkins is an award-winning sportswriter with more than four decades in the industry (print and digital media). A freelance writer/stay-at-home dad since 2008, Hawkins started his career with newspaper stints in Michigan, North Carolina, Florida, Upstate New York and Illinois, where he earned the 2004 APSE first-place award for column writing (under 40,000 circulation). As a beat writer, he covered NASCAR Winston Cup events at NHIS (1999-2003), the NHL's Chicago Blackhawks (2003-06) and the NFL's Carolina Panthers (2011-12). Hawkins penned four youth sports books, including a Michael Jordan biography. Hawkins' main hobbies include mountain bike riding, 5k trail runs at the Whitewater Center in Charlotte, N.C., and live music.
All posts by Jeff HawkinsUpdated15 Oct 2021
The Minnesota Timberwolves finished last season with 10th in the Western Conference, missing the playoffs for the 10th season in a row. The Wolves have been in the headlines for the last few weeks, as superstar forward Kevin Love has asked the team to trade him, or risk losing him in free agency next year. The Golden State Warriors are engaged in negotiations to acquire Love, but are reluctant to give up shooting guard Klay Thompson.
With the roster in flux, team president and head coach Flip Saunders selected Zach LaVine with the 13th overall pick. LaVine is one of, if not the most explosive athlete in the draft. LaVine says that he can play point guard, but as of now, it’s not clear that is the case. His ball-handling needs work and at this point he is not a great decision maker. While LaVine needs to improve certain aspects of his game, it’s not hard to see why the Wolves selected him at 13.
LaVine is 6-foot-5, and 180 lbs, good size for a combo guard. At UCLA, LaVine averaged 9.4 points, 2.5 rebounds, 1.8 assists and shot 44.1 percent from the field and 37.5 percent from beyond the arc. LaVine started his freshmen season strong, but faded later on. While LaVine did not put up overly impressive numbers, his upside is off the charts. With Minnesota, he can grow alongside point guard Ricky Rubio, and fill in for Kevin Martin, who may be moved along with Kevin Love in the near future. Also, his three point shooting will be welcomed in Minnesota, as the Wolves were one of the worst three-point shooting teams in the league last season. At 19, LaVine may not be ready to make a major impact for the Wolves from day one, but could very well end up as one of the best players to come out of this draft down the line.
