It’s the No. 1 pick that no one knows what to do with.
No Zion Williamson, no Ja Morant, no clue. The Timberwolves have reportedly been trying to trade the top selection in the 2020 NBA Draft and one Western Conference executive told Bleacher Report that Minnesota is “confused” as to what to do.
The executive added that the Timberwolves feel they are under increased scrutiny after “messing up last year by trading for Jarrett Culver.”
However, the site’s sources claim that if no worthy offer presents itself, Minnesota is leaning toward taking LaMelo Ball with the first pick on Nov. 18. Ball is the draft’s most intriguing prospect, given his unusual basketball upbringing with father LaVar dubiously pulling the strings.
Ball, 19, has played in Lithuania, Australia and Baller leagues with high school stops in California and Ohio.
Some have questioned if his style of play would mesh well with two other ball-dominant players on the Timberwolves in Karl-Anthony Towns and D’Angelo Russell.
“Anywhere is a great fit,” Ball told reporters this week after LaVar questioned if the Warriors, who pick at No. 2, are the right spot for him.
“I mean, it’s the NBA. You put me with good players, I feel like it’s even gonna be better.”
Onyeka Okongwu, a forward who played with Ball at Chino Hills (California), would agree.
“He is confident and he is creative,” Okongwu told Hoops Hype in a recent podcast. “I’ve never seen anyone as confident as him. He is tall, he is about 6-foot-7, pushing 6-foot-8. He can handle the ball and he can shoot. He just has it all. He is talented. He is a once-in-a-lifetime player. I’m telling people that he is going to amount to a star.”
Okongwu is also slated to be a lottery pick after a dominant freshman season at USC when he averaged 16.2 points and 8.6 rebounds per game.
“He has been my friend since I was a little kid,” Okongwu said. “We have been doing this for a long time. We have always told each other we were going to see each other in the league and it’s about to become a reality. I just keep telling people, Melo, he’s very talented”