Bang the Drum Slowly

In recent years, my interest level in the Timberwolves has plummeted faster than a Carlos Silva sinker- oh, wait. I guess that analogy doesn't work very well right now, does it? In any case, the Wolves will draft in the 6th spot, which is exactly where their record says they should draft. Despite failing to move up yet again, it has to be considered a moral victory when the Wolves don't draft lower than they're supposed to. In a draft class that doesn't feature a sure-thing player or two, standing pat at 6th isn't necessarily bad news for the team.

However, a quick glance at the T-Wolves draft history doesn't exactly instill me with confidence in their ability to assess amateur talent. Here is a list of players selected when the Wolves had a top-20 pick:

Year		Position					Player
1989		10					Pooh Richardson
1990		6					Felton Spencer
		20					Gerald Glass
1991		7					Luc Longley
1992		3					Christian Laettner
1993		5					J.R. Rider
1994		4					Donyell Marshall
1995		5					Kevin Garnett
1996		5					Ray Allen
1997		20					Paul Grant
1998		17					Rasho Nesterovich
1999		6					Wally Szczerbiak
		14					William Avery
2005		14					Rashad McCants

The team has has some bad luck, most notably in '92, when, as the worst team in the league, they should have been able to draft Shaq. Ray Allen was traded for Stephon Marbury, and we all know how that turned out. Losing four first-rounders because of the secret Joe Smith contract debacle was a major blow, but judging by the team's draft history, maybe we were simply spared four more bone-headed picks.

Other than the KG selection, it almost looks like someone was planted on the inside to sabotage the draft on an annual basis.

Some of the early speculation has the Wolves taking Rudy Gay at #6, which could be intriguing. Although, I can't imagine KG wants another lazy son-of-a-bitch on the team.