2017 NBA Mock Draft, Week 23: The NBA Playoffs are upon us
By Chris Stone
Jonathan Isaac
SF/PF, Florida State
Draft status: In with an agent
The Minnesota Timberwolves did not live up to the hype this season as they struggled to adjust to new head coach Tom Thibodeau’s defensive schemes. While Minnesota has a solid young core in place, there are still obvious roster improvements that need to be made. In particular, finding a lineup that can allow Karl-Anthony Towns to play at the center spot while sliding Gorgui Dieng to the bench and bringing in another power forward would be ideal. That’s where Florida State’s Jonathan Isaac can fit in.
Isaac is a 6-foot-11 combo forward who will need to add strength to player the power forward spot full time, but he brings a good level of defensive production that could help the Timberwolves going forward. As a freshman, he averaged 2.3 blocks and 1.8 steals per 40 minutes, frequently using his length to disrupt opposing offenses both a the rim and in the open floor.
Offensively, Isaac settled into a role at Florida State as a spot up shooter as Dwayne Bacon and Xavier Rathan-Mayes dominated the ball. He made 34.8 percent of his 3s, but his free throw shooting suggests that could improve.