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2017 NBA Mock Draft, Week 25: Lakers at No. 1, Knicks at No. 2

By Chris Stone

Jan 18, 2017; Seattle, WA, USA; Washington Huskies guard Markelle Fultz (20) dunks against Colorado Buffaloes forward Tory Miller (14) during the first half at Alaska Airlines Arena at Hec Edmundson Pavilion. Colorado Buffaloes guard Dominique Collier (15) watches the play at left. Mandatory Credit: Joe Nicholson-USA TODAY Sports
Jan 18, 2017; Seattle, WA, USA; Washington Huskies guard Markelle Fultz (20) dunks against Colorado Buffaloes forward Tory Miller (14) during the first half at Alaska Airlines Arena at Hec Edmundson Pavilion. Colorado Buffaloes guard Dominique Collier (15) watches the play at left. Mandatory Credit: Joe Nicholson-USA TODAY Sports /
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Jan 1, 2017; Stanford, CA, USA; Arizona Wildcats forward Lauri Markkanen (10) dunks the ball during the second half of the game against Stanford Cardinal at Maples Pavilion. Mandatory Credit: Stan Szeto-USA TODAY Sports
Jan 1, 2017; Stanford, CA, USA; Arizona Wildcats forward Lauri Markkanen (10) dunks the ball during the second half of the game against Stanford Cardinal at Maples Pavilion. Mandatory Credit: Stan Szeto-USA TODAY Sports /
Learn more about Lauri Markkanen at The Step Back.

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8

Lauri Markkanen

PF, Arizona

Lottery odds: 5.3 percent

Draft status: In with an agent

The Minnesota Timberwolves could go any number of ways in the draft after disappointing this season. The most obvious move in this spot is to take Arizona’s Lauri Markkanen to fill the power forward void and move Karl-Anthony Towns into a full-time center role.

At 7-feet tall, Markkanen fills a significant need for the Timberwolves. The Arizona freshman is likely the best shooting big man prospect in NBA Draft history. With both Ricky Rubio and Andrew Wiggins on the perimeter, Minnesota struggles as a team to shoot it from behind the arc and Markkanen can help invert the floor in a way that will open up driving lanes for both Rubio and Wiggins. He made 42.3 percent of his 3s this season while firing up 5.7 attempts per 40 minutes and shooting it well from the free throw line. Getting high quality shooting out of your bigs is valuable and few teams could use it more than Minnesota.

Adding Markkanen to the frontline, though, would put additional defensive pressure on Towns. The 19-year old offers very little resistance on the interior as a rim protector, so Towns would be needed to patrol the paint. Markkanen does have some limited ability to slide his feet on the perimeter, but his offense will be the key to his value.

Learn more about Lauri Markkanen at The Step Back.