Minnesota Timberwolves select Anthony Edwards with No. 1 overall pick

The Minnesota Timberwolves selected Anthony Edwards with the No. 1 overall pick in the 2020 NBA Draft.

With the No. 1 pick in the 2020 NBA Draft, the Minnesota Timberwolves selected Anthony Edwards on Wednesday night.

Despite rumors that the Wolves did not want to use this pick and would’ve preferred to trade down in the pecking order, they ultimately chose the 19-year-old Georgia product as the top overall selection.

The 6-foot-5 guard is a tremendous athlete with a (mostly) NBA-ready skill-set. He’s a better fit as an off-guard next to D’Angelo Russell than a ball-dominant passing point guard like LaMelo Ball would’ve been, and Edwards projects as a high-level scorer in the pros if he can fine-tune a few key areas of his game.

As a freshman for the Bulldogs, Edwards had no problem scoring, putting up 19.1 points per game. The only trouble was, as good as he looked by the eye-test, he only shot 40.2 percent from the floor and 29.4 percent from 3-point range.

There’s no question he’s got the tools to become an effective scorer at the next level, however. He’s an absolute bulldozer when driving to the rim, and the potential to become a big-time shot-maker is certainly there.

Edwards does have very real flaws to work on though. Aside from needing to become a more efficient scorer in general, his shot selection isn’t always great and he really needs to improve his 3-point stroke to be more effective in an off-ball role. He’s got the physical tools, speed and athleticism to be a good defender, but his awareness and focus will need to improve on that end — a necessity on a team that already has two superstars who are subpar defenders with KAT and Russell.

Even so, the Wolves chose the superior fit for their core at this spot. Edwards is not your usual no-brainer pick at No. 1, but he has a bright future nonetheless.