On This Day In NBA History: August 20 - Minnesota Timberwolves Win 2020 Draft Lottery
In the "Dog Days of August," there is usually not much happening around the NBA, as many teams are either filling out their rosters for training camp, getting shots up in the gym during summer workouts or they are simply relaxing by a pool somewhere, drinking margaritas and getting their mentality right ahead of the new season.
However, 2020 was not a normal year for anyone due to the coronavirus pandemic. While a select number of teams fought in the playoffs down in the NBA Bubble hosted by ESPN's Wide World of Sports Complex, others prepared for the upcoming draft and what would be a very different offseason.
On this day in 2020, the 2020 NBA Draft Lottery was conducted and the Minnesota Timberwolves won the first overall selection in the draft for just the second time in their franchise’s history, as they won the lottery in 2015 and went on to select Karl-Anthony Towns.
While they were tied with the Golden State Warriors and Cleveland Cavaliers for the best odds (14%) to end up with the No. 1 overall pick due to finishing 14th in the Western Conference standings during the 2019-20 season, the Timberwolves were given the third-best odds to end up with a Top-5 pick out of any team in the NBA entering this draft lottery.
Having a little bit of luck on their side, Minnesota claimed the No. 1 overall pick and then later utilized this pick to select Anthony Edwards first overall in the 2020 NBA Draft.
While there was some discussion of whether or not they would go with LaMelo Ball, the younger brother of former No. 2 overall pick Lonzo Ball, Edwards seemed like the obvious choice for the Timberwolves given his pure scoring and athletic abilities.
Well, so far Edwards has fit in perfectly for the Minnesota Timberwolves and next to Karl-Anthony Towns, he has helped this franchise turn themselves into a worthy threat in the Western Conference after being near the bottom of the standings for years.
Minnesota made the playoffs this past season for the first time since 2018 and just the second time since the start of the 2004-05 season, so they have definitely been trending upwards since winning this No. 1 overall pick in 2020.
Through two seasons now in the NBA, Anthony Edwards has averaged 20.3 points, 4.7 rebounds, 3.4 assists and has shot 42.9% from the floor, 34.4% from three-point range. Not to mention, Edwards has had some monster dunks early on in his career, making a little bit of money on the side with some of the “poster dunks” he has had and could market.
Now adding All-Star center Rudy Gobert this offseason, the Minnesota Timberwolves will be looking to turn themselves from a playoff threat into a real contending threat and Anthony Edwards figures to be a huge part of this.
