Despite a rumor-fueled summer focused on whether or not Minnesota Timberwolves owner Glen Taylor will sell the franchise or not, the Timberwolves struck gold Thursday night by receiving the first overall draft pick in the upcoming NBA Draft.
"People forget that Karl was playing hurt for a lot of the year last season," Timberwolves head coach Ryan Saunders told WCCO Radio's Cory Hepola on Friday morning. "For a good month and half there, people were talking about him being an MVP candidate for how he was defending. I know he has it in him and he's someone who's had to deal with a lot, especially this summer."
Towns' mother, Jacqueline, died in April after battling COVID-19.
"He's hungry," Saunders said. "He's also someone I hope people take a look at and see the strength he's been able to show in such a trying time."
A main key to the strength of the Timberwolves roster remains in the hands of Gersson Rosas, the Timberwolves President of Basketball Operations. Rosas told WCCO Radio's Henry Lake on Thursday night that the versatility of Towns and Russell lets them be aggressive in finding the best player they can possibly find.
"Whether we go big or small, we're aggressively focused in finding the best possible player we can find," Rosas said. "Whether that's in the draft or in the trade market, we will leave no stone unturned as we look at any opportunity to upgrade and improve the roster of this team."
The Timberwolves will have two first round draft picks opening another opportunity to get another young player. With changes to the NBA schedule because of COVID-19, the possibility that the Timberwolves open up one of their draft picks to bring in an NBA veteran continues to grow.
"The reality of it is that we have to keep an open mind during these processes," Rosas said. "You have to look at the market and see what's available. Our short history will show we are very aggressive. For us, the stage that we are at requires us to be proactive and requires us to proactive and requires us to be aggressive. Whether we pick those picks, or if we trade, we'll feel that we can add pieces to the puzzle that will help us move forward."
Saunders told Hepola there were some tough days in adapting to the system, but the organization is credited with finding the ability to flip the team's roster last season.
"We really opted for system over adapting to the roster we had because we believe in this system and getting the right people," he said. "It's always tough sometimes to hear it's a process as your building, but it's a journey and as you get to the end there's a lot of enjoyment in growing with the group."