--The Wolves' upcoming third pick matches their highest slot in the draft. It equals 1992, when the team took Christian Laettner third after Shaquille O'Neal and Alonzo Mourning were already chosen.
If they won this time, Kevin McHale made it pretty clear who he considers the best player in the draft: Kansas State's Beasley. "Beasley is by far, in my opinion, by far the most advanced," McHale said. "He can rebound. He can pass it. He can handle it. He can post it. He can shoot it right-handed, left-handed. He can make a 25-footer. He's really got the whole package from a basketball standpoint. His character is something people are going to look at very carefully."
McHale has concerns about Beasley's outside shooting.
"There's some real questions about his shot," he said. "He has to be a better shooter and I think he will be a better shooter. I know one thing: If you're going to play next to Al Jefferson, you better be able to do this (raised his arm and made a shooting motion)."
--McHale said he's more excited to watch young, returning players Jefferson, Craig Smith, Corey Brewer, Rashad McCants and Chris Richard work out together at Target Center this soon after the season ended than he was with anticipating the team's lottery result. He said his team's future will depend more upon how it "evolves within" than a top draft pick it will add.
"I never thought we were a 22-win team," McHale said, referring to the absence of guard Randy Foye for three months. "We didn't do quite as good as Chicago, but we're adding a heck of a good player to a really nice nucleus of guys that I really, truly like."
QUOTE TO NOTE: "The good news is, the next time a doctor gives me a prognosis with a two percent chance of living, I'm going to say, 'No problem, I've seen it happen before. I have no reason to worry." -- Wolves vice president of basketball operations Kevin McHale, on Chicago beating the odds with its 1.7 percent to win the first pick in the June 26 draft.
