Lorenzo Brown, a 6'5 guard from North Carolina State, has been selected by the Minnesota Timberwolves with the No. 52 pick in the 2013 NBA Draft. Brown is known as a solid playmaker and ball handler in the backcourt, and he averaged 12.4 points, 7.2 assists and 4.3 rebounds as a junior for the Wolfpack.
NBA Draft 2013: Minnesota Timberwolves select Lorenzo Brown with No. 52 pick
The Minnesota Timberwolves went for a point guard in the NBA Draft, but this is a bit different: it was the No. 52 pick, and it was Lorenzo Brown from North Carolina State.
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Well, insert your jokes about the Minnesota Timberwolves taking a point guard in the NBA Draft. Brown was a junior that entered early like his teammate C.J. Leslie, who has not yet been taken off the board. Brown was expected to be a mid-second round pick, so he slipped maybe a few picks below where he was expected to go, but the second round is always nearly impossible to predict.
Brown has prototypical size for the point guard position, and his quickness should serve him well at the next level, However, he is not an explosive athlete, and he’s an inefficient scorer. As a junior he hit just 26.3 percent of his three-point attempts and shot a subpar 41.9 percent from the field. He can create his own looks off the dribble, but his lack of an outside shot limits his offensive potential.
The 22-year-old guard from Roswell, Ga., will need to make his mark as a penetrating point guard looking to set up teammates while he puts in work on his shooting stroke in practice. If he can put together a well-rounded offensive game, his size will become a bigger asset at the next level.
The Wolves have had one of the more active nights of any squad, dealing Trey Burke for Shabazz Muhammad and Gorgui Dieng, as well as selecting Andre Roberson in the second round. It might be tough for Brown to get minutes early, unless Ricky Rubio and/or J.J. Barea end up moving.
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