NBA Draft Rumors: James Wiseman Still in Play for Timberwolves' No. 1 Pick

Just over one month away from the 2020 NBA draft, the Minnesota Timberwolves are keeping their options open regarding the No. 1 overall pick. 

Per The Athletic's Sam Vecenie, the T-Wolves "are doing due diligence on all of the top prospects" in the Nov. 18 event, including center James Wiseman. 

"I don't think they'll ultimately go the direction of Wiseman ... but they've done enough work into him to where it would be wrong to totally take him off the table despite the positional overlap, per sources," Vecenie wrote.

Wiseman doesn't seem to fit on Minnesota's roster because Karl-Anthony Towns is already entrenched as the team's starting center. 

Memphis head coach Anfernee Hardaway, who had Wiseman on his roster for three games in college and coached the prospect in high school, told Jason Munz of the Memphis Commercial Appeal in August that Towns and Wiseman could work well together:

"To me, he's the No. 1 pick overall and that's Minnesota. I think him and KAT (Karl-Anthony Towns) can work really well together. They would be an unbelievable twosome, the way the league is going now. They're both mobile, they're both active. I think that would be a difference maker, having two rim protectors and guys that are highly skilled out on the perimeter."

B/R's Jonathan Wasserman has Wiseman ranked as the No. 9 overall player in the 2020 draft class but did have the Charlotte Hornets selecting him third overall in his most recent mock. 

Wiseman hasn't proved he can shoot from three-point range, but the 19-year-old has a developing mid-range game that will serve him well in the NBA. 

The Timberwolves have built their roster around Towns and D'Angelo Russell. They finished 19-45 last season and ranked in the bottom 10 in the NBA in points allowed per game and defensive rating, per Basketball Reference.

Wiseman has the defensive talent to be an immediate upgrade in the post, even if head coach Ryan Saunders would have to figure out how to make things work with Towns and the rookie.