The Minnesota Timberwolves have the foundation of a great team on their hands, a team that has made the playoffs each of the last five years and been in the Conference Finals twice in that span. But, they've come up short each time and looking ahead to the 2026 NBA Draft, there are some holes in the roster they may be able to fix.

The number one gap in the Timberwolves' roster that needs to be addressed is in their back court. Minnesota lacked a true point guard all season, instead opting to put Julius Randle in more of a hybrid role as the main facilitator on the court and relying on Anthony Edwards' sheer talent to make up for the gaps in scoring that created.

It's not a sustainable long-term strategy and for the Timberwolves to be able to build toward a more stable future offensively, they'll need a true point guard that can direct traffic on the floor and serve the rest of what's been an impressive offense in Minnesota.

The draft is the most straightforward way for the Timberwolves to do that. The earliest they pick in the draft is at 28th overall, a pick that they acquired from the Detroit Pistons. While that puts them out of contention for any of the most premier talent in the draft, it still leaves them in the first round with an opportunity to add talent.

Anything can happen that late in the first round and there's no real way to predict who will be available, but there are three guards that, if they're up for grabs late in the first round, the Timberwolves need to add to the team. 

Meleek Thomas had an impressive freshman season with the Razorbacks, averaging 15.6 points, 3.8 rebounds and 2.5 assists per game.

While he isn't exactly the prototypical playmaker at the guard slot, his fast pace and presence on the court could suit the Timberwolves if they went for a gunslinging approach with the back court.

Thomas' confidence and aggressiveness when it comes to his shots has helped to make him a scorer than can create his own opportunities and his efficiency at 43.5% from the field and 41.6% from three was able to make up for his shaky shot selection at the college level. 

Thomas has experience being a second option as well, playing next to Darius Acuff Jr. at Arkansas, and that kind of experience could translate into playing with Edwards.

Ebuka Okorie showed out in his freshman season at Stanford, and while he could go anywhere from the early 20s down to Minnesota's pick in he draft, Okorie has the kind of shot-creating acumen that the Timberwolves are looking for on their roster. 

He averaged 23.2 points, 3.6 rebounds and 3.6 assists per game for the Cardinals and while he had the responsibility of being the leading scorer by close to 10 points at Stanford, he could adapt to taking more of a back seat in Minnesota and creating opportunities for Minnesota's heavy hitters while being an offensive threat himself. 

Bennett Stirtz is likely a long shot to be available when it comes to Minnesota's turn at selecting, but should he fall to the end of the first round, the Timberwolves need to at least consider picking him up.

His basketball IQ and court vision is exactly what the Timberwolves need to grease the wheels of their offense and Stirtiz can be an especially effective pairing with Edwards. 

Stirtz has the advantage of playing two seasons in college, which lends him just a little bit more experience on the court, but that can go a long way.

He averaged 19.8 points, 2.6 rebounds and 4.4 assists per game for the Iowa Hawkeyes in the 2025-26 season. His shooting shows a lot of promise, going 47.7% from the field this past season, but his abilities as a passer are his biggest plus.