The Timberwolves this year have a very serious need for depth, particularly at shooting guard/small forward. And they are in luck, it would seem, because this year's draft seems to be the intersection of that need and that type of player in about the No. 20 spot they will pick.

ESPN's Bobby Marks on a conference call this week talked about breaking the draft into tiers, and what someone drafting on the fringe of the lottery and beyond might be able to get.

"In that 13 to 35 grouping, we're probably going to see a flurry of 2s and 3s come on the board in that range, " he said. "If you're a team like Boston who probably doesn't have much flexibility salary cap wise, or more Minnesota, Portland, teams like that, you're probably going to get a pretty good rotational player if you want to get a wing. It's like ordering off the menu, it's just a matter of kind of which ones you want."

Read Michael Rand's blog at startribune.com/randball. mrand@startribune.com