Hartman: Vikings, Spielman thrilled to land Floyd at No. 23

There is little doubt that the Vikings had Florida defensive lineman Sharrif Floyd rated as a top-10 prospect, but when you are drafting 23rd you don't typically get a player of that caliber.

Vikings General Manager Rick Spielman described the process the team went through to get Floyd, a truly outstanding athlete projected by Sports Illustrated's Peter King to be taken third in the draft.

"It was funny, as you sit there and try to be patient through this whole process and you watch the draft board coming off, you see all those offensive linemen going off early," Spielman said. "I think this was a unique draft where there were so many talented players but they were all so close together.

"There wasn't a significant drop-off between maybe the eighth player and where we were picking down below. So teams really try to step in and fill their needs, and it just happened to work out for us that most of the players that went in the first half of that round were offensive linemen, which significantly pushed some defensive linemen and some defensive backs down to us."

Spielman added he had a feeling that after Floyd got past Chicago that Cincinnati wasn't going to take him, and then when Atlanta traded up with St. Louis for the 22nd pick, he knew Atlanta was going after a cornerback.

At that point, the Vikings were feeling very good that they were going to get Floyd.

According to Spielman, part of the draft preparation is making sure the Vikings understood other teams' needs and how they would fill those needs.

Spielman said he had followed Floyd's career for some time and that the Vikings really started to follow the Gators standout once he declared he was going pro after his junior year.

Asked when Floyd made an impression with him, Spielman said: "Probably the first time I put the tape on him and was watching him in the fall. He is a young defensive lineman. He played out of position as a defensive end and was not as productive in 2011. Then last year they moved him to his natural position, which is a defensive tackle.

"He had the ability to play over the nose, or in the 3-technique, in the under tackle, as we call them. He is very physical at the point against the run, he has natural instincts, and he has unique quickness to be a very effective pass rusher at this next level."

Spielman said that Floyd will need to work on those pass-rushing skills — he had only three sacks last year at Florida — but that is going to be the job of the Vikings coaches, and Spielman said Floyd has so many natural athletic tools that he will keep developing.

Former Star Tribune staff writer Steve Aschburner of NBA.com reported what I speculated two months ago, that David Kahn won't be back next year as the Timberwolves president of basketball operations and will be succeeded by ex-Wolves coach Flip Saunders.

Saunders, who works for ESPN, denied the report while on the air on Friday by saying: "Glen Taylor and myself, we've had a great relationship for 20 years, since I've been there. We talk constantly about situations in the league, whether it be the league, whether it be players. Right now what develops we'll have to wait and see. But right now there's nothing developing down the road."

Well, I'm convinced that the only factor that will prevent Saunders' return is if coach Rick Adelman said he won't come back if he has to work with him.

Twins 2012 first-round pick Byron Buxton, who is playing at Class A Cedar Rapids, entered Saturday at or near the top in most offensive statistical categories in the Midwest League: a .400 batting average, .524 on-base percentage and .662 slugging percentage. The 19-year-old from Georgia, who was selected No. 2 overall last summer, also led the league in runs scored (19) and was tied for third in RBI (16) and walks (16).

Meanwhile, as for some former Twins, shortstop Tsuyoshi Nishioka is back playing with the Hanshin Tigers in Japan, the team he played with for eight seasons before coming to the major leagues in 2011. He is playing well in his first year back in Japan. Through 22 games he was hitting .341 with 11 runs scored, 10 RBI and four stolen bases.

Delmon Young recently began a rehab assignment for Philadelphia following microfracture surgery on his ankle. The Phillies are concerned about his ability to play the outfield on a regular basis; he was mostly a designated hitter with Detroit in 2012. General Manager Ruben Amaro Jr. said: "If he can't play defense, he can't play in the National League. He's going to have to be adequate out there."