Wolves' drafting of Leonard Miller, Jaylen Clark turns focus to finding cheap, overachieving players

When the Timberwolves made the trade for Rudy Gobert last summer, they did so under the rules of the old collective bargaining agreement, not knowing the NBA would institute the new so-called "second apron" above the luxury tax line.

Teams that go over this second apron, which is set $17.5 million above the luxury tax line, will face harsh penalties beyond paying luxury tax. They will have their abilities to make trades and sign free agents severely restricted.

With all that in place for next season and beyond, getting talent that is cheap and plays above their contract early in their careers will be necessary to round out competitive rosters that will be heavy on big contracts on the top end — as the Wolves could be in future years.

So it was no surprise that the Wolves, after trading away first-round picks in 2023, 2025, 2027 and 2029, looked to use some of the second-round draft capital they acquired in the midseason Mike Conley-D'Angelo Russell three-team trade to grab an additional player now.

They accomplished that Thursday by trading a 2026 second-rounder acquired from Utah and their own 2028 second-rounder to San Antonio for the 33rd pick in this year's draft to select G League riser Leonard Miller. They then used their own 53rd pick to take UCLA guard Jaylen Clark, who will require time to recover from an Achilles injury before he is back full time, perhaps midseason. Instead of having just one player in the pipeline filling out the roster cheaply in the immediate future, the Wolves added two.

"We're out a bunch of first-round picks, so we're probably a bit more aggressive trying to find guys that are maybe a year early, or guys that have slipped for an injury, for example, like Jaylen," Wolves President Tim Connelly said. "I don't think we can just follow too many trends. We've got to be creative and kind of cross our fingers."

Connelly acknowledged the "odds are stacked against" any second-round picks succeeding, but the Wolves, along with many other teams, need to take as many cracks as they can at finding successes late in the draft.

"We know that we've given up a lot of firsts, so how can we creatively find value and find young players that hopefully can play up to that level?" Connelly said.

As for the players they drafted, the Wolves like Miller's potential on both ends of the floor given his combination of size and quickness. He has the ability to handle the ball and at 6-10, was a high-level rebounder with the G League Ignite (averaging 11 boards per game) and showed an ability to get the offense kick-started in transition. His length and quickness also make him an asset on defense.

The Wolves liked how Miller improved as the G League season went along, which many mock drafts noted around the basketball world when they ranked Miller as a late first-round pick. The Wolves also liked what they saw and pounced for Miller when he dropped to No. 33. He will have to work on his jumper (33% from three-point range on limited attempts), but no player drops to the second round without caveats.

Clark's biggest caveat is the Achilles injury he suffered in March. Before that, Connelly said the Wolves had a first-round grade on the Pac-12 Defensive Player of the Year and called him the best wing defender in the draft.

"In the second round you're trying to find some chances for some market inefficiencies," Connelly said. "Sometimes if a guy gets hurt and drops and you can be patient you can get a pretty high upside return. This guy is everything we like in a player in terms of competitiveness and toughness."

With the lack of first-round draft capital, the Wolves have to find players in the draft where they can. Miller and Clark are projects for the long term, but if one or both can flourish, in addition to last year's draft picks in Wendell Moore Jr. and Josh Minott, the Wolves will be better equipped to tackle an uncertain salary cap future beyond this season.