Most 2011 NBA mock drafts have sent Arizona forward Derrick Williams to the Minnesota Timberwolves, but ESPN's Doug Gottlieb changed things up by projecting Kentucky center Enes Kanter during a television segment on Wednesday.
Gottlieb's top five mock draft had Kyrie Irving going to the Cleveland Cavaliers, Kanter to the Wolves, Williams to the Utah Jazz, Jan Vesely to the Cavs for their second pick and Tristan Thompson to the Toronto Raptors with the fifth pick.
"I see David Kahn probably having this pick in play, but based on my big board and most scouts I've talked to's big board, I think Kanter goes two," Gottlieb said while breaking down the top five picks. "Minnesota already has some combos, some 3/4s, and that's what Derrick Williams is."
It makes sense that Kanter, a 6-foot-10 center that sat out this past season due to eligibility issues with the Kentucky Wildcats, is projected to the Wolves considering Darko Milicic isn't the answer. However, it isn't easy to take a player that sat out all of last season with the second overall pick, especially when tihs year's NBA Draft has long been considered to contain two good players and a cloud of dust.