NBA Draft 2020: Biggest winners and losers from the Draft Lottery

Winner: Anthony Edwards 

The 2020 NBA Draft lacks consensus. It lacks uniformity among draftniks and reporters and evaluators alike, who all perceive the class with different lenses and clashing views on which prospects are better or worse than others.

The sentiment is true for the tip-top of the class as well, with no consensus No. 1 pick established yet, though it is seemingly agreed that the young trio of Anthony Edwards, LaMelo Ball, and James Wiseman are solidified as the favorites to hear their names called within the first three picks or so.

All three teenagers are winners here. They’re going to become multimillionaires overnight, entering the NBA with bright futures and lofty expectations. But only one of them can go first overall, and when examining the roster constructions and weighing the probabilities of who goes where it’s Edwards who has the momentum to be this year’s top pick.

It’s not set in stone by any means; this is definitely a for-the-time-being inclusion. But consider what the top three teams — Minnesota, Golden State, and Charlotte — currently offer and currently desire, and how these factors impact the overall range of outcomes for the top three prospects.

Minnesota could pass on Ball if they view Edwards as a better fit next to Karl-Anthony Towns and D’Angelo Russell, and Wiseman is essentially eliminated from consideration due to the positional redundancy, unless the Timberwolves want to usher in a new era of Twin Towers basketball (and historically awful defense with it).

The Warriors are rumored to like Wiseman and are quite low on Ball, but Bob Myers is prioritizing winning, which makes the selection of Deni Avdija or a complete trade-out — they have a hefty $17.2 million trade exception at hand — as tempting options. And Charlotte would likely be all-in on a Wiseman selection should he be available, but could foreseeably pass on Ball if Michael Jordan and co. want to look elsewhere.

Given that Edwards is one of the two players Minnesota will consider and could present the Warriors with the highest trade value, or immediate off-the-bench scoring should they pick and keep him, it’s hard seeing him slip past them.

At the very worst, Edwards seems like a lock to go in the top two, whereas Wiseman (top three) and Ball (top four) have wider ranges, at least for the time being. Because of that, Edwards is the biggest winner among the top prospects in the 2020 NBA Draft as the early favorite to go first overall.