The Golden State Warriors gained a high-end draft pick when the Minnesota Timberwolves failed to reach the top three in the NBA Draft Lottery on Tuesday evening.

The Warriors already had the No. 14 pick. They will add the No. 7 pick as a result of the lottery.

Going into the NBA Draft Lottery, one of the big dramas of the proceedings surrounded the ownership of a high-end lottery pick in or near the top eight. The Timberwolves stood to retain the pick if they finished in the top three, and the Warriors would get the pick if Minnesota did not get a top-three selection.

In the just-revealed draft order, the Timberwolves came in … so the Warriors the pick.

One of the big stories of the 2021 NBA regular season was the emergence of LaMelo Ball as the NBA Rookie of the Year for the Charlotte Hornets. Many NBA analysts pointed out that the Warriors would have been in much better shape this past season if they picked Ball instead of James Wiseman with the No. 2 selection in November's 2020 NBA draft.

This point is impossible to refute, but the Warriors were thinking long-term with Wiseman, who was widely acknowledged as a high-upside prospect but also a work in progress who would need multiple seasons to adjust to the NBA game.

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The Warriors' 2021 season was knee-capped before it began. Klay Thompson suffered an injury which knocked him out for the whole season. Legitimate championship aspirations died with that injury. Wiseman was deprived of the chance to share the court with Klay, which undeniably made his rookie season a lot harder.

What can clearly be said about the Warriors as they prepare for this summer's draft is that they can't draft a project. They need an instant-impact player.

this pick the Timberwolves means the Warriors have in the 2021 NBA draft. If they want to maximize Steph Curry's chances of making another push to the NBA Finals, they have to get this one right.