2020 vision: Minnesota’s sports landscape was altered by two draft choices

It is easy — maybe even fashionable? — to lament franchise-altering decisions made by Minnesota teams that have worked out poorly.

The Herschel Walker trade happened more than 33 years ago, but it's still front-brain for Minnesota fans. Timberwolves fans in particular still agonize over missing out on Steph Curry (twice!) in the 2009 NBA draft. These moments and others form the backbone of our collective angst.

But I was struck by a thought the other day, piqued by two recent markers, by a pair of decisions in the last three years that have transformed the local sports landscape for the better.

If we don't appreciate these moments enough, instead choosing to focus on the ones that got away, let's remedy that at least temporarily and acknowledge what went right when the Vikings drafted Justin Jefferson in April 2020 and, seven months later, when the Timberwolves took Anthony Edwards.

I talked about both on Tuesday's Daily Delivery podcast.

Let's start with Jefferson. He was the fifth wide receiver chosen in the draft. There were six more taken after him in the top-50. A lot of those players have made an impact, but none have come close to being as good as Jefferson, this year's AP Offensive Player of the Year.

Of particular note: The Eagles took receiver Jalen Reagor — trading him, ironically, to the Vikings before the 2022 season — at No. 21 overall, one pick before Jefferson. Imagine if the Eagles, who drafted Jalen Hurts in the second round of the same draft, had picked Jefferson instead. It's easy to imagine a dynasty in the making, especially if you imagine the impact Jefferson could have had in this year's Super Bowl.

Landing Jefferson at No. 22 was fortunate, but as noted there were plenty of other directions the Vikings still could have gone. Former GM Rick Spielman got it right.

With Edwards, it only seems obvious in retrospect that the Wolves picked him No. 1 overall now that he's blossomed into an All-Star who is still ascending.

But there was real debate that year about whether the Wolves should take Edwards, James Wiseman or LaMelo Ball. While Ball would have been a perfectly good choice as well, Wiseman's progress has stalled so much that the Warriors — who ended up taking him No. 2 overall — essentially just dumped him in a trade at the deadline last week.

Imagine if the Wolves had botched that pick, using it on Wiseman instead of Edwards, and the Warriors had wound up with Ant. We'd have another generation of tears.

But they didn't botch it. They got it right. And if you're going to lament the big losses, you'd sure better celebrate the big wins.