The Timberwolves already were living in the past Thursday night, selecting in the first round of the NBA draft for the first time since 1999. So it probably made sense when they delved back further, picking a young man straight out of high school.

No one is suggesting that forward Ndudi Ebi of Westbury Christian High School in Houston is another Kevin Garnett. But Garnett remains the most successful selection in Wolves history, a prospect who wowed Kevin McHale and Flip Saunders in 1995 with his skills and potential before he ever got his diploma.

Ebi did the same thing, so in what nationally was considered a surprise pick, the Wolves grabbed him at No. 26.

The Wolves used their second-round pick, No. 55, on Gophers forward Rick Rickert, whose stock plummeted from the end of the college season to Thursday's event at Madison Square Garden in New York.

Before, during and after the draft, the Wolves were believed to be busy with trade talks, including one alleged deal that would send forward Joe Smith and guard Anthony Peeler to the Milwaukee Bucks for point guard Sam Cassell and center Ervin Johnson.