Joan Beringer became the Minnesota Timberwolves' first-round pick at the 2025 NBA Draft, bringing a French center who it's believed could replace the team's current center, Rudy Gobert. Beringer is still unpolished and needs development, but he'll have a great mentor in Gobert.

Beringer lands on a team with a player who knows exactly what it is like to come over to the United States from France at a young age.

That’s the route Minnesota is taking, as the Timberwolves nabbed Joan Beringer to backup Rudy Gobert. Beringer, 18, was drafted with the No. 17 overall pick in the first round of Wednesday’s NBA draft. The 6-foot-11 Frenchman played last season for Cedevita Olimpija in Slovenia.