Updated throughout the day with quick takes from staff.
If you thought Bismack Biyombo was mysterious, wait until you hear about Targuy Ngombo. The name was first floated publicly by DraftExpress late Wednesday; DX's excellent Jonathan Givony asked his Twitter followers if anyone had ever heard of him. The guy allegedly plays in Qatar, and according to DX, could be a Minnesota Timberwolves pick in the 2011 NBA Draft on Thursday.
That is assuming that Targuy Ngombo actually exists.
If DX doesn't know about a prospect, that means the prospects is in deep, deep cover. Like "potential hoax" cover. The Congo-born small forward prospect has allegedly played in Congolese and Qatari pro leagues since 2005, and according to Asia-Basket.com is just shy of 22 years old. Because he turns 22 this calendar year, NBA teams can draft him without the prospect entering his name into the draft.
He apparently averaged 16 points a game on 52 percent shooting for Qatari side Al Rayyan in the recently completed Asian Club Championships. The Asian Club Championships are not considered a high level of competition.
Every year, teams take anonymous foreign players. The Hawks took Pape Sy last year. No one has heard of him. The Cavaliers took Christian Eyenga in the first round the year prior. Only astute Spanish basketball fans and the hardcore draftniks had heard of him. Ngombo is way, way deeper than that. I'm starting to think that, emboldened by Ricky Rubio's arrival, the Wolves are just showing off.
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